Tuesday, May 27, 2008

The pursuit of...?

Ann Applebaum has an interesting op-ed about the overworked and over achievement of today's kids and the parents who raise them. One is constantly reminded that today's kids are over confident know nothings that need to be questioned carefully. I was reminded last night at dinner at a restaurant here in Washington DC. We asked the young perky waitress if they still had any Lobster specials (our favorite dish at this restaurant and one that is frequently sold out) Oh sure she said confidently. So we were looking forward to that meal when after the appetizers she came back with: "I am so sorry...." The restaurant of course did not have any more Lobster. This is not the first time this has happened with the young confident responding wait staff. They often sound so confident but, often really don't know the answers. As Applebaum writes:
"Thus our kids are both stupider than we were and harder working -- though perhaps this makes sense. America is, after all, the industrialized country with the fewest paid vacations, as well as the only nation, as far as I know, that considers the "pursuit of happiness" a fundamental right. We invented both the assembly line and the modern notion of "leisure"

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