It’s a fact of life just like the sun rises in the East and sets in the West: older people will always find something to criticize about the younger generations. The former grumble, the latter roll their eyes, but soon enough, those youngsters are looking at each new generation and wondering what the everlovin’ frick is going on, why they’re behaving so oddly, and why their music sounds like pure noise.
A thread created by u/VisibleConfusion12 went viral on r/AskReddit after it sparked a very interesting discussion in the online community. The OP wanted to know what things young people love that older internet users plain don’t understand, and we’ve collected some of the most interesting insights to share with you. Scroll down to read what they had to say and upvote the posts you agree with.
We got in touch with the author of the thread, redditor u/VisibleConfusion12, who was kind enough to share their thoughts on the topic. Read on for Bored Panda's interview with them.
#1
The unending need to share everything on social media including their meals, their children, their partners everything.
Image credits: Aggravating_Boy3873
Personally, we feel like there will always be friction between members of different generations because their values and environments differ. Probably the most obvious case we see these days is between Baby Boomers and, well, pretty much everyone else. Boomers tend to think that kids these days don’t work hard enough and should learn to save instead of eating avocado toast and buying lattes at Starbucks.
Meanwhile, Millennials and Zoomers believe that Boomers had it very easy when it came to buying up cheap property and finding well-paying jobs that were enough to take care of the entire family and provide a high quality of life. However, some of the things that unite different generations include the love of nostalgia (albeit for very different things) and the increasing awareness of how important it is to take care of our bodies as we age.
#2
Film random strangers without consent to make fun of them online all for internet 'clout'.
Image credits: Lizgreyisoficial
#3
I really hate the TikTok voice.
Image credits: Ohhhhhhthehumanity
According to redditor u/VisibleConfusion12, they personally find TikTok, the video-sharing platform, to be one of the oddest things that the younger generations enjoy.
"I would have to say TikTok as a whole," they told Bored Panda what they find strange. "There is a TON of stuff that is considered bad," they said, referring to videos full of hate speech, as well as dangerous trends and challenges that nobody should do.
"I would also add newer fashion which is pretty strange. But compared to older fashion, it might beat it by a mile," they said. Though the OP admits that both "older fashion and newer fashion" confuse them either way.
#4
Talking loudly with your phone on speaker while in public. Older people do it, too.WTF is *that* all about?
Image credits: CGB_Spender
#5
Filming every little thing. Like why are they filming them doing basic stuff like grocery shopping?
Image credits: AdrianValistar
#6
Filming themselves crying.
Image credits: Proteinoats
We were interested to find out what inspired redditor u/VisibleConfusion12 to ask such an interesting question in the first place. They were happy to tell us all about it.
"I came up with the idea with the help of my nephew! He was scrolling TikTok and came across a 'cringey' video," the OP told Bored Panda that their 14-year-old nephew then showed them the video clip which got them thinking about the (sometimes vast) differences between generations.
"The video in question was a girl complaining, saying she will be upset if you misgender her. My nephew then told me that his generation was probably the most questionable, which gave me the idea which I later posted later on Reddit," they shared what led them to spark the discussion on r/AskReddit.
In the OP's view, it's difficult to find a definitive answer as to why each generation criticizes those that come after it. In their opinion, it all comes down to what the members of each new generation do and how this clashes with what older generations enjoy.
#7
Extravagant proms and baby showers.
Image credits: ThatBlackGirl93
#8
The Andrew Tate style of misogynistic alpha male b******t that so many young men seem to buy into. I guess I kind of get how they're susceptible to that sort of stuff, but the ideology doesn't really make much sense.I think most of the rest of the stuff like tik tok, hairstyles, and clothing is just a "kids these days" kind of thing where people aren't open minded enough to realize the stuff they were into as kids was seem as being just as stupid by the older generation. Because really, it boils down to it just being different and new.
Image credits: Interesting_Pudding9
#9
Social media celebrities.
Image credits: Existing_Ganache_293
To put it simply, people tend to feel nostalgic for those times in our lives when they were happiest and most carefree. We might associate that period of time with certain activities, people, shows, or even products and we come back to them when we’re feeling down and need a boost. That’s why you might have a sudden urge to plug in an old console or find a very old movie to watch when you’re blue.
And though nostalgia can help us power through tough times in our lives, it has some destructive potential as well. For example, if we constantly daydream about how things used to be (and how awful everything is now), we might miss genuinely good opportunities in the present. It’s fine to reminisce about the past, so long as your present and future don’t suffer for it.
Yes, the entertainment industry may have had far better standards back when you were a young adult! But it doesn’t mean that absolutely every film, song, and game that’s crafted these days is an abomination. As in every area of life, there will be a minority of truly high-quality products, surrounded by a vast majority of junk. It’s a widespread phenomenon known as Sturgeon’s law.
#10
All these s****y prank videos on people in public.The public tik tok dancing.
I can't handle the second hand embarrassment when someone is dancing in aisle 5.
Image credits: MiseryLovesMisery
#11
Watching unboxing videos.
Image credits: TargetPlastic7505
#12
Snapchat and location sharing. It's so vain. Humans are not meant to be that connected.
Image credits: jeremyjack3333
The simple fact of the matter is that everyone is getting older. And no matter how awesome your metabolism is right now, you’ve got to sit down and think about the future. Consider what habits you need to start developing right now so that you age with dignity and can maintain a high standard of living.
Some of the best things that you can do to maintain your physical and mental health as you get older include getting plenty of exercise, eating well (avoid processed food, added sugar, and saturated fats as much as you can), having an active social life, and doing activities that bring you joy, whether that’s meditating, hiking in your local woodlands, painting, or collecting vinyl from the good old days—when music used to sound better!
#13
Referring to anybody people don't like as narcissistic. Every form of lying or even just disagreement is gaslighting.
Image credits: GreenDogTag
#14
Declaring everything is a result of a mental illness. Sometimes people are just a******s.
Image credits: religionlies2u
#15
I dont understand certain genres of tiktok/YouTube videos. Who is entertained by those videos where it's a robot voice reading out reddit comments while subway surfer is being played on screen? Who is the audience for those videos where some dude with an awful haircut asks people risqué questions either on a college campus or at the beach?
Image credits: PhreedomPhighter
#16
Those large, spider-looking, over-the-top fake eyelashes.#17
The amount of online content so many people create. It's f*****g work! How do they have time for this?
Image credits: MsGhoulWrangler
#18
Listening to the music on mobile speaker while walking around the street or travelling via public transportation
Image credits: luchilu
#19
YouTube reaction videos. I don’t understand what’s interesting about watching someone react to watching a different video.#20
Im still young, but Mukbang videos. I like cooking shows, but watching someone pig out on camera is just gross.
Image credits: PubicKnitting
#21
The videos where they say it's a "life hack" when it's just common sense.Aka "try out this crazy life hack for perfectly cut bagles, EVERYTIME!"
Proceeds to use a bagel cutter.
Like, seriously??? You need someone to tell you that?
#22
The idea that shame shouldn’t exist#23
Facetiming people instead of calling them. Unless you have to show me something, I prefer not to show my face on screen
Image credits: BuscemiLuvr
#24
As a teacher, I get enormously annoyed by the idea that it seems cool to be stupid for a significant amount of teens. Like being actually proud of lacking or pretending to lack basic knowledge or primary skills. Over the last 2 weeks I had a 14 y old pretending not to know who the figure of Christ was, a kid claiming not to know how to use a ruler and one who claimed to never have used scissors…Update: 5 min ago a 14y old asked me wether pigs have ears…
Image credits: django2605
#25
Those dumb looking broccoli/ramen haircuts all the f**k boys are wearing now.And the ironic pedo staches and mullets. It's a weird time to be a young guy, this s**t won't age well lol.
#26
22 here so this definitely applies to older folks as well but for the love of all things large and small: **why the hell is mumble rap still a thing**.I'm not talkin Eminem, Tupac, Biggie, etc. I'm referring to the untalented, autotuned nitwits that try to pass their 'gangta' mumbles off as music. Now granted, I know I have a rather eclectic taste in music, but holy c**p some of these 'artist' somehow are both autotuned and still sound like their actively riding the dope dragon in the studio.
#27
Recording videos of themselves dancing in the middle of a Home Depot.#28
Long a*s fake nails. How do you even go to the bathroom with those things without hurting yourself? They’re not even attractive. I don’t get it.Edit: To be clear, I’m talking LONG here, like inches long. I have longish natural nails and I love getting them done, but I’ve seen people with nails that are over 2 inches long and I don’t understand how you can be productive with nails like that. I’m not mad about it, I just honestly don’t get the hype.
#29
putting random cooking or “satisfying” videos next to the main video on tiktok. i don’t know if it started as a trick to keep people’s attention, but as someone with diagnosed and lifelong ADD, they’re only distracting and take away from what the main video is. it drives me up the wall and no matter how many times i press “not interested” i still get videos like that on my fyp. i hope this trend dies out sometime soon#30
Prime - the drink. Simply don’t understand the hype.Snapchat and streaks.
#31
The new Disney remakes#32
Vaping and TikTok.#33
Cosmetic stuff in video games, some of it is kind of cool but I don’t understand the amount of value people put on it.#34
Filming everything they do and putting it online. I prefer to be mostly anonymous#35
Just because you *have* a Bluetooth speaker doesn't mean you should be blasting your s****y music. I don't want to hear f*****g Fetty Wap at like 8 am when I'm getting a donut at 7-11. Like, am I the only person left on earth who appreciates silence once in a while?#36
Self diagnosing their mental illnesses#37
F*****g squash mallows. I thought they at least did something. They're like $25 a piece! IT'S JUST A PILLOW.that being said i was a product of the beanie baby generation so what the f**k do i know
#38
Watching gaming streams. Watching your older brother hog the controller instead of being able to play yourself was considered torture when I grew up.Edit: a few of you have mentioned that it's like watching sports and that is a good point. Since I don't do that either, I guess it's just lost on me.
#39
Pretending they’re gangsters#40
I am 24 years old (so still pretty young) but there are two things which I cannot understand at all:1: Obsession with Starbucks. Why do so many teenagers and people in early 20's spend so much money and time on Starbucks? I am from Europe and the first store opened in my country only 2 years ago. Tried it (not only the coffee, some other things too) and it was absolutely awful. I am sure all bigger cities have a place with better coffee or sweets
2: Underage girls dancing on TikTok - now I understand the other comments here defending how creating videos and pics and posting them constantly on social media can be a coping mechanism, but what kind of coping mechanism is being 16/17/18, putting on a crop top and ripped jeans or a mini skirt and dancing in front of a camera to a song which often has very sexual and mature lyrics? Are they the type of girls who are too afraid to go outside and talk to guys/girls or are they part of a scheme to catch pedophiles?
#41
Wearing hoodies when it's hot af outside#42
I don't understand the search for friendships, validation and approval via sharing themselves online. There's something so paper thin about it.I understand the irony of replying with this on a social networking site like Reddit.
#43
Most Tik Tok videos. Imo it’s just mindless entertainment. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a place for entertainment that allows you to completely check out and just absorb just complete stupidity. That can be fun. But children waste hours of their day just mindlessly scrolling on tik tok when those videos have absolutely no substance.#44
I don’t know if it’s the misanthrope speaking or the aging millennial or what but I can’t f*****g STAND the “look at how good of a person I am” type s**t. It’s not so much the videos. It’s people writing these lengthy a*s stories including things that were “said” quotes and everything about how they helped a woman at a gas station because three OTHER dudes were harassing her (that’s just the most recent one I saw earlier today). And it’s like…cool man, none of that probably happened…BUT if it actually did, why do you feel the need to write a lengthy post and then admonish people not doing the same?Personally, if I saw a woman going through something like that, I’d probably silently try to make sure she’s okay if that doesn’t work, then I’d step in. I’d probably get my a*s beat if it were actually a dangerous situation. And also, I’d be afraid the woman would think I’m just joining in with the other dudes and freak her the f**k out even more. But regardless, I sure as f**k wouldn’t feel the need to announce it. HEY LOOK HOW GREAT I AM! DID YOU READ MY STORY ABOUT HOW IM A BETTER PERSON THAN YOU!?
#45
Shorts. I do not have any idea how TikTok or Facebook reels are so popular.All I know is they are almost always more annoying the shorter their length is.
#46
Voice messages. Unsearchable, time-consuming, why?#47
Glorying ignorance and writing everything wrong on purpose.#48
The urge to follow social media trends.#49
I am a high school teacher. I can understand the TikToks and the vaping and stuff even if I think they’re dumb, but there’s one thing that I just done get.I have more than one student that will just. Moan. Very sexually. Out loud. In the classroom. And everyone thinks it’s hilarious and joins in.
I can’t even explain it to the principal without getting embarrassed.