Gandhi once said, “You must be the change you wish to see in this world.” Unfortunately, many kids in my school and in the nation view “this world” as their world. They are too busy living in their own high school soap opera that they have lost sight of the national and international issues unfolding around them.
Many of my friends don’t know or care who the Iranian president is, what the terms of agreement are for North Korea and its nuclear weapons testing, or who the first female speaker of Congress is. However, they could tell you in the blink of an eye who Jessica Simpson is dating, where Lindsay Lohan is attending rehab, and what happened last week on “The Hills.”
While there is nothing wrong with a little entertainment, I am afraid that when it comes time for my generation to govern, my peers will not be able to guide our nation. They have not paid attention to where we came from, so they will not be able to see where we are going.
As more teens are becoming either celebrity- or self-obsessed, I am witnessing the evaporation of the American culture, to a pop-culture nation.
We need to take the time now to educate ourselves on current events, perhaps by covering news in a way that will engage and apply to teenagers and young adults. The worldly problems today will be our problems to solve tomorrow.
Like John Mayer would say (well, sing), “one day our generation is going to rule the population.” In order to do this, teens not only in my high school, but also in my country, need to become mindful of the world around them, rather than be narrow-minded.
This article appeared on My Teen blog at khou.com