Busy Signal(s): Our Wired Generation

the first part of the series "Teens and Technology" from the Rebelution.com...

Busy Signal(s): Our Wired Generation

“Last night, I was watching “Sex in the City” on TiVo with my friend and my dad. I heard this song. I really wanted to download it, but I didn’t know what it was called. So, first I went online and I tried to download. I couldn’t, but then I was online. One of my friends who had been out of town was back, and I saw him online and we started talking. Then I went back to watch “Sex in the City.” I just kept going back and forth. I was eating ice cream too. Then I checked my email. It was late at night. It was getting later. So I was just talking to people. No one really went out because it was Father’s Day.”

~ Heather, 11th grade, Chicago, June 2003 ~

Welcome to the Generation of the Millenials (born 1980+) — we are plugged-in, switched on, charged up, and constantly connected to a network of digital devices and multimedia, bringing the “world” to our fingertips in a way no previous generation has experienced.

According to a June 2003 study conducted by Harris Interactive and Teenage Research Unlimited (TRU), the average 13-24 year old spends a cumulative 50 hours per week talking on the phone, listening to the radio, surfing the Internet, and watching television. That’s more time than they spend in school — and it doesn’t even include watching movies, listening to music, or emailing.

We live in an age where computers, video game consoles, cell phones, satellite & cable television, PSP’s, digital cameras, IMing, PDA’s, iPods and TiVo rule the teenage playground — with more and more teens owning them and using them.

On a typical day, a teenager selects from 200+ cable television networks, 5,500 consumer magazine titles, 10,500 radio stations, 30 million blogs, and over 2 billion websites. There are currently 240 million television sets in the U.S. — 2 million of which are in bathrooms. [1]

Studies continue to show that not only is media and technology pervasive — we can’t get away from it — but more and more teenagers believe they couldn’t live without it. Vicky, a 17-year-old from Chicago, describes life without Internet as, “Tormented: I would just be sitting, trying to think of something to do. That would be my life.”

Clearly, this cultural phenomenon deserves our generation’s critique, as well our involvement. We cannot afford to act as passive spectators in a digital revolution which is reshaping us, our peers, and our world.

The consequences of media saturation, such as multitasking and our dependence on instant gratification, must be addressed. The effects of media saturation on brain function, school and work performance, family relationships, and our walk with God must be carefully examined.

Technology is not bad. We must look for the positive and innovative ways in which we can use and adapt to new technology. But we must never forget what it can’t do — and more importantly — what we can’t do while we’re using it.

To Be Continued.

[1] “Born To Be Wired: The Role of New Media for Digital Generation” Executive Summary from Harris Interactive and Teenage Research Unlimited (TRU) - Commissioned by Yahoo! and Carat Interactive.
[2] Images courtesy of Harris Interactive and Teenage Research Unlimited (TRU)

The Perfection Mandate

this is a post off of Jasmine Baucham's blog, www.joyfullyathome.blogspot.com. Enjoy!

The Perfection Mandate

When you were a little girl, maybe you were a bit like me, sitting in a circle of other young women, having been slightly brainwashed by the Disney fairy-tales you'd seen, discussing Prince Charming in all his stunning glory. Our point of reference for true romance was, for the most part, handsome Disney princes with perfect hair, spotless breeches, and melodious tenor voices. I liked The Beast.

When you are a teenager, perhaps that point of reference shifts from Snow White's nameless Prince to Elizabeth Bennett's haughty pursuer. Or maybe you prefer Captain Wentworth or Colonel Brandon. Perhaps you like Mr. Rochester or Heathcliff from the Bronte sisters' claims to fame, or Laurie, from "Little Women," or Mr. Brook. Personally, for me, it's always been Mr. Knightly.

And then, perhaps, you realize that most of these heroes were all spun by the imagination of a nineteenth century spinster, so you opt for a more spiritual approach and modify your standards. "Fine, Lord, I want a man totally committed to your will in His life, passionate about the gospel and cultural reformation... who just happens to look just like Matthew Macfadyen (or Colin Firth)."

Before we set our standards too high, though, we should think this thought: what ridiculously high expectations have the young men in our lives placed on the young women they someday hope to marry?

Many of us would be indignant if young men expected us to look like Anne Hathaway, to act like Anne Elliot, to have an accent like Kate Winslet, to be as tall as Cate Blanchet, and yet to be as spiritually mature as Sarah Edwards or as intelligent as Abigail Adams! Perhaps a bit of that cultural feminist entitlement would rear it's ugly head, "How dare they place such high expectations on us! We can't possibly be perfect!"

Right. And as overwhelming was for us when we were looking at those perfect Disney princes when we were younger, and swooning over British lit. characters when we were teens, we'd expect the men in our lives to disregard the high-gloss magazine covers that portray absolutely perfect women, the films they see with women oozing with charm, and the naive ideals they may have about how a woman should conduct herself.

That would be a double standard, but it's one we're battling with in our culture. Feminist, autonomous women want gallant, self-sacrificing men; selfish, feminized men want charming, submissive wives, but both sets refuse to look into the Bible for their personal standards, and both sets end up frustrated that they either can't seem to "find" anyone, or attract a counterpart that isn't at all what they'd imagined.

As charismatic as Mr. Knightly may be, I haven't seen him gallivanting around in the twenty-first century, nor should you expect to. As beautiful and multi-faceted as Elinor Dashwood may appear, I am not her, and neither are you. Who we are is children of a sovereign King Who has given us biblical standards for true femininity and masculinity, standards that supersede every romantic notion in our heads, and standards that will be a much stronger foundation for a God-honoring marriage.

I'm not advocating that we shouldn't have a standard; just that maybe we should modify it a bit. You know, a great book to read on the subject of true biblical manhood is called "What He Must Be if He Wants to Marry My Daughter..." I may have mentioned it before. :-) The book won't have a cutout with the tuxedo measurements, a resume, and an address for that "perfect" guy, but it will present a more realistic view of what to pray for in a husband, and what to strive for as a future wife. When we look to the Bible for standards for a spouse, our reaction shouldn't be to be nitpicky perfectionists, but to look at ourselves; if we want to be a suitable helpmeet for "What He Must Be," we have to find out "What She Must Be."

Candlelit dinners, moonlight serenades, and gallant proposals have their proper place, but, at this point in our lives, as we look to the future, that place shouldn't be at the forefront of our minds.

Though it may be difficult to give up our fairy-tale notions of what a real romance should look like, it may be a little bit easier to bear if 1) we realize that we would never want a man to hold us to the same superficial "lights, camera, action" standard that we're holding them to, and 2) the story and the man that God has for us is better than anything we could ever imagine. At least, that's what I've heard. :-)

written by Jasmine Baucham