this post was submitted on 03 Aug 2023
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Alternatively: the idea of alternative subcultures being "cringe" and worthy of ridicule, attack and condescending bullying like this rightfully dies out with your generation.
Elder millennial here. Personally I view this as the kind of good natured ribbing that comes from a healthy relationship between an older and younger sibling. I think our generation (and Gen X too) have an overall positive view of Gen Z, but you are out of your mind if you think we're going to pass up an opportunity to give them some shit when it's warranted!
Rainmanslim's comment doesn't strike me as mean-spirited at all. If anything it's the opposite of condescending because it acknowledges that the cringiness of being a teenager knows no generational bounds. Embrace it and enjoy it, and then enjoy it again when you're old enough to laugh at your younger self!
The same "good natured ribbing" between siblings that people constantly mislabel as such even though it's simply bullying, but "boys will be boys", eh? Sibling relationships that are built on laughing at each other are not "cute".
Well, guess what, I don't want to "laugh at my younger self" some time. And I don't want you to "give me some shit" when you think it's warranted either. That's literally just called bullying, and when someone stands up to that, you probably tell them to "learn how to take a joke". And that's exactly the mindset (and kind of people) I hope will die out sooner than later.
I want to be a person I would have been proud of becoming when I was younger. Ridiculing and humiliating people for being vulnerable or expressing themselves leads to the exact kind of political climate we have today, and as a German who is familiar with our history it scares me. The Venn diagram between people who make fun of emos, scene kids, furries or whatever other "cringe" minority of the day in a "good hearted" way, and people who "inadvertently" bully them and drive them to suicide, is probably close to a circle.
You telling me I will laugh at my younger self some day tells me exactly one thing: that you laugh at me presently and assume I will be the same when I "grow up". Newsflash: I do not speak to those adults anymore that used to tell me these things about my teen ages because they - unsurprisingly - just bullied me and thought I would grow up to be as hateful as them eventually. And I still don't laugh at myself when I was a teenager. As an adult, I am very much in tune with who I used to be, and all my scene/emo/outcast friends besides.
Mate, that is a whole lot of projection and assumptions in one post. You do you, but I hope someday you learn that being able laugh at yourself is a strength not a weakness.
I prefer to appreciate who I am, who I was, and stick to my values. There's way more strength in defying people who laugh at you than in joining them and betraying what you once stood for merely to appease them.
The arrogance of telling someone that "someday" I might "learn" to laugh at myself is astounding given that I am probably older than you.
I would prefer to live in a world where nobody laughs at people, and where people are proud who they were, who they have become; instead of constantly looking back in embarrassment and shame.
... Just think what hill you're willing to die on here. A hill defending the idea of "giving people some shit" (your words) when they dress or act the way you find embarrassing. When did peer pressure like this become a virtue?
Man, if you are in your 40s and still clinging to this idea that you've never done anything embarrassing in your life, have never teased a buddy for something stupid they have done, and feel the need to get all self-righteous on me for enjoying friendly banter between strangers then I don't know what else there is to say here.
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I will just confidently go into the future knowing that I show compassion and you pride yourself on laughing at people. That's all the future generations need to know about the 21st century.
There is a reason "learn to laugh at yourself" is a recurring quote from many people.
This is all this is, to learn to laugh at your younger self. No one is saying your feelings or thoughts as a teenager are invalid but perspectives and priorities change when you get older and the things that make you feel and act that way will seem trivial and therefore silly.
There is a reason this is a recurring theme between generations. Sorry but your generation is no different. It is not bullying, it is learning to look back at your younger self and see that the difficulties you were facing were relatively trivial even if they didn't feel that way at the time.
Also please remember your sentiment the next time you see one of these memes "attacking" millennials. Basically the way you've formed your argument here is that this meme in this OP is "bullying" millennials.
Yes, people who laugh at others expect them to grow into their bigotry. I do not laugh at my younger self. I appreciate who I was, who I am, and who I will become. I am proud of scene kids, emo kids, and all the other "alternative" kids who constantly get told they'll turn into hateful little old adults some day.