Book Review: The Dumbest Generation by Mark Bauerlein (read via physical book)

I have to say reading about myself (albeit my generation) from a perspective one might take studying the Algonquin’s was interesting.
What was downright mortifying on how cunningly accurate the book is on Generation Y to the point were it caused me to start skimming pages because I already knew what he was going to say.

The book revolves around how kids of today are dramatically different from any previous due to a significant factor.

Technology.

Yep, the thing I make a living at. How ironic….

Back on track: Mark goes into the fact that Millennials today are uber-connected (ÜberCharge!!) and patently stimulated. That we the Millennials are using the technology to no productive means. He states this great constant realtime connection is very powerful, however all we do is babble-babble-err…blog-tweet-post-babble with each other and nothing more. Since we have the option, we choose only to consume celebrity trash and sports and p0®n which before we were forced to consume a more wide range of material due to that’s all we had.

Thats why I am so sober about this book. Because I would really find it hard to count how many people I know has read a single book (for fun) this past year. The same goes for going to a museum, a bookstore, a foreign film, hey even a park for that matter.

My favorite paragraph of the book page 170:
“Despite their circumstances, Twixters aren’t marginal youngsters sinking into the underclass. They drift through their twenties, stalled at work and saving no money, but they like it that way. They congregate just as they did before college, hopping bar to bar on friday night and watching movies on Saturday. They have achieved little, but they feel good about themselves.”

What does this say about our society?  The human race? Is Andrew Stanton image of humans becoming more than just fiction? Will we all become neoteny?

I just worry that we will go the way of philistine and become an Idiocracy.

This book was a interesting read that confirmed a feeling I had about my generation. However it was a tad bit long for my tastes, given how few points are made. However since I am apart of the populous being written about, that is probably why it seems redundant.

Due to its thought provoking statements backed with lots of facts, I give this book a 7/10 

-Kevin