Alora Varty, Mullumbimby
In response to M Mizzi (Letters, September 26), your ageist comments are doing no good for the Byron Shire youth predicament.
I am a youth of the Byron Shire and I was disgusted by your naive generalisations about youth of today.
I, and many others like me, would rather stay home on a Friday night than hit the town with a goon sack and nothing to lose but my virginity and sadly, especially with the Dendy cinemas on the brink of shutting down, I have nothing better to do than sit at home or risk my happiness in order to muffle my boredom by going out and having to deal with some 50-year-old drunkard cracking onto an 18-year-old girl who’s simply looking for some sort of mental or emotional stimulation.
It’s only natural for people of my age group to want to branch out and socialise with others but with no way to achieve that but binge culture, what else are we to turn to?
And in retaliation to your comments about the consumerist habits of young people today, do you really think we have enough money to supply ourselves with overrated designer shoes and assorted gadgets? It’s already hard enough for us to get an after-school job because of ageists such as yourself.
Plus, who do you think has fuelled said consumeristic habits? The popular-music industry seems to only produce songs about expensive taste and mild alcoholism and the industry heads and shareholders only care about the money they’re milking out of impressionable youths by poorly executed advertisement schemes.
The previous letter (Carlos Gutierrez, Letters, September 25) held far more truth than yours. We are a product of your lessons of values and morals; if you’re unhappy with the products of your ‘hard work’ then maybe parents ought to try a little harder. I know I will.
Thank you for your insightful words Alora.
People of my age do harbour reactionary concerns about the current state of (some) youth behaviour… because we don’t know how to cope with it.
You write well, you have a voice… please continue to state your case and talk with your peers to address these issues.
The future is yours… and what you make of it.