12. THE DUMBING OF YOUTH

Professor Mark Bauerlein sat on the campus of Emory University watching students. He noted that there was little conversation among them—most had cell phones pressed to their ears or small screens in their hands. In the library, the computer stations were busy while the book stacks were empty. His observations gave him inspiration to write the book, The Dumbest Generation.

The University of Michigan Institute for Social Research found that weekday homework time for 15 to 17 year olds amounted to 50 minutes a day compared to two hours per day devoted to television. Most of us are aware that regular television viewing is simply putting the brain in limbo. The pictures that flash into the mind do not challenge reasoning power. The same statement can be made about most electronics: they entertain, but do not call the mind to action.

The knowledge base and literary skills of youth are being dumbed down by the communication young people have with their peer groups. Text messaging travels among these young people all hours of the day. At the same time, there are iPhones, iPads and MySpace that make the personal world of each youth all consuming. Most of these young have almost no confidence but they find great comfort in hiding behind an electronic instead of mixing and mingling with new friends or talking to an adult.

This kind of electronic activity makes each young person obsessed with themselves and their peer group—not on an educated level but in how they compare in looks and personality. The artificial events in the lives of television stars, celebrity couples, and other famous people (who are many times not admirable) grab their attention. These influences work together to make many young people of today fittingly called, “Generation Me.”

Each of us must do our best to challenge the young people in our sphere of influence to return to the world of reading. Since we can only preach what we practice, we must be readers of good literature before we attempt such a task. Begin today. Read about the lives of people of great achievement, check out books on history, astronomy, science—the list is endless. Read! Read! Read! As soon as you get excited about a book, challenge the youth in your sphere to read that book.

While you are choosing books to read and promote, don’t omit the most powerful book of all to help the mind—the Bible. Robert Morrison could not learn as a young boy. His parents challenged him to memorize Psalm 119. He began and soon stood up front at his church to quote all 176 verses. His mind and heart were healed and he became the first missionary to China, proving verse 99 of that Psalm to be true: “I have more understanding than all my teachers for Thy law is my meditation.”

We can stop this dumbing of our youth one life at a time as we inspire those in our sphere of influence to shut off the electronics and check out books. FOR A GOOD BRAIN, READ GOOD BOOKS! 

SPECIAL T LOAF
1 T olive oil
1 c diced onion
1 c diced celery
2 pkg Mori Nu firm tofu
1 c pecan meal
1 c finely chopped walnuts
1/4 c olive oil
1/4 c nutritional yeast flakes
1 T chicken seasoning
1 1/2 t salt
7 c rice flake cereal (about one 12-oz box)
1 to 1 1/2 c almond milk unsweetened
Saute onion and celery in 1 T oil until tender. Transfer to a
bowl and add remaining ingredients except rice flakes and
milk. Mix well. Pour rice flakes into the mixture and add milk
as needed to moisten the mixture to make it stick together.
Press into a sprayed 9- x 13-inch casserole dish. Cover and
bake 40 minutes. Remove cover and bake an additional 15
minutes until browned and crispy on the edges.