Generation "Change?"

Professor J,

My original reading of your post on Sunday left me with the feeling that even though the alarm sounding was getting louder and more frequent, the wealthy, powerful, and influential would fight harder to retain the inequality you outline.

A more careful reading recognizes the hope you see instead. I'd like to see some media numbers, if anyone keeps track of such things, of the frequency of such reports in the news, if there is a measurable increase, when that would have started to tilt, are some news agencies more likely to report on the alarm sounding, etc.

Perhaps there are studies and surveys going on which would reveal if there is a real and permanent turn in the tide. As I read your post I noticed in the last year or so that I've accumulated some anecdotal evidence that might build on the hope you see.

I can see some slight movement away from old views among people my age and older but from my viewpoint it looks as if the real change will happen in the next generation. Increasingly the young adults I come in contact with are concerned with the state of the world in general and society in particular. The things I'm hearing are about from them are the way they desire to help change things for the better.

My Italian son, who I adopted in Italy if you recall, is working for a church in our city and is charge of local missions. He's always sharing about things going on around town, an inner city farmer's market, a woman who runs an art garden after school so impoverished children who don't have things like art supplies at home can be creative, a local artist who is helping kids make comics about their neighborhood. My young friend and two others rent a house in the very neighborhood where they are serving in order to feel connected to the community. He sent me a message last week to let me know that he' planting some flowers to help out the bees. :)

My own son is rejecting personally great chunks of the materialism and consumerism that keeps our society so bound up in the culture of me. He talks often of wanting to make a difference and live a life that matters. He tells of a skate park he goes to in a run down part of town. The skaters have impacted the neighborhood by cleaning up the area. Now kids show up to watch them skate, ask questions, and hang out. They are also being introduced to a new sport.

Over the weekend I was away at a silent Catholic retreat. There was a group of 6 college age kids attending as well. I would see them sitting quietly with stacks of books, or walking in the fields. When we could finally talk at breakfast on our last day I found out who they were and what they were doing. They were members of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. They had dedicated a year of life after college to the organization. The six of them lived in a house together and each received one hundred dollars a month to live on and meet all expenses. Not surprisingly simple living is one of the core values along with spirituality, community, and social justice. Attending a silent retreat was one of the requirements of their year of service.

What do you think? Can all of this translate into something bigger and long lasting? I'm thinking of the 60s where there was so much of this same attitude among young people in the country. And they did have a great impact and many of the results have lasted. But for the majority it seems that the responsibilities of life eventually crowded out the desire to go a different way.

Thoughts on that?

And here's something fun I'll be doing in May. The Minimalism Game. It's a challenge those two cool guys over at The Minimalists came up with. For our readers who feel like they are drowning in stuff, find a partner and make May the month of real spring cleaning.