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We are the future generation

MYCHENZE ALBERTS

Altoona

Now, before we get into this letter, I just want to say that I am not – by any means – a writer.

I just feel that society is in a downward spiral and if someone does not accentuate this topic, the world will remain oblivious and it could cause chaos.

I have high hopes to change minds and actions of a few people and, hopefully, create a domino effect.

One of the main causes is social media. I am a 14-year-old girl, and it’s contradicting and hypocritical of me to pessimistically address social media this way because I had spent at least 10 hours a day on social media.

However, I am not as oblivious as most kids my age.

I see the trouble in using social media and I now spend less than 10 hours on social media in a week.

I have disconnected from peers, family, and the world. I communicate with he same people, just without technology.

I feel as though everyone should take this step.

Social media has suffocated morals.

Teens have lost all thought of right or wrong. Teens are our next generation, and a generation without morals is terrifying. Teens who use social media are growing up with an alarming increase rate of low self-esteem and anxiety. These could lead to depression, psychopathy, and suicide. By posting a picture on Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and Twitter allow positive and praising comments, but it also allows negative, and hurtful comments. Getting those worshiping comments feel great, but one negative comment could completely outweigh 50 nice and praising comments. This could ultimately destroy a teens self-esteem. Teenagers and kids are not mentally prepared to be put down this young. They aren’t ready to worry about others negative thoughts and opinions about them.

Music is one of the best ways to clear your mind and block out the outside world. However, it’s no longer the good thing it used to be. Popular music has influenced kids to do outrageous things. Studies show that an average teen spends 2.5 hours listening to music everyday.

One in three popular songs contains explicit references to drug or alcohol use, according to a new study in The Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

This means kids are receiving about 35 references to substance use for every hour of music they listen to, the authors discovered.

Songs referring to drugs and sex are not surprising, the issue is getting more attention because kids have such easy access to music. Subliminal messages have been found in songs as well. Subliminal messages are signals or messages designed to pass below the normal limits of perception.

For example, it might be inaudible to the conscious mind or an image that is unperceived consciously, but perceived and audible to the unconscious or deeper mind. This could happen in songs and cause insignificant changes.

On the other hand, it could cause extremely significant changes or actions. There was once an incident where a 13-year-old murdered four people and stated that “the song told him to.” Subliminal messages have the ability to completely take over a susceptible individual’s mind. All of these can impact teens to shut down and rewire to a more evil and less humane mindset. Scary, isn’t it?

I don’t have expectations to change the world with this letter, but as I stated in the introduction, I intend to change a few people and create some sort of domino effect. Just remember, kids: We are the next generation, so why not make it a remarkable one? Yours truly.

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