It’s a fact of life just like the sun rises in the East and sets in the West: older people will always find something to criticize about the younger generations. The former grumble, the latter roll their eyes, but soon enough, those youngsters are looking at each new generation and wondering what the everlovin’ frick is going on, why they’re behaving so oddly, and why their music sounds like pure noise.
A thread created by u/VisibleConfusion12 went viral on r/AskReddit after it sparked a very interesting discussion in the online community. The OP wanted to know what things young people love that older internet users plain don’t understand, and we’ve collected some of the most interesting insights to share with you. Scroll down to read what they had to say and upvote the posts you agree with.
We got in touch with the author of the thread, redditor u/VisibleConfusion12, who was kind enough to share their thoughts on the topic. Read on for Bored Panda's interview with them.
This post may include affiliate links.
Declaring everything is a result of a mental illness. Sometimes people are just a******s.
I know a couple whose son has ADHD, and they use this as an excuse for everything. They never bothered teaching him the difference between right and wrong. He has no manners, is a bully and is constantly violent towards others, and his parents blame other children and criticise them for never wanting to play with him or invite him to parties. They have raised an a$$hole and blame it on his condition, when it is a simple case of bad parenting.
Personally, we feel like there will always be friction between members of different generations because their values and environments differ. Probably the most obvious case we see these days is between Baby Boomers and, well, pretty much everyone else. Boomers tend to think that kids these days don’t work hard enough and should learn to save instead of eating avocado toast and buying lattes at Starbucks.
Meanwhile, Millennials and Zoomers believe that Boomers had it very easy when it came to buying up cheap property and finding well-paying jobs that were enough to take care of the entire family and provide a high quality of life. However, some of the things that unite different generations include the love of nostalgia (albeit for very different things) and the increasing awareness of how important it is to take care of our bodies as we age.
The unending need to share everything on social media including their meals, their children, their partners everything.
Talking loudly with your phone on speaker while in public. Older people do it, too.
WTF is *that* all about?
I don't know about other places, but around here it seems to be Millennials that do it.
According to redditor u/VisibleConfusion12, they personally find TikTok, the video-sharing platform, to be one of the oddest things that the younger generations enjoy.
"I would have to say TikTok as a whole," they told Bored Panda what they find strange. "There is a TON of stuff that is considered bad," they said, referring to videos full of hate speech, as well as dangerous trends and challenges that nobody should do.
"I would also add newer fashion which is pretty strange. But compared to older fashion, it might beat it by a mile," they said. Though the OP admits that both "older fashion and newer fashion" confuse them either way.
Long a*s fake nails. How do you even go to the bathroom with those things without hurting yourself? They’re not even attractive. I don’t get it.
Edit: To be clear, I’m talking LONG here, like inches long. I have longish natural nails and I love getting them done, but I’ve seen people with nails that are over 2 inches long and I don’t understand how you can be productive with nails like that. I’m not mad about it, I just honestly don’t get the hype.
The videos where they say it's a "life hack" when it's just common sense.
Aka "try out this crazy life hack for perfectly cut bagles, EVERYTIME!"
Proceeds to use a bagel cutter.
Like, seriously??? You need someone to tell you that?
Or a life hack about how you can repurpose a barrel into a chair for NO MONEY! Take a perfectly good new barrel, use tools that every professional handiman has lying around (like a fully stocked workplace with every machine possible) and make an ugly chair with sharp edges, which you'll cover up with tonnes of hot glue....
We were interested to find out what inspired redditor u/VisibleConfusion12 to ask such an interesting question in the first place. They were happy to tell us all about it.
"I came up with the idea with the help of my nephew! He was scrolling TikTok and came across a 'cringey' video," the OP told Bored Panda that their 14-year-old nephew then showed them the video clip which got them thinking about the (sometimes vast) differences between generations.
"The video in question was a girl complaining, saying she will be upset if you misgender her. My nephew then told me that his generation was probably the most questionable, which gave me the idea which I later posted later on Reddit," they shared what led them to spark the discussion on r/AskReddit.
In the OP's view, it's difficult to find a definitive answer as to why each generation criticizes those that come after it. In their opinion, it all comes down to what the members of each new generation do and how this clashes with what older generations enjoy.
Film random strangers without consent to make fun of them online all for internet 'clout'.
Isn’t it illegal in like Korea and other places in Asia (I don’t know much about other countries)
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Had this in the motorway services. I have severe anxiety and dissociative motor disorders, for me, think severe Tourette’s like symptoms(wave, point, shout, repeat, make noises, twisted into painful positions and I have a stuttered gait) that are exacerbated by how anxious I am, so small noises, words and movement even when calm. I was waiting for my wife to come out of the ladies when four late teen/early twenties came in. Most youngsters are really nice and actually more sympathetic than older people but these came over telling me that they wanted to film themselves with me, very loud, very insistent, phones up ready. My waving and shouting increased significantly which they thought was very funny. My wife came out, shouted at them and we had to leave with them still laughing behind us.
This is so disgusting and I am so sorry you were treated like this. May this group of rats step on Lego barefoot daily for 3 weeks.
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I once watched a video where a dude went to two women in a blue porsche and pestered them with questions about what they do for a living and how much the car was and such. They got pissed at him calling him a creep and to stop filming. And in the comments the people defended the guy filming and started calling the woman in the porsche all sorts of names. Like, What the heck? Whats wrong with people?
Array does that make you and me the morons?!
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I hate this. Men will take upskirt photos and other perverted videos that were taken without consent, and then try to defend themselves by saying "It's in a public setting, I can film what I want!" No, dumbass, her panties are not public property. And if you think nothing is wrong with it, why not go up and ask for some wank pics. Because y'all know it's wrong.
And refusing to help in dire situations, but instead, continue recording. Humans really are animals these days?!
I can't believe this is legal but it is. This is a fine example of freedom of expression and speech gone too far!
Its generally perfectly legal to film people and property excepting when its specifically not allowed. Eg kids change rooms upskirt and other lewd purposes. Most people think its illegal. Being in public means there is public domain.
Someone tried this with me in a bar a few years ago. Put their phone into their drink, then threw it over their friend who was also trying to film. Total c***s.
I often remind people who are filming me as part of filming a place that I don't give consent and they need to stop and they look at me like I'm mad. It really frustrates me.
In the UK it is legal to film strangers in public without their consent, as long as they're not breaking another law, like stalking or harassment.
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It's h how I wish it was illegal here in the states. Its one thing to film horrid events like George Floyd. Its another to film a common disagreement (mid way) and try to blow up by posting it and saying "Karen going off on a tangent in the Piggly Wiggly." Or worst yet walk in already recording cause you preplanned something so you can get viral status.
People have forgotten the common courtesy of "just because you can doesn't mean you should" or the less polite albeit better one "just because it isn't illegal to be an a*****e doesn't mean it should be your goal to be one"
The internet is a bully's paradise. Bullying at a safe distance
Yes! Also why do people think taking selfies in the bathroom is a good idea? I always cringe when I see the toilet seat in the background.
There was an idiot filming people at Kroger when they absolutely had to wear masks, just laughing and ridiculing them for it. I'm talking inches from their faces. People really suck.
In the US, only 12 states are 2 party consent to film in public states. If you're in a 1 party consent state, even if you ask them not to, they can film you. Is it necessarily right? Nope. But that's the law.
Hopefully, these asshats will one day get the "clout" they need and deserve...a "clout" upside the head! 🤦♂️🤦♀️
The last thing you'll see in their footage of me is my fist rapidly approaching and then everything going black.
While it's wrong and should be illegal for people to record you, it doesn't make it ok for you to physically assault them.
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Depends where you live. The definition of public is, indeed, public. In the USA one has no right to privacy in public, including being recorded. The rule of thumb is, if you’re not able to be fully naked in a place, you’re in public. This includes yards & other outdoor places as long as the person recording isn’t trespassing or IS recording from public or permitted property. The caveats: while video is permitted in public federally, audio recording (without attached video) may require two-party consent. Unless it’s open and on public property. If one harasses or impedes freedom of movement to video, there would be those issues but the recording is still legal. And finally, if the recording is manipulated or otherwise used to slander (or libel) that would be grounds for civil litigation. Typically, only the trespassing issue has sound legal precedent. The EU is somewhat comparative to the US. The UK has much stricter privacy laws.
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Those large, spider-looking, over-the-top fake eyelashes.
Facetiming people instead of calling them. Unless you have to show me something, I prefer not to show my face on screen
My oldest granddaughter (17) only ever facetimes me, at first I couldn't understand why, and then realized that is the way she talks to her friends so it's the way that she does it. I actually don't mind.
To put it simply, people tend to feel nostalgic for those times in our lives when they were happiest and most carefree. We might associate that period of time with certain activities, people, shows, or even products and we come back to them when we’re feeling down and need a boost. That’s why you might have a sudden urge to plug in an old console or find a very old movie to watch when you’re blue.
And though nostalgia can help us power through tough times in our lives, it has some destructive potential as well. For example, if we constantly daydream about how things used to be (and how awful everything is now), we might miss genuinely good opportunities in the present. It’s fine to reminisce about the past, so long as your present and future don’t suffer for it.
Yes, the entertainment industry may have had far better standards back when you were a young adult! But it doesn’t mean that absolutely every film, song, and game that’s crafted these days is an abomination. As in every area of life, there will be a minority of truly high-quality products, surrounded by a vast majority of junk. It’s a widespread phenomenon known as Sturgeon’s law.
All these s****y prank videos on people in public.
The public tik tok dancing.
I can't handle the second hand embarrassment when someone is dancing in aisle 5.
Filming themselves crying.
The simple fact of the matter is that everyone is getting older. And no matter how awesome your metabolism is right now, you’ve got to sit down and think about the future. Consider what habits you need to start developing right now so that you age with dignity and can maintain a high standard of living.
Some of the best things that you can do to maintain your physical and mental health as you get older include getting plenty of exercise, eating well (avoid processed food, added sugar, and saturated fats as much as you can), having an active social life, and doing activities that bring you joy, whether that’s meditating, hiking in your local woodlands, painting, or collecting vinyl from the good old days—when music used to sound better!
The Andrew Tate style of misogynistic alpha male b******t that so many young men seem to buy into. I guess I kind of get how they're susceptible to that sort of stuff, but the ideology doesn't really make much sense.
I think most of the rest of the stuff like tik tok, hairstyles, and clothing is just a "kids these days" kind of thing where people aren't open minded enough to realize the stuff they were into as kids was seem as being just as stupid by the older generation. Because really, it boils down to it just being different and new.
Im still young, but Mukbang videos. I like cooking shows, but watching someone pig out on camera is just gross.
Filming every little thing. Like why are they filming them doing basic stuff like grocery shopping?
Referring to anybody people don't like as narcissistic. Every form of lying or even just disagreement is gaslighting.
And triggers. While I get it and have my own mini-traumas I work through, I recognize my triggers are no one’s responsibility but my own. If you feel you’ll be triggered by what happens in public or life in general, prepare yourself to deal with it. Just stop demanding others inhibit or repress anything about themselves simply because you find it triggering.
The new Disney remakes.
"Hey guys, I have an idea. Let's get actors and remake our cartoons. We don't have to think of anything new for a decade."
Listening to the music on mobile speaker while walking around the street or travelling via public transportation
We already had that in the past, but at least it sounded pretty good. ;) cool-dude-...1e1f2a.jpg 
As a teacher, I get enormously annoyed by the idea that it seems cool to be stupid for a significant amount of teens. Like being actually proud of lacking or pretending to lack basic knowledge or primary skills. Over the last 2 weeks I had a 14 y old pretending not to know who the figure of Christ was, a kid claiming not to know how to use a ruler and one who claimed to never have used scissors…
Update: 5 min ago a 14y old asked me wether pigs have ears…
Yes, pigs have ears, so do wethers (but not some other parts of their anatomy)
YouTube reaction videos. I don’t understand what’s interesting about watching someone react to watching a different video.
Depends on what you are watching. Some of them are discovering the music I discovered when I was a kid and watching their excitement is refreshing these days. The Charismatic Voice for instance is a professional opera singer and she reacts to metal but explains how the vocalists make the sounds. If you look at them as people going on a musical journey, it make more sense. Some have also interviewed bands and they ask more interesting questions that music journalists.
Filming everything they do and putting it online. I prefer to be mostly anonymous
I dont understand certain genres of tiktok/YouTube videos. Who is entertained by those videos where it's a robot voice reading out reddit comments while subway surfer is being played on screen? Who is the audience for those videos where some dude with an awful haircut asks people risqué questions either on a college campus or at the beach?
Nobody enjoys robot voice subway surfers videos... nobody makes them either they just spawn.
22 here so this definitely applies to older folks as well but for the love of all things large and small: **why the hell is mumble rap still a thing**.
I'm not talkin Eminem, Tupac, Biggie, etc. I'm referring to the untalented, autotuned nitwits that try to pass their 'gangta' mumbles off as music. Now granted, I know I have a rather eclectic taste in music, but holy c**p some of these 'artist' somehow are both autotuned and still sound like their actively riding the dope dragon in the studio.
I just don't get half the "music" nowadays. It's all just s****y remakes
I am 24 years old (so still pretty young) but there are two things which I cannot understand at all:
1: Obsession with Starbucks. Why do so many teenagers and people in early 20's spend so much money and time on Starbucks? I am from Europe and the first store opened in my country only 2 years ago. Tried it (not only the coffee, some other things too) and it was absolutely awful. I am sure all bigger cities have a place with better coffee or sweets
2: Underage girls dancing on TikTok - now I understand the other comments here defending how creating videos and pics and posting them constantly on social media can be a coping mechanism, but what kind of coping mechanism is being 16/17/18, putting on a crop top and ripped jeans or a mini skirt and dancing in front of a camera to a song which often has very sexual and mature lyrics? Are they the type of girls who are too afraid to go outside and talk to guys/girls or are they part of a scheme to catch pedophiles?
Glorying ignorance and writing everything wrong on purpose.
Recording videos of themselves dancing in the middle of a Home Depot.
Nobody wants to see me dancing. I look like a cross between my vagina being on fire and having a seizure!!!
Note: this post originally had 52 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
I understand some of this stuff, like respecting other people's rights, and not disturbing public, but some of this stuff ... well, let's just say I'm a lot happier since realizing that if someone is doing something and it doesn't actually impact me, I don't have to worry about it. Sometimes joy and peace are found in not worrying about what other people do.
I'm an old. (64). Most of my friends are old. All of my siblings are old. I work with mostly old people. And I can guarantee that none of us care about any of these. I wish BP would stop perpetuating this made-up c**p.
And here we are, yet another BP post to stir up resentment and ill feeling towards others and stop you all focusing on the real problems the world faces. Just stop the infighting and focus on the very real villains in this world. Let me tell you it's not young people sharing things on their phones or old people who can't switch on a computer that are the problem.
Don’t like it? Don’t watch it, read it, engage with it, be involved in it, simply walk away. There were things you did in your youth that would wind you parents up, they let you explore the world your way, let the younger generation do the same. Just because you don’t understand it doesn’t me it’s wrong. If it’s harming no one then let them enjoy their lives and you can stop being so judgemental of others, everyone wins!
Honestly live and let live, as long as its doing no harm to them or anyone else and they enjoy it then go ahead and enjoy that thing
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The tiktok dancing in public one - someone is having fun in public and that bothers you??
And like, we don’t wear eyelashes and long nails for any of you, we wear it bc we feel shown and comfortable like it, it is expressing ourselves. Showing ourselves.
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A lot of these are not generation specific. It's a d**k move to be on speaker phone or have your music playing in a public place. Doing/filming pranks or others for financial or social gain - been around for a long time AFV, Jackass. Starbucks or other overpriced coffee - started in the 90s.
Tiktok dances are actually fun though when you're not disturbing everyone. Let teens have fun. Don't like it? Don't watch. And no I'm not defending tiktok challenges that are illegal or promote health risks. I'm just talking about dances.
These old men are whinny as héll. So long the younger generations do not disturb you, do nothing harmful, why should you care?
Excuse me. I'm an "old woman" and yes I'm a whinny b***h. All I ask is please for the love of God buy headphones.
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3 articles in a row about older people complaining about younger people trends. I'm 42. I very clearly remember my parents and grandparents complaining about stuff we did as teens and how stupid it was and how they kids today blah blah. Seriously, either were all boomers or we forgot what it's like to be young? There's really nothing my teen does that I don't understand, I was 19 once as well.
This could've been called "30 Random Shower Thoughts From Grandpa Simpson"
Assuming the origins of this website are correct it seems like it has degenerated into nothing more than a platform to p**s people off. I keep coming back to it because every once in awhile BP produces a gem of real interest.
I'm surprised that those work from home and make big money posts weren't on this list. See MarkSmith below for reference. ;)
Pointlessly censoring w***s that don't n**d it. Often, it takes out all the context of the post. Sometimes it completely changes the narrative, like when a post on this very website said that Malala Yousafzai got [hit] in the face.
Only a Gen-Xer but I still want to say this: We don't disbelieve the mainstream news media because someone sent us "fake news." We disbelieve it because we lived through stuff so we know when they're lying. Sure, sometimes some of us seize onto stupid alternative narratives when we know damned well the official narrative is b******t... but understand that's because they've already known that the official narrative is complete, utter and total b******t. And that doesn't mean we're uniformly right-wing or Trumpers or anything like that. Most of us recognize there's b******t all around and select to align ourselves with the people whose b******t seems the least harmful.
I understand some of this stuff, like respecting other people's rights, and not disturbing public, but some of this stuff ... well, let's just say I'm a lot happier since realizing that if someone is doing something and it doesn't actually impact me, I don't have to worry about it. Sometimes joy and peace are found in not worrying about what other people do.
I'm an old. (64). Most of my friends are old. All of my siblings are old. I work with mostly old people. And I can guarantee that none of us care about any of these. I wish BP would stop perpetuating this made-up c**p.
And here we are, yet another BP post to stir up resentment and ill feeling towards others and stop you all focusing on the real problems the world faces. Just stop the infighting and focus on the very real villains in this world. Let me tell you it's not young people sharing things on their phones or old people who can't switch on a computer that are the problem.
Don’t like it? Don’t watch it, read it, engage with it, be involved in it, simply walk away. There were things you did in your youth that would wind you parents up, they let you explore the world your way, let the younger generation do the same. Just because you don’t understand it doesn’t me it’s wrong. If it’s harming no one then let them enjoy their lives and you can stop being so judgemental of others, everyone wins!
Honestly live and let live, as long as its doing no harm to them or anyone else and they enjoy it then go ahead and enjoy that thing
Load More Replies... The tiktok dancing in public one - someone is having fun in public and that bothers you??
And like, we don’t wear eyelashes and long nails for any of you, we wear it bc we feel shown and comfortable like it, it is expressing ourselves. Showing ourselves.
Load More Replies... A lot of these are not generation specific. It's a d**k move to be on speaker phone or have your music playing in a public place. Doing/filming pranks or others for financial or social gain - been around for a long time AFV, Jackass. Starbucks or other overpriced coffee - started in the 90s.
Tiktok dances are actually fun though when you're not disturbing everyone. Let teens have fun. Don't like it? Don't watch. And no I'm not defending tiktok challenges that are illegal or promote health risks. I'm just talking about dances.
These old men are whinny as héll. So long the younger generations do not disturb you, do nothing harmful, why should you care?
Excuse me. I'm an "old woman" and yes I'm a whinny b***h. All I ask is please for the love of God buy headphones.
Load More Replies... 3 articles in a row about older people complaining about younger people trends. I'm 42. I very clearly remember my parents and grandparents complaining about stuff we did as teens and how stupid it was and how they kids today blah blah. Seriously, either were all boomers or we forgot what it's like to be young? There's really nothing my teen does that I don't understand, I was 19 once as well.
This could've been called "30 Random Shower Thoughts From Grandpa Simpson"
Assuming the origins of this website are correct it seems like it has degenerated into nothing more than a platform to p**s people off. I keep coming back to it because every once in awhile BP produces a gem of real interest.
I'm surprised that those work from home and make big money posts weren't on this list. See MarkSmith below for reference. ;)
Pointlessly censoring w***s that don't n**d it. Often, it takes out all the context of the post. Sometimes it completely changes the narrative, like when a post on this very website said that Malala Yousafzai got [hit] in the face.
Only a Gen-Xer but I still want to say this: We don't disbelieve the mainstream news media because someone sent us "fake news." We disbelieve it because we lived through stuff so we know when they're lying. Sure, sometimes some of us seize onto stupid alternative narratives when we know damned well the official narrative is b******t... but understand that's because they've already known that the official narrative is complete, utter and total b******t. And that doesn't mean we're uniformly right-wing or Trumpers or anything like that. Most of us recognize there's b******t all around and select to align ourselves with the people whose b******t seems the least harmful.
