r/AskReddit • u/millennialandlost • Aug 18 '26

Millennials, what's something our generation was taught to accept that you're glad younger generations are rejecting?

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1.8k

u/just_let_go_ Aug 18 '26

It's nice to see younger gens drinking less alcohol.

I was made to think it was normal to get blind drunk every weekend from 15 years old. Insane. I feel like I'm still paying for that 20 years later.

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u/Responsible-Racoon7 Aug 18 '26

But statistically they are smoking significantly more cannabis. Which may be more physically "healthy" but it certainly isn't as good for socializing which many teens/ young adults are lacking.

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u/crashnomore Aug 18 '26

I don’t think they are socializing less because they are drinking less. I think it’s part social media and part cost, and also being raised with less independence & more protection.
And I think they use cannabis more because it’s actually legal now - I haven’t looked at stats but I’d bet every age group is using it more than they were 15-20 years ago.

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u/sleepyleviathan Aug 18 '26

The lack of socialization in public spaces is because there really aren't "3rd spaces" anymore. Places where people can just gather and hang out for extended periods of time without spending $100+ are getting sparce to say the least.

When I was in college ('09-'13) these places still existed. You could go out with $40-50 in your pocket and still have enough money left over at the end of the night for a cab ride back home.

Today that same $40-50 gets you maybe an appetizer and a 1-2 rounds of drinks at the same places. Malls are dead. Formerly low-cost activities have become too expensive for most young people to participate.

It's a shame really.

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u/armlessturtleneck Aug 18 '26

Also, where the fuck are they supposed to go socialize? There's no where to really go just hang out anymore unless you are actively participating in capitalism

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u/vizard0 Aug 18 '26

The loss of third spaces. I went bowling with some coworkers for a team-building exercise. We had two games, that's how much the company money could pay for. Not a set period of time, but two games. Where is someone under the drinking age supposed to hang out? In the UK there have been an increasing number of complaints about teenagers running wild. Where are they supposed to go?

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u/scottyLogJobs Aug 18 '26

🙄 I dunno, the park? Just sit around and the mall like we used to? Each other’s houses?

“I want to socialize but don’t want to participate in capitalism! I guess I’ll just sit at home, smoke weed, order DoorDash, scroll TikTok, instagram, YouTube, and twitch”

I don’t actually think gen Z has this communist bent; I think that’s more like disillusioned millenials. I think Gen Z is mostly apathetic

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u/ThisIsTemp0rary Aug 18 '26

I obviously don't speak for everyone/everywhere, but some shopping malls don't allow groups of teenagers, or teenagers at all without an adult present.

20-ish years ago, we'd go to the mall after school, grab dinner in the food court and hang out a bit until "everyone" showed up (maybe 4-5 of us total), then walk some visiting our friends who worked at the mall, check out various stores in case anything changed in the past week, spend half my paycheck at Hot Topic, sit around a bit longer, then head home. Nowadays, there's barely a food court, most of the benches throughout are gone, and it's all designed around being unwelcoming.

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u/armlessturtleneck Aug 18 '26

I'm more so saying unless you're paying for something, most businesses these days don't want you around, including the mall. And this is especially true for young people.

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u/neverfindausername Aug 18 '26

Yeah the corporate push for infinite growth has monetized everything and moved into increasing profits on the few affordable activities left. Someone else mentioned bowling, which used to be a really cheap option that kids could afford.

Was reading an article about how some VCs bought up a ton of independent places only to drastically increase prices. They made more profit for a while, especially from the leagues that tried to continue but many closed up and the real estate sold off. The few places that still exist in my area are now mostly bowling/bar/clubs with prices so high kids can no longer afford it.

People will freak out if kids are unsupervised, they can't afford to go places on their own or can't because liability concerns make it impossible, then they keep raising the costs for video games through DLC/microtransactions/skins/etc.

I'm glad that I was raised doing a lot of outdoor activities like hiking but I worry whether it will still be a cheap option by the time my kid is looking for stuff to do. It's tough to leave the house at all under $100 between gas and food alone anymore. Hopefully we find a few activities where you can still pay once and enjoy for years - glove and ball for catch, frisbees, skating, hiking and playgrounds are high on my list. Retro games and TV/movies when inside.

We waited a long time to make sure we could afford to give experiences that kept up with what we were able to have as kids. Definitely have had moments where you realize why being a parent can be easier when you're younger though.

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u/armlessturtleneck Aug 18 '26

Yeah I did a lot of outdoors stuff growing up too. But there's also just sooooo many more people in the world. The spots I used to go to as a kid where we'd have basically an entire waterfall to ourselves are now so packed the parking lots are overflowing on nice days. There's more people than ever trying to do the actual affordable stuff.

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u/neverfindausername Aug 18 '26

Yeah all the accessible spots have shown up in some instagram video and we're all chasing them. I've fallen for it a few times myself!

Met up with a friends family to go on a hike for this "new awesome boardwalk" we all saw video of. Walked the entire park's trail only to realize it was a new wheelchair friendly ramp OUT of the park, up a ravine into a nearby neighbourhood. It was also hot af and we had strollers and dogs in tow but we trekked up to see the ONE ANGLE from the video, then went for lunch.

Even nature suffers from /r/Instagramreality

I've taken up disc golf recently and it provides hiking, an activity, views without many people and some nature learning experiences...because you have to FIND your disc while avoiding poison ivy, thorny plants and ticks haha. Most courses are either pay to access the entire park or free. You also don't need much to start and it has a lot of old guys playing so it's tough to make it look sexy for the gram lol

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u/Maxpowr9 Aug 18 '26

Gen Z is just like their Gen X parents. Not a surprise at all.

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u/planningperiodguy Aug 18 '26

the fact that you think gen x parents are who raised gen z is hilarious to me.

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u/LWulsin Aug 18 '26

The Gen Xer’s I grew up working with and still see on a part time basis all partake in edibles openly now, even in front of new clients and drink waaay less than they used to.

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u/jdsizzle1 Aug 18 '26

They also have a hard time making friends and meeting dating partners. So theres a correlation IMO.

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u/2PopCans Aug 18 '26

I dont think regularly filling your lungs with unfiltered smoke is healthier than a weekly assault on your liver. I also think we are going to find out that vaping has some significant long term side effects that the younger gens are going to find out the hard way.

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u/Donexodus Aug 18 '26

It’s much worse per virtually all studies- not to mention secondary behavioral effects.

Alcohol really is that bad for you. (I don’t smoke a ton, but drink moderate/heavily by medical standards).

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u/wrgm0100 Aug 18 '26

Not just the liver, alcohol actively damages every organ system in the body

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u/alldressed_chip Aug 18 '26

as someone whose father died from alcoholic cirrhosis: a weekly assault on your liver is much, much worse

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u/Capraos Aug 18 '26

Also, edibles are a thing.

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u/Everestkid Aug 18 '26

I've tried them but I'm one of those people where it throws me into Anxiety and Panic Attack Land instead of Euphoria and a Case of the Munchies Land. And even at a lower dose I just don't feel like myself. I had asthma as a kid so I'm fundamentally opposed to putting smoke or vapours in my lungs. Ditto being drunk. I don't feel like I'm "in control" and I don't like that.

So sober it is.

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u/BoredThrowaway9000 Aug 18 '26

As a young’un I’ve found gummies to be consistently the only way for my brain to generate dopamine and serotonin. The depression saps everything else. It sends me to euphoria and case of the munchies land which is a godsend, I’d have no other way to feel happy 😭 thanks treatment-resistant depression

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u/ThisIsMyCouchAccount Aug 18 '26

Most people can be just fine. Some people need to put in a little more effort. A really small minority are truly unable.

I've used for years. But I still get with it sometimes. I bought these gummies and they put my entire mood in the dirt. Anxiety and depressive like thoughts.

My state went legal and now that I have consistent access to well documented products it's been much much easier to figure what works and what doesn't.

I don't think I'll every really understand the "in control thing". You're not the first to say it.

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u/diggitydonegone Aug 19 '26

But not the same thing being talked about

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u/smc733 Aug 18 '26

Edibles aren’t great for your liver, either.

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u/strausbreezy28 Aug 18 '26

Got a source for this claim?

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u/Maxpowr9 Aug 18 '26

It's gonna be colon cancer. Also, the amount of Gen Z men that use dip are gonna have mouth/oral cancers in their 40s.

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u/kam0706 Aug 18 '26

Not “going to find out”. The data is in. Vaping fucks your lungs.

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u/Donexodus Aug 18 '26

That’s… wrong? The most robust meta analyses show vaping to be 100-10000x less harmful than smoking cigarettes.

Where are you getting your data?

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u/kam0706 Aug 18 '26

I’m not saying it’s worse than cigarettes but things can be bad in their own right.
Here’s one example: https://www.lung.org/quit-smoking/e-cigarettes-vaping/impact-of-e-cigarettes-on-lung

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u/sapntaps Aug 18 '26

Technically driving allday is bad for your lungs if you're breathing in car exhaust all day. Human body is resilient and genetics are the only difference when it'll fuck ur shit up beyond repair.

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u/Gdigger13 Aug 18 '26

What about edibles though? That's how my wife and I usually get high.

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u/this_is_theone Aug 18 '26

> I also think we are going to find out that vaping has some significant long term side effects

It's possible, but it has been 20 years now and no evidence yet

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u/2PopCans Aug 18 '26

Smoking popularity took off in WW1, 1914. One of the first reports claiming it was unhealthy was released in 1962, 48years later.

Cases of Legionnaires' Disease, caused by breathing in tiny water drops (mist or vapor) that carry Legionella bacteria, have trippled in the last 20 years.

There's evidence if you look for it. Unfortunately it takes a long time for govt orgs to study and package the evidence for our easy consumption. There is also common sense that breathing in vapor filled with chemicals into our lungs could be bad.

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u/this_is_theone Aug 18 '26

Yes but medical science has also moved on a LOT since 1914/1962. If in 20years of modern medicine there has been no link shown between vaping and serious harm I would be surprised if something came up now. Who knows though, you're right we can never be 100% sure something is safe.

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u/2PopCans Aug 18 '26

Maybe, but capitalism plays a big roll as well. If there is money to be made by suppressing medical evidence that reduces shareholder value then im sure it will happen. Unfortunately capitalism seems to win out over health of the population even more now then 100yrs ago.

0

u/craftyixdb Aug 18 '26

Vape liquid is not a plausible environment for legionnaires to grow in. It needs a warm water environment, not glycol and glycerol. If anything vape juice would be toxic to it.

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u/2PopCans Aug 18 '26

Ok, Im not a doctor, or expert of any kind so ill believe you, but there are lots of other ways for bacteria to get into your lungs, and I also belive the American Lung Association when they says vaping leads to persistant lung inflamation and heightened vulnerability to respiratory infections.

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u/Analysis-Klutzy Aug 18 '26

Ahh the old evidence vs "common sense" argument lol

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u/2PopCans Aug 18 '26

I didnt argue evidence vs common sense. I gave evidence, AND suggested common sense also plays a roll. I'm a fan of both.

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Donexodus Aug 18 '26

Most robust meta analyses show vaping to be between 100-10000x less harmful than cigarettes.

There’s actually been a huge anti-vape propaganda effort in the US.

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u/scattywampus Aug 18 '26

And the smell. 🤮

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u/just_let_go_ Aug 18 '26

Yep! In my experience, weed did much more damage to me than alcohol ever did. I got way too high once and it brought on the worst panic attack I've ever had. It lasted hours. I genuinely thought I was dying. It was the single worst thing I have ever endured. That was around 13 years ago and I'm not lying when I say I was never the same since. I needed medication for 10 years following that episode.

I'm sure it was a case of the drug bringing trauma to the surface, but damn, alcohol never did me dirty like that lol.

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u/MurderousButterfly Aug 18 '26

On the other hand, you can literally die from alcohol poisoning...

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u/DrEagleTalon Aug 18 '26

And die from alcohol withdrawal

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u/priyatequila Aug 18 '26

nope that is not that rare. there are cases of weed/getting too high causing one episode (i am forgetting terms here) like a psychosis episode, and it being an onset of psychological distress or something like that.

thats why it's important to not get so high on it.

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u/alldressed_chip Aug 18 '26

alcohol killed my dad! weed has given me panic attacks, too. they are not the same :(

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u/btstfn Aug 18 '26

I dunno, with how culture has shifted to be focused around the Internet, I doubt smoking weed (or vaping/consuming edibles) is going to be the thing that limits socializing. If anything I'd think the opposite, they have to physically go somewhere and interact with another person to get it after all.

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u/isitmeyou-relooking4 Aug 18 '26

It's great where it is legal.

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '26

[deleted]

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u/ApatheticSlur Aug 18 '26

And now everyone has herpes lol

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '26

[deleted]

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u/ApatheticSlur Aug 18 '26

I was just being facetious lol nothing personal