politics
How America traded grit for fragility
Over many years, I’ve met a great many seniors. One man was paid 25 cents per day as a plowboy during the Great Depression. He was paid 50 cents per day during harvest season. Another man, Russel, flew 54 missions as a turret gunner in an A-20 Havoc bomber over Germany during World War II. His daughter has his flight book and impressed upon me that the bomber was hit on every mission her father flew — and that there is not a single exclamation point in his flight record.
TL;DR
- A university program offering pass/no-credit grades to first-semester students is criticized for potentially reinforcing fragility.
- Modern culture increasingly shields children from failure, disappointment, and competition.
- There's a cultural shift from outward action and accomplishment to inward introspection and identity exploration, amplified by social media.
- Intimate experiences are increasingly performed publicly, turning vulnerability into content.
- True grit involves enduring difficulty with patience and humility, rather than seeking to avoid or publicize suffering.
- Seniors from past generations displayed a quiet fortitude and resilience, contrasting with modern performative vulnerability.