People have been complaining of the next generation… for well, generations. It’s an old cliche: There’s something wrong with our kids and their friends. They’re missing something.

Ugh.

Here’s Chesty Puller, who turned generations of young men into Marines, stepping up to defend young people, almost 50 years ago:

I keep hearing and reading about the terrible teenagers of today. Leave them alone. They don’t need to be downed or upheld. I am tired of hearing all this ballyhoo. Every newspaper and magazine you pick up is full of it. Just don’t worry about the young boys of today. They don’t need to be coddled and they don’t need to be condemned.

Gender’s got nothing to do with it. The advice is universal: Leave them alone. They’ll be alright. Almost certainly this generation of kids is kinder, smarter, and more capable than those that came before. Are there things they can’t do? Of course, but think of all the things they can do that you can’t do, that their grandparents can’t do, that frankly, would render even Einstein or Newton speechless.

Are they perfect? No. You weren’t. Nobody is. But did vague condemnations from older people do anything for you? Did the disapproval or judgement of your parents do anything but drive you deeper into the habits or decisions you were flirting with? So if you have a problem, if you see a gap, teach them. Try to help them. Know that if you stand back, they’ll figure it out.

But mostly, just stop worrying. It never helped anything or anyone.