Millennials in Wonderland
(Robert Bridge) Increasingly open to astrology, magic and sorcery while happy to virtue signal on behalf of any PC-saturated issue, the entire millenial generation seems wholly unequipped to face the daunting challenges of adulthood.
They may not know how to change a flat tire, cook a simple meal or stop living in their parents' basement, but Millennials – the tech-savvy demographic typically born between the years 1981 to the early 2000s – seem increasingly preoccupied with subjects of a less practical nature ever since graduating from college.
Whether it is symptomatic of Trump Derangement Syndrome, some kind of New Age mysticism or perhaps spending four long years studying impractical liberal arts courses, it’s hard to say. But many people are looking to empower themselves with alternative techniques once ridiculed as sheer quackery.
This week, for example, NBC published a lengthy essay that celebrated the rise of interest in astrology “in an insecure world.”
“In the midst of this physical, political and emotional turmoil, astrology offers us a sense of purpose,” wrote Tanya Ghahremani. “It provides reasons for why the world is spinning as well as hope that it will be less nauseating tomorrow.”
I was always under the impression that the world is spinning due to the so-called cosmic ‘Big Bang’ theory, mixed up with a generous amount of gravitational pull and so on. But never mind. Ghahremani, discussing the feminist roots of astrology, postulates that the stargazing pseudoscience “empowers women… to take more control over their future; it encourages us to learn more about ourselves and go confidently in the direction that makes the most sense for our well-being.”
Other similar stories of an esoteric, occultist nature have enjoyed a heavy press of late. In October, just in time for Halloween, the media was hyping a revived interest in witchcraft. The technology website Wired, for example, in a radical departure from its usual computer-oriented ware, reported on a coven of witches who collectively tried to place Donald J. Trump in a “magical straitjacket.” Amid the prerequisite burning of candles and other voodoo rituals, the members recited an incantation that ended with the collective scream, “You’re fired!” Probably not the best material for a Stephen King novel, but it certainly puts a new twist on the term ‘witch hunt.’
Even the New York Times could not resist hopping on its broomstick for a joyride.
“Real witches are roaming among us, and they’re seemingly everywhere,” gushed the paper of historical record.
It went on to quote Helen Berger, a sociologist at Brandeis University: “We’re in a period of great transition…and for many of these young people, this spirituality is speaking to them.”
Publisher’s Weekly summed up this rekindled interest in ‘spirituality,’ not to be confused in any way with religion, as “the season of the witch.”
Personally speaking, I understand this interest in the more mystical side of life. There is a great allure to those unseen forces we do not comprehend yet seem within the realm of plausibility. After all, the Salem Witch Trials occurred precisely due to this feeling among many people that maybe there really is something behind all this mystical talk.
There is an unsettling, underlying theme, however, that weaves itself through the above-mentioned articles, and perhaps the reader has already noticed it. That theme involves the current political battle raging in the United States. For all of the breathless talk about witch covens, magical spells and incantations, this purported rise among Millennials in mysticism and spiritualism seems to be, partially at least, a cheap political statement against Donald Trump because the Liberals do not like the outcome of the 2016 presidential election.
The Millennial Mindset
This speaks volumes about the mindset of the Millennial generation, which has been raised on an unhealthy diet of liberal radicalism and political correctness gone stark-raving mad. Because a president was elected that they didn't like, they now believe that the summoning of mystical forces will change things. This is an act of desperation, and attests to the type of education many of these young adults are receiving at some detached, tree-lined college where ‘queer and gender studies,’ for example, oftentimes substitutes for the time-honored classics of Western philosophy and history. Meanwhile, the study of science only seems to have merit when it confirms their exceedingly warped worldview. For example, that there are some 13 gender types to choose from, or that the planet and all of its life forms are about to succumb to man-made climate change.
None of this bodes well for the future of mankind. How will these coddled individuals, who grew up - but never quite matured - inside a protective bubble of ignorance inherit a world overloaded with problems, and topped off with nuclear weapons? I suppose they will just continue to adjust to a world they were not prepared for by reciting magical spells and consulting astrological charts.
Well, we saw how well that worked with the so-called ‘Robert Mueller III Prayer Candles,’ designed to ‘light the way’ to finding proof of collusion between Trump and the Russians. Then there was the disastrous prediction that Kamala Harris was destined for the White House because she was born on the “exact full moon in Aries.” Maybe someday Harris will enjoy better political success, but as for now her political star has magnificently crashed.
Perhaps the best takeaway for the more liberal-minded Millennials is to remember that what you learn in a classroom and what you experience in the real world are two completely different things. The higher institutes of learning would do well to remind their students of that difference, while allowing for a climate of frank and open discussion on all subjects. Even if the subjects bring discomfort, which is the way the real world works. No amount of magical spells or charms will change that.
