I grew up during the 1960s, the time of political assassinations (JFK, MLK, and Robert Kennedy), social turmoil, Viet Nam, racial problems, and the Cold War. There were drug problems, crime problems, racial problems, and the ever-present adolescent desire to find a place to fit in. There were no emissions controls on cars or factories, so pollution was far worse then than today.

Compared to my parents, my childhood was a cakewalk. They grew up during the Great Depression and WWII. They predate antibiotics, so a simple wound that became infected could be a life-threatening event. They graduated high school in 1946 and raised 5 kids (that survived) on a carpenter’s and seamstress's salary, including of course all of those things that I grew up with.

My grandfather turns 95 this year. He saw WWI, was a sharecropper raising 5 kids during the Great Depression, worked in a munitions plant during WWII, and has seen a lot in his lifetime.

Today's kids do have issues with peer pressure, but I'm pretty sure that's something every generation faces. Sexually transmitted diseases have been with us for a long time, it's just the sad fact that too many people are so promiscuous that's making them such a widespread problem today.

There are problems that are worse today than when my parents or I grew up. Violent crime related to gang activity comes to mind. My youngest son had a friend murdered just a few hundred yards from our house. A good friend's granddaughter had two high school friends murdered. Illegal drugs are even more plentiful than they were in the 1960s and 70s. Eating disorders like bulimia were almost unheard of before. I’m sure there are other things that are worse today; these are just some that come to mind.