Are there any literate teens anymore?

It amazes me how teens today seem to be entrenched in so much technology yet lacking any kind of intelligence. Let me explain. If you greet any of them, they just don't know how to respond. When asked a question, they shrug their shoulders, mostly I would submit, because they don't understand what you are asking, unless it has to do with i-pods, cell phones, teen movies or programs like Miley Cyrus who is neither funny nor intelligent.

Yeah, I know I sound like a typical middle-aged man but you see, even when I was a child and was into my teens, I would hold the door for someone, say 'please' and 'thank-you'. I even could carry on a conversation with adults, but nowadays, you have to speak 'baby talk' in case you use a word with more than one syllable with many teens.

For those of you who are the exception, I apologize, in fact, I would love to apologize to many teens for what I just said, but sadly, it is just a common thing that teens are not into reading and learning and getting some sort of education. Everything is dumbed down, even the news, like City-TV, with quick blurbs, constant commercial breaks, because we don't want to overload the poor teens who are watching and must send another machine gun round of text messages to their friends about...who knows what.

I have often said that I don't want to live to be old because by the time I start to break down and need help, these teens will be looking after me. I almost shudder to think of it. Imagine when I need my oxygen but the little darling looking after me just HAS to send a text message about some useless piece of information, or just HAS to look at herself in the mirror for the upteenth time, only to find me unconscious by the I get some help. No thanks. I'd rather die a little bit younger than be predisposed to such neglect by this generation of teens.

I believe that if our so-called education system still taught 'Elmer the Elephant' safety rules (anybody remember him?). If only they taught courtesy, manners and the likes, instead of telling little Johnny something so as not to hurt his self-esteem, then maybe we'd have more teens who were in touch with their humanity than in touch with the latest update of whatever cell phone, i-pod, or useless technology is out there nowadays.