Curmudgeons have no trouble deriding today’s teenagers. But as the recent high school graduation coverage in this newspaper’s Voice sections has demonstrated, many of them are too busy to listen. The accomplishments left us exhausted. Immigrants overcoming daunting obstacles to excel. Students thriving in music, writing, technology, science and philanthropy. If the cynics took a break and thought about their own childhoods, they’d be properly humbled. Furthermore, today’s teens are better behaved as a whole than the generations judging them. What’s missing from superficial critiques that target clothes, music and video games is how much trouble teenagers used to get into. Comparatively speaking, previous generations committed more murder and mayhem, had more unwanted pregnancies and abortions, and were more apt to drink, smoke and use illegal drugs/SR. More here.

Question: Do you think your generation of teens was better behaved than today's?