Growing Up in Ireland Today

Author David McWilliams regularly comments on the “Celtic tiger” boom Ireland has experienced in the last 10 years but he, like so many others questions our day to day decisions and how we choose to live our lives. Our grandparents have seen first hand the huge changes in Ireland over the past few decades and now, with our economy in the midst of a huge economic slowdown, is it time to look to the past for guidance.

With the constant murmur of “back in my day” following with every Irish teenager today, one could be forgiven for thinking that growing up here 30 years ago was a chore rather than a privilege. No internet, no mobile phones, no ipods or TV, how could they possibly survive? The fact is, the teens of yesteryear did not have the luxuries or financial support seen by the country today, but what they did have was a simplistic life, one that has long since vacated over ever changing shores.

The central and most affecting change that has occurred in Ireland in the last 30 years is the decline in the stability of the family unit. This is most definitely a worrying development. In a country where not so long ago, a woman who married has required by law to leave her job, it is startling to learn that 68% of young mothers are working today. This fact, coupled with a huge increase in the number of single parent families, has led to the problem, of parents spending less and less time with their children.

We are living in a society that is undeniably cash rich and time poor. Parents have a duty to be loving and caring to their children, to guide them through their childhood, but this moral obligation is too often being neglected in the country today. Working long hours day after day, parents find themselves with less and less time to spare for their young needy families. In a consumer driven society many adults have some to believe that spending on material goods for their can replenish the many extra hours spent in the office every week.

This unprecedented consumerism is part and parcel of life for almost all the population today, it seems that only the OAP’s can escape the grasp of this spending phenomenon. The weekly disposal income of the average Irish household advanced from 551.60 in 1990/2000 to 842.06 in 2005, an income gain of 52.7%. Even with inflation taken into consideration this rise leaves us with the power to indulge, and indulge we do.

More and more we see designer labels gracing the wardrobes of young and old. Our obsession for keeping up with the “Jones’” is leading us into a debt crisis beyond anything ever witnessed in the days gone by. The 2007 balance of payments shows that Ireland is 9.3billion Euro in debt. Maybe the older generations had the right culture, to live a happy life, without getting caught up in all that is superficial about the western world. Our hectic lifestyles and materialistic attitudes do no come without other problems. The essence of our social fabric has been truly altered.

More marriages are now ending in divorce. Between 2002 and 2008 there was a 69.8% rise in the number of divorces in Ireland, with the majority of these occurring in marriages that have lasted between 21 to 25 years. Is our newfound world ruining marrages? The evidence would suggest so. The effect of these recent societal changes on children growing up in Ireland today must no be underestimated. Children have more money and more freedom, parents have less time and less influence, this is proving to be a deadly combination.

In recent years, the drinking culture among youths and adults alike has been fuelled by the rise in our disposable incomes. The rise in average Irish households spends about 1675 a year on alcohol, and incredible three ties that of the second highest spenders Denmark. It is no surprise then with such a rampant drinking culture youths are quick to embrace the habit. An incredible 32% of 15 and 16 years olds admit to binge drinking at least three times a month. One in five 12-15 year olds in the country is obese, hardly surprising when our spending on fast food increased by over 70% in the last 10 years. Parents must be more attentive to the health and happiness of their children.

In June 1932 the Catholic world focused its undivided attention on Ireland for the 31st International Eucharistic congress, a huge religious celebration, that showcased Irelands devotion to God. How times have changed. now religious faith in the country is in rapid decline, evidence of this can be seen in a survey carried out by RTE in 2008. It found that 48% of people attend mass weekly, as opposed to 81% in 1990. The Catholic is aware of this decline with Fr Eamon Burke noting that “the situation is very grave”.

So as for growing up in Ireland today with and unstable family unit, a consumer driven society, numerous social problems, youth epidemics such as underage drinking and childhood obesity, a lacklustre approach to parenting in many households and a loss of faith, on could say that we have a problem on our hands. I believe that society today is focused on reaping the benefits of an affluent economy, but has little interest is sustaining the moral values that determine our quality of life.