AN APOLOGY TO FUTURE GENERATIONS

By Bill Dunn

Dear grandchildren and great-grandchildren:

Although you have not been born yet, I am compelled to write this letter now, just in case I am unable to do so in the future. What I would like to say is this: I’m sorry.

On behalf of myself and my fellow so-called adults: I am really, really sorry. 

I’m sorry that when you eventually enter the world you will be saddled with tens of thousands of dollars in debt, even before you draw your first breath. How’s that for a nice welcome? “Happy birthday, little one! Your personal share of the national debt is $39,000. Have a nice life!” (Or depending on the exact year of your birth, the figure could be $69,000 or $169,000. It’s difficult to pin down specific numbers with the debt metastasizing on a daily basis, but suffice to say it surely will be a huge amount.)

I’m sorry the crushing debt you will inherit is almost certain to make the American middle-class an extinct species. During your lifetime the idea of the “American Dream” will be just that: nothing but a dream. Unfortunately, that’s what happens when a society is forced to spend most of its economic output paying off foreign creditors. There’s not much left over for the people doing all the work.

You see, for many generations this nation was populated with ethical, responsible citizens. Americans by and large had character and discipline. If people wanted something, they would work hard, save money, and then go out and buy it. But beginning a few decades before the time I write this letter, a noticeable change occurred. Many Americans became impatient and undisciplined. We began to crave things and demand instant gratification. We developed an entitlement mentality, truly believing we were entitled to have whatever we wanted. A lack of funds to acquire the particular item was no longer an obstacle; we demanded satisfaction.

And satisfaction we got. We embarked on two distinct courses of action. First, some of us simply borrowed large amounts of money to satisfy our desires instantly. We gave no thought to how we would ever repay the loans. The future didn’t matter. We wanted our pleasure immediately.

Others of us did not personally borrow large sums of money. Instead we elected politicians who promised to seize money from our more industrious and wealthy neighbors and turn it over to us (after taking their cut, of course). But even that was not enough, so the pols also borrowed humongous amounts to keep us happy. It may not have been moral, but since law-makers were doing it, by definition it was “legal.” That’s all that mattered to us.

But in the same way binge drinkers eventually wake up and are forced to deal with a pounding hangover and nausea, the day of reckoning for our financial binging finally arrived.

Sadly, the brunt of our irresponsible behavior will be borne mostly by you, long after we’re gone. Throughout history human beings worked hard to leave an inheritance for their offspring. My generation did it backwards: we spent your inheritance—and then some—before you were even born.

Again, I am sorry. I hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive us some day, for we knew not what we were doing. But please don’t repeat our error. Do not treat your grandchildren and great-grandchildren as shabbily we treated you.

Sincerely, Grandpa Dunn