However, 85% of young people live in developing countries and not only in the

developing world, the young are an oppressed minority, held back by their elders. They are
unlike other oppressed minorities, of course. Their “oppressors” do not set out to harm
them. On the contrary, they often love and nurture them. Many would gladly swap places
with them, too. In some respects the young have never had it so good. They are richer and
likely to live longer than any previous generation. On their smartphones they can find all
the information in the world. If they are female or gay, in most countries they enjoy
freedoms that their predecessors could barely have imagined. They are also brainier than
any previous generation. Average scores on intelligence tests have been rising for decades
in many countries, thanks to better nutrition and mass education. Yet much of their talent
is being squandered. In most regions they are at least twice as likely as their elders to be
unemployed. Over 25% of youngsters in middle-income nations and 15% in rich ones are
NEETs: not in education, employment or training. The job market they are entering is more
competitive than ever, and in many countries the rules are rigged to favour those who
already have a job.

85% din tineri traiesc in tari in curs de dezvoltare, insa tinerii reprezinta o
minoritate discriminata peste tot in lume, fiind tinuti pe loc/ dati inapoi de cei mai in
varsta/ de predecesorii lor. Cu siguranta, nu se aseamana cu nicio alta minoritate
discriminata/ nicio minoritate discriminata nu mai e ca ei. “Agresorii”/”Opresorii” lor
nu le vor raul in mod intentionat. Ba din contra, de cele mai multe ori ii iubesc si le
poarta de grija. Multi ar face bucurosi schimb de locuri cu ei. In anumite privinte,
tinerii n-au dus-o niciodata atat de bine. Sunt mai bogati si au sanse sa traiasca mai
mult decat oricare dintre generatiile anterioare. Cu ajutorul telefoanelor lor
inteligente, au acces la orice informatie din lume. Daca sunt de sex feminin sau
apartin unei minoritati sexuale, in majoritatea tarilor se bucura de libertati pe care
predecesorii lor/ cei de dinaintea lor de-abia si le-ar fi putut imagina. Sunt si mai
inteligenti decat orice generatie anterioara. Datorita unei alimentatii mai bune si a
educatiei in masa, rezultatele medii la testele de inteligenta sunt in crestere de zeci
de ani in multe tari. Insa o mare parte din talentul lor este irosit/ se iroseste. In
cele mai multe regiuni, prezinta un risc de aproape doua ori mai mare decat seniorii
lor de a fi someri./ Somajul este de doua ori mai prevalent in randul tinerilor decat in
randul persoanelor mai in varsta. Peste 25% din tinerii din tarile cu venituri medii si
15% din cei din tari bogate nu urmeaza nicio forma de educatie/niciun fel de studii,
nu au loc de munca, nu au niciun fel de formare profesionala. Piata muncii este mai
competitiva decat niciodata, iar in multe tari “jocul” este masluit in favoarea celor
care deja lucreaza./ regulile sunt facute ca sa-i favorizeze

Education has become so expensive that many students rack up heavy debts.
Housing has grown costlier, too, especially in the globally connected megacities where the
best jobs are. Young people yearn to move to such cities: beside higher pay, they offer
excitement and a wide selection of other young people to date or marry. Yet constraints on
the supply of housing make that hard.

Educatia a devenit atat de costisitoare incat multi studenti aduna datorii

considerabile. Costul locuintelor a crescut si el, in special in megalopolisuri, unde se
gasesc cele mai bune locuri de munca. Tinerii tanjesc sa se mute acolo: pe langa un
salariu mai bun, viata in aceste orase este mai incitanta/ palpitanta si exista multi
alti tineri cu care sa se intalneasca sau chiar sa se casatoreasca. Insa problema
locuintelor ingreuneaza acest lucru.

For both sexes the path to adulthood—from school to work, marriage and children
—has become longer and more complicated. Mostly, this is a good thing. Many young people
now study until their mid-20s and put off having children until their late 30s. They form
families later partly because they want to and partly because it is taking them longer to
become established in their careers and feel financially secure. Alas, despite
improvements in fertility treatment the biological clock has not been reset to
accommodate modern working lives.

Throughout human history, the old have subsidised the young. In rich countries,
however, that flow has recently started to reverse. Ronald Lee of the University of
California, Berkeley, and Andrew Mason at the University of Hawaii measured how much
people earn at different ages in 23 countries, and how much they consume. Within families,
intergenerational transfers still flow almost entirely from older to younger. However, in
rich countries public spending favours pensions and health care for the old over education
for the young. Much of this is paid for by borrowing, and the bill will one day land on the
young. In five of 23 countries in Messrs Lee and Mason’s sample (Germany, Austria, Japan,
Slovenia and Hungary), the net flow of resources (public plus private) is now heading from
young to old, who tend to be richer. As societies age, many more will join them.

Politicians in democracies listen to the people who vote—which young people seldom
do. Only 23% of Americans aged 18-34 cast a ballot in the mid-term elections, compared
with 59% of the over-65s. In Britain’s general election only 43% of the 18-24s but 78% of
the over-65s voted. In both countries the party favoured by older voters won a thumping
victory. “My generation has a huge interest in political causes but a lack of faith in political
parties,” says Aditi Shorewal, the editor of a student paper at King’s College, London. In
autocracies the young are even more disillusioned. In one survey, only 10% of Chinese
respondents thought that young people’s career prospects depended more on hard work or
ability than on family connections.
 All countries need to work harder to give the young a fair shot. If they do not, a
whole generation’s talents could be wasted. That would not only be immoral; it would also
be dangerous. Angry young people sometimes start revolutions, as the despots overthrown
in the Arab Spring can attest.

Toate tarile trebuie sa se straduiasca mai tare sa le ofere tinerilor o sansa. Daca nu
o fac, talentul unei intregi generatii ar putea fi irosit. Acest lucru nu ar fi numai imoral; ar
putea fi si periculos. Tinerii care se enerveaza pot incepe revolutii, dupa cum pot da
marturie despotii care au fost detronati in timpul Primaverii Arabe.