this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2026
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cross-posted from: https://aussie.zone/post/34570186

I found this such an interesting article. Gen Z is a pioneer generation, imv. I hope they lead us to a better society and future.

For those of you who are Gen Z, would you agree with the observations in the article?

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[–] naevaTheRat@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 2 days ago

Hope so, I've been disappointed with millenials losing hope in change as people get bogged down with family life and have no energy to do more than survive the grind. Like families are great, but they do make it harder to risk upsetting things when you're comfortable enough to survive.

Capitalism careens from one crisis to the next, driven by underlying contradictions that can only be hidden via finding new markets to extract wealth from. A different system is inevitable, but sooner is better.

[–] AlteredEgo@lemmy.ml 4 points 3 days ago

They want someone to name the enemy, and the enemy they recognise is not the migrant or the welfare recipient. It’s the landlord, the bank, the supermarket duopoly.

This is why right-wing populism keeps bouncing off them.

Uhhh, the right kind of fascism works wonders in this economic environment. Trump ran on promising left wing policies and taking power away from the elites. Same as Obama. Yes we can! There was a slight misunderstanding of course lol. But it works every time.

I truly DO hope that the younger generations are somehow less stupid and more politically educated, but I doubt it. The plutocrats invested peanuts into creating content to shape the next generation and the ROI has been great so far.

[–] Cypher@aussie.zone 7 points 4 days ago (1 children)

algorithms that neither know nor care which electorate they live in.

Now that’s just wrong, the majority of algorithms referred to here absolutely take location into account.

Location is part of how valuable a user is. They get different content and ads based in part on location.

Gen Z has not aged into anything, because the asset escalator they were promised has been switched off.

This is exactly what people have been saying about Millennials for over a decade.

In our research, only around one in 10 of this cohort will entertain a One Nation vote; among young women, the figure collapses into the single digits.

Not the smoothest way to mix ratios in a sentence.

…not a lot to argue for a while I suppose if you believe their premise then

Everything above could be written about any western democracy.

Dead wrong. Not every western democracy has Australia’s advantages such as compulsory and preferential voting system.

Overall I disagree that Gen Z are going to continue to be significantly more progressive than Millennials based on data I’ve seen in the past. They’re really underestimating the gender gap with Gen Z politics.

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone -1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Why are you upset to the point of being in denial about the generation younger than yours being more left wing when you're presumably left wing.

[–] Cypher@aussie.zone 5 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

It might be news to you but it is possible to critique the work of others without being upset. That you're upset I dared disagree with the article says more about you than about me.

Firstly, Millenials are the first generation to go further left as they age, countering the authors claims that Millenials have become more conservative.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-26/millennials-rewriting-the-rules-of-australian-politics/106050836

And as I said there has been consistent polling showing that Gen Z men are more conservative than previous generations, being beaten out only by boomers.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/australian-gen-z-men-more-conservative-than-their-gen-x-millennial-forebears-20250416-p5ls4t.html

Whether or not these socially conservative beliefs translate into conservative votes is another matter.

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone -1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

"Results from this masthead’s Resolve Political Monitor showed young Australian men were swinging back towards left-wing candidates in the middle of the Australian election campaign, with only modest differences between young men’s and women’s voting intentions on a two-party basis. "

Literally from the article you posted. Guess how Gen z voted in the election.

[–] Cypher@aussie.zone 6 points 3 days ago (1 children)

The claim in the article was

Gen Z is the most socially progressive generation in Australian history.

This is not shown in data, which indicates that Millenials are more socially progressive than Gen Z.

The results also show 15- to 24-year-olds in 2023 were not only more conservative compared to older generations, but also compared to 15- to 24-year-olds in 2016.

From the SMH article I linked, which is in line with other polling. Kosmos interpretation of the data and represenation of Gen Z as more progressive than previous generations appears to be false based on polling data.

What you've quoted has literally no bearing on the fact that Gen Z are more socially conservative than previous generations.

They are separate data points. I'm not sure how to break this down further for you.

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone -2 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Go back to the derby bro. They'll appreciate the hoops you're jumping through there

[–] Cypher@aussie.zone 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Reading comprehension is jumping through hoops now 🤡

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone -1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I've just been quoting the shit you've been posting back at you it's not my fault you haven't got your story straight

[–] Cypher@aussie.zone 4 points 3 days ago (1 children)

It really helps if you actually understand what you’re quoting because you clearly don’t.

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone -1 points 3 days ago (1 children)
[–] Cypher@aussie.zone 4 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I already did, in a way that a functional adult can comprehend, but I don't teach special ed so I won't be humouring you further.

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone -1 points 3 days ago

Just explain it lol why's it so hard

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

From what I've gathered everyone in this comment section is left wing but are so mad at Gen z for being broadly more left wing than their generation. Get a grip guys. Feels like they want to live in a world where only their generation is the ones to be anti right wing to the point they've deluded themselves into believing it must be true and that statistics to the contrary aren't real because reasons.

[–] arbilp3@aussie.zone 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

Thank you Fleur. Your comment reminded me of a Monty Python skit (even though it's not totally relevant). Enjoy!

Four Yorkshiremen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue7wM0QC5LE

[–] budget_biochemist@slrpnk.net 2 points 3 days ago

Continuing the tangent, the Four Yorkshiremen has become a defacto standard comedy routine now. Here's one with Harry Enfield, Alan Rickman, Eddie Izzard, and Vic Reeves

[–] joeljoelle@piefed.blahaj.zone -3 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Gen Z, the first generation to not like what their parents are doing and do something different, lolz

[–] arbilp3@aussie.zone 3 points 4 days ago (1 children)

That's not what the article is conveying, imo.

[–] joeljoelle@piefed.blahaj.zone 1 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

You're right, but I did read this one and it basically boils down to they don't follow the same trends because most of the avenues of advancement and wealth building have dried up, but there are others in other generations who have faced this, they are just facing it more en masse because it has become worse and worse as wealth and resource distribution continues to coalesce at the top. We'll see how it goes

[–] arbilp3@aussie.zone 3 points 4 days ago (1 children)

How the situation 'goes' is now going to depend on what the outcomes are from the US/Iran war and whether we are willing to move towards a system that gives the young some future to look forward to and not a bloody dystopia. As the elders we have a responsibility towards our children since we have benefited from an unfair economic system. We need to push with them for an equitable society. Otherwise, who will benefit? Not them and not nature on which we all depend.

[–] joeljoelle@piefed.blahaj.zone 0 points 4 days ago (2 children)

I have not benefited from anything I'm broke and my health is poor

[–] arbilp3@aussie.zone 0 points 3 days ago

I am sorry to know that. Not everyone in any generation is going to think the same nor fare according to general statistics for that generation.

If you would like to do a post on the situation of people who you know are facing similar conditions, it might help everyone understand more.

Materially I am doing ok but I am well aware that there are, for example, other women of my age (70s) and younger who are more or less homeless or in insecure housing. As we get older our vulnerability becomes more evident each day and I am annoyed that people think that all Boomers are rolling in $$$. It is true, though, that housing was more accessible for our generation overall but greed and speculation meant that there were those amongst us who played only for themselves and not the community and consecutive govts made this worse.

[–] Fleur_@aussie.zone 0 points 3 days ago

What are you even trying to convey mate

[–] hanrahan@slrpnk.net 0 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Am Hex X, so mostly into e.. All the Gen Z's I know are as stupid as any other Gen, just pissy they can't own multiple houses... hell, some I know even do.

[–] arbilp3@aussie.zone 1 points 4 days ago

All the Gen Zs you know are not all of Gen Z.

What do you mean by "so mostly into e...". I'm a Boomer so you'll have to translate 😜

[–] TheHolm@aussie.zone -4 points 4 days ago (1 children)

"hey want someone to name the enemy, and the enemy they recognise is not the migrant or the welfare recipient. It’s the landlord, the bank, the supermarket duopoly."
Just LOL. Just target them hard enough, and they will happily label as an enemy a migrant from a country other than their own, or someone who came five years later than their parents. Hate is universal; it doesn't need a reason. Being brainwashed by our education system, Gen Z lacks the ability to think critically and distinguish lies from truth. Easy prey.

[–] arbilp3@aussie.zone 2 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Hate is universal; it doesn’t need a reason.

Sounds you're pretty full of hate writing this. But is it innate or is it brainwashing? Are you brainwashed into thinking that hate is universal? Do you hate for no reason?

We are all conditioned by our socio-cultural group(s) to see reality in a certain way. Some stick with this mind set till the end of their days, others move out of it for any of a thousand reasons. Gen Z has come into this world at a pivotal time, Where is your evidence that Gen Z lacks the ability to think critically? All of Gen Z? It's a pretty absolute statement. Are you thinking truly critically?

[–] TheHolm@aussie.zone 2 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Unfortunately, I’m speaking of experience. I have seen plenty of smart, educated, and kind persons turn into literal Nazis under the influence of propaganda. Hell, there are plenty of examples of that when half of a country went bad.
Yes, I’m generalizing Gen Z. I’m sure that among them there are plenty of thinking people who are immune to propaganda. My daughter is Gen Z, and I have observed how she was taught in school and university. The whole curriculum is aimed at preventing independent thinking from developing. I understand that this is only one example, but I believe it is systemic. The state does not need thinkers; it needs consumers.

[–] arbilp3@aussie.zone 1 points 3 days ago

But she has you. So debate with her (which you probably do) and consider alternatives with her.