Talk about entitled?
Dave Ramsey talked about this last week, and all I could do was shake my head.

Have you ever given your child (or grandchild) something you thought would be a blessing but your gift ended up being a hindrance instead? Veruca Salt (who is an extreme example) comes to mind. She's the spoiled rotten girl from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory who repeatedly screamed, "I want it all, and I want it now!" And she's all I could picture as I listened to a 22-year-old college student who was gifted $90,000 for college by her grandparents and is now broke.

"Kim" called in last week to "The Bert Show" to seek advice from the hosts at the Atlanta-based radio talk show.  Now a junior in college, Kim confessed she doesn't have any money left to pay the upcoming bills for her senior year.

Years ago my grandparents set up a college fund for me, which was amazing, and I haven't been very good with my budget for school. The first payment for my senior year just arrived and I don't have the money basically. I've just been avoiding it. I knew the bill was coming.

First, as a parent, I wondered if Kim had ever been taught the value of a dollar and just how hard $90K is to earn.  Was she taught budgeting and personal responsibility?  As I listened to the interview in full, I got my answers.

Maybe [my parents] should have taught me to budget or something. They never sat me down and had a real serious talk about it.

While I agree in part with Kim here — her parents should have taught her how to budget — she's an adult now. The money was likely in some sort of trust given to her at 18, the age you're deemed an adult. It's her responsibility now to make wise choices with the funds she was given.  She knew how much she had and how much her school was going to cost, and she admits she knew the bill was coming.  But Kim continues to blame her parents for not stopping her from making bad choices and also insinuates that her parents should take money out of their retirement accounts to bail poor Kim out:

[My parents] said there was nothing they could do for me. They're not being honest with me saying they don't have [money] because my dad has worked for like a million years and they have a retirement account.

Entitled much, Kim? That quote infuriated me and I actually had to listen to it again to make sure I heard her correctly, and unfortunately, I did.  As a mom, I would be incredibly disappointed to find out my kids thought they were owed what someone else earns. Heartbroken actually.

It doesn't matter if her parents have money or not.  It's not hers; it's theirs and they earned it for THEIR retirement, not for her trips to Europe or "college break expenses."
More~

http://pjmedia.com/parenting/2015/07/21/she-blew-90k-her-grandparents-gave-her-for-college-and-then-blamed-her-parents/2/

Unfortunately, there is too much of this going on. One issue was not mentioned and that is what were the parents doing while this person was wasting this wonderful gift from her grand parents? I certainly do not disagree with the parents not spending their on this wasteful child. However, they had responsibility as a parent to provide guidance to this child.

Quote from: supsalemgr on July 22, 2015, 09:09:03 AM
Unfortunately, there is too much of this going on. One issue was not mentioned and that is what were the parents doing while this person was wasting this wonderful gift from her grand parents? I certainly do not disagree with the parents not spending their on this wasteful child. However, they had responsibility as a parent to provide guidance to this child.

Of course, we  only hear her version, it's highly possible they gave her advice, but like all kids, she never listened.
My parents never discussed the issue, finance in my family was, "If you can't pay cash, you have no business buying it."
Having a paper route at 10, I was taught to deal with finances the way any Conservative would, paying off your debts first, and planning ahead.
Had this kid worked before college, she would have learned the lessons that come naturally, so in a sense, yes, the parents failed her by not kicking her ass out and making her work for the things she wanted.

Regardless, she gets no sympathy from me, she knew how much she had and she blew it anyway.
Now the parents are teaching her a lesson, late? Maybe, but they aren't caving in.

Quote from: Solar on July 22, 2015, 09:38:48 AM
Of course, we  only hear her version, it's highly possible they gave her advice, but like all kids, she never listened.
My parents never discussed the issue, finance in my family was, "If you can't pay cash, you have no business buying it."
Having a paper route at 10, I was taught to deal with finances the way any Conservative would, paying off your debts first, and planning ahead.
Had this kid worked before college, she would have learned the lessons that come naturally, so in a sense, yes, the parents failed her by not kicking her ass out and making her work for the things she wanted.

Regardless, she gets no sympathy from me, she knew how much she had and she blew it anyway.
Now the parents are teaching her a lesson, late? Maybe, but they aren't caving in.

I agree the daughter should have a large amount old responsibility and it appears she has never worked. I worked every summer from the time I was 14 years old. Two as a locker room attendant at the local swimming pool and three as a surveyor's assistant before going to college. I was grateful for both of those jobs and certainly did not consider them below me. It is clear this young lady is a spoiled brat and that is her parents' fault.

I take it she did not learn a damn thing in all the years in school. 

You can tell this is not the 1930's or 40's. 

Quote from: walkstall on July 22, 2015, 11:26:46 AM
I take it she did not learn a damn thing in all the years in school. 

You can tell this is not the 1930's or 40's.

Or the 50's and early 60's.

Quote from: supsalemgr on July 22, 2015, 11:10:56 AM
I agree the daughter should have a large amount old responsibility and it appears she has never worked. I worked every summer from the time I was 14 years old. Two as a locker room attendant at the local swimming pool and three as a surveyor's assistant before going to college. I was grateful for both of those jobs and certainly did not consider them below me. It is clear this young lady is a spoiled brat and that is her parents' fault.

Yeah, anyone with any sense knows when you are on your own, no job is below you.
You're right, she is the quintessential spoiled brat.
I took every job offered me as a kid, I turned sown nothing, from mowing lawns at 9 and working every summer till I entered the army, which was a much easier job than the summers I sent busting my ass.

There are millions of jobs available to kids, and even farm labor, which pays a damn good wage if one is willing to work, but for some reason this generation didn't get the work ethic our parents instilled in us.

The best advice my dad gave me when I started working, was show up early, be ready to work and do as you're asked and you'll never be without work.
He was spot on, because it was the kids that came in on time, then burned 7 minutes getting ready to work that were always the first canned.

I instilled this in my employees, be here ready to work, I don't pay you to come in, get dressed, BS, then start work 7 to 10 minutes later.

Quote from: Solar on July 22, 2015, 12:38:06 PM
Yeah, anyone with any sense knows when you are on your own, no job is below you.
You're right, she is the quintessential spoiled brat.
I took every job offered me as a kid, I turned sown nothing, from mowing lawns at 9 and working every summer till I entered the army, which was a much easier job than the summers I sent busting my ass.

There are millions of jobs available to kids, and even farm labor, which pays a damn good wage if one is willing to work, but for some reason this generation didn't get the work ethic our parents instilled in us.

The best advice my dad gave me when I started working, was show up early, be ready to work and do as you're asked and you'll never be without work.
He was spot on, because it was the kids that came in on time, then burned 7 minutes getting ready to work that were always the first canned.

I instilled this in my employees, be here ready to work, I don't pay you to come in, get dressed, BS, then start work 7 to 10 minutes later.

I was kind to myself when I said I was a surveyor's assistant. I really was a grunt that had to clear survey lines. This was '59-'61 when ATL was booming and there was much construction. As I look back I am really grateful I did not get bitten by a rattlesnake or copperhead clearing where we did. I was also playing American Legion baseball and would have games after those days at work. I don't think kids do things like that anymore.

Quote from: supsalemgr on July 22, 2015, 01:13:31 PM
I was kind to myself when I said I was a surveyor's assistant. I really was a grunt that had to clear survey lines. This was '59-'61 when ATL was booming and there was much construction. As I look back I am really grateful I did not get bitten by a rattlesnake or copperhead clearing where we did. I was also playing American Legion baseball and would have games after those days at work. I don't think kids do things like that anymore.

"surveyor's assistant", that's some seriously tough work.
I felt sorry for the poor guy when I had my lines verified. I own some serious mountainous land, with cliffs and ravines dropping 550' in elevation straight down.
The poor guy had to clear "line of sight", then traverse to the other side of the Mt, only to discover the line he cleared was off by a couple of feet, only to do it all again.
What was bid out as a $200.0 job, wound up taking all day. The surveyor had just surveyed the land 3 years prior and said it would only take an hour to check the lines.

Real nice guys, but he had no idea how fast the underbrush had recovered. I tipped them another $100. for all the work they had to do.
Did I mention the call a few days later? They both got poison oak.

Quote from: Solar on July 23, 2015, 07:04:12 AM
"surveyor's assistant", that's some seriously tough work.
I felt sorry for the poor guy when I had my lines verified. I own some serious mountainous land, with cliffs and ravines dropping 550' in elevation straight down.
The poor guy had to clear "line of sight", then traverse to the other side of the Mt, only to discover the line he cleared was off by a couple of feet, only to do it all again.
What was bid out as a $200.0 job, wound up taking all day. The surveyor had just surveyed the land 3 years prior and said it would only take an hour to check the lines.

Real nice guys, but he had no idea how fast the underbrush had recovered. I tipped them another $100. for all the work they had to do.
Did I mention the call a few days later? They both got poison oak.

That job clearly motivated me to go into a field that was mostly inside work with no heavy lifting.   

Quote from: supsalemgr on July 23, 2015, 08:12:40 AM
That job clearly motivated me to go into a field that was mostly inside work with no heavy lifting.   

Can't blame ya. I used to love hard labor, but then, I was a stupid 20 something.
Now I hire people to do the grunt work, and yes, I look for stupid 20 somethings.

Quote from: Solar on July 23, 2015, 09:09:21 AM

Can't blame ya. I used to love hard labor, but then, I was a stupid 20 something.
Now I hire people to do the grunt work, and yes, I look for stupid 20 somethings.

I am a believer in hard labor as a "must" experience for every 20 something kid.  It serves multiple purposes.

It gives them a new appreciation of the value of a dollar.

It teaches them the harsh conditions that some people labor under their entire lives.... and gives them empathy.

It teaches them the value of a good education.

It makes them better managers and supervisors.

It makes them more compassionate and wise adults.

All my kids did their stint at hard labor when they were around the age of 20.

Quote from: kroz on July 23, 2015, 11:36:12 AM
I am a believer in hard labor as a "must" experience for every 20 something kid.  It serves multiple purposes.

It gives them a new appreciation of the value of a dollar.

It teaches them the harsh conditions that some people labor under their entire lives.... and gives them empathy.

It teaches them the value of a good education.

It makes them better managers and supervisors.

It makes them more compassionate and wise adults.

All my kids did their stint at hard labor when they were around the age of 20.

Correct on all points. 

Quote from: kroz on July 23, 2015, 11:36:12 AM
I am a believer in hard labor as a "must" experience for every 20 something kid.  It serves multiple purposes.

It gives them a new appreciation of the value of a dollar.

It teaches them the harsh conditions that some people labor under their entire lives.... and gives them empathy.

It teaches them the value of a good education.

It makes them better managers and supervisors.

It makes them more compassionate and wise adults.

All my kids did their stint at hard labor when they were around the age of 20.

Couldn't agree more.
It's what separates the academic from the achiever.

Quote from: kroz on July 23, 2015, 11:36:12 AM
I am a believer in hard labor as a "must" experience for every 20 something kid.  It serves multiple purposes.

It gives them a new appreciation of the value of a dollar.

It teaches them the harsh conditions that some people labor under their entire lives.... and gives them empathy.

It teaches them the value of a good education.

It makes them better managers and supervisors.

It makes them more compassionate and wise adults.

All my kids did their stint at hard labor when they were around the age of 20.

Please excuse the personal reference.

My son worked on a landscaping crew for about four years in late high school and early college. He liked the profession so much he changed his college major to landscape architecture from business. Now he is a regional manager for a landscape supply company. It all started with grunt work under 20.