Toward a New Future of Whatever

When I first clicked on the link for this particular assignment, I noticed that the video we were to watch was over 30 minutes long. My initial reaction was "Oh great, I hope I can stay engaged in this for that long." What I found interesting was that within the first few minutes, Mr. Michael Wesch discussed how the current generation has short attention spans. I completely agree with this. We are conditioned by television, radio, etc to have these short attention spans with short "breaks" nestled within whatever we're watching or listening.
Mr. Wesch traced the meaning of "whatever". "Whatever" has changed from meaning "that's what I meant" to an indifferent, I don't care type of context. I agree with his discussion that individuals in a society are trying so hard to stand out that they get discouraged and pick up this "I don't care, I'm not going to do anything about it" attitude. He mentioned that it's like being lost in a big city or disconnected in a rural area.
I do feel indifferent to an extent. I don't have that drive to be discovered like in American Idol or for people to know me on YouTube. What's important to me is that I make a positive difference in my family, friends', and co-workers' lives. I want to serve a purpose in this society, not be held in high regard for a talent or anything of that nature.
As a future teacher, I want to take what I've gathered from this video and apply it. I want my future students to feel like they can make a difference without being completely indifferent. I'd want them to think more along the lines of providing for a collectivist society rather than an individualistic. Towards the end of the video, people held up writing on their hands, and several of the messages were about the world and that we are all connected - we need each other. That is a message I want to impress upon my future students.