Gen X: grew up in a time of uncertainty, divorce, latch key kids, AIDS, friends became family, Challenger disaster, hole in the Ozone layer, recession, etc.

Gen Y: grew up in a time of instant fame, economic boom, encouraging parents who told their children to question authority, the internetz as a means to curate one’s own identity, self-promotion, “you can do anything” culture, etc.

I think this results in a generation that believes they can do anything….even if they’re dangerously unqualified. That’s what the video is about. It’s not about people who are famous on twitter. It’s about people who think (wrongly) that being on twitter means they’re famous.

Quite the opposite. I think it’s about how 20 somethings now BELIEVE they’re famous / awesome / special / good at something — without any grounds. It’s about people who aren’t famous but who think they are famous. Or people who aren’t good at something but who think they are.

For me, the thesis of the video is that Generation Y has been brought up by parents who unfailingly cheer their efforts as opposed to their achievements. It’s about a generation that was told that being famous doesn’t require any kind of particular talent (Kardashians) and that anyone can be a star (American Idol, Antoine Dodson), all while wrapped in the false warmth of internet hugs from digital friends.

What the video speaks to is that this type of “you’re-the-best-no-matter-what-I-love-you-you’re-so-special-because-you’re-special-you-can-be-a-star!!!” parenting as well as shifting cultural norms have resulted in a Generation Y afflicted with dangerously inflated self-confidence and corresponding false sense of entitlement.

How this generational phenomenon plays out in social media is only a part of what the video is mocking.