I think the Brits have had trouble with their children for a very long time, probably starting after the war, with the advent of full-scale Socialism and the collapse of personal responsibility.
About 15 years ago, I was in a small tourist city in Spain and happened to bump into a British tourist who was looking for the same museum I was. She didn’t speak Spanish and I did, and I told her I was going to ask the only locals I saw, a group of kids who were kicking a ball around at the end of the street.
She was terrified and wouldn’t even come with me. When I came back - the kids having pointed me in the direction of the museum, where the mother of one of them worked - she told me that in Britain, you’d never dare go up and speak to children, especially in a group, because most likely, they’d attack you. I was completely stunned by this.
Reminds me of “A Clockwork Orange”
Brian Aldiss was right on the money.
Righty-right?