Teen DO have it harder today that when I was a kid (51 now).
I was at a parenting seminar and he talked about how adolescence is the time of life figuring out who you are, where you fit in, etc. 1500 years ago most kids had tribal lifestyles or VERY close families and there was no adolescence - they knew who they were.
He said when we were teens (40-50 year-olds) adolescence was about 13 to 18 years of age. Today it starts around 11 to 12 years old, with most researchers saying it extends to 27-28; with some even saying early thirties.
I guess these poor kids in Iraq found out that they didn’t fit in. I’ll have to remind my teenagers that as tough as being a kid growing up in suburbia is (no sarcasim - it IS tough), it could be worse!
I try my best to ask my kids what is going on in “their world”. I know many parents don’t. I guess they figure that being a teen is easier than being an adult responsible for a mortgage, a job etc... However, I feel that “their world” is important to them at the time. The peer pressures to do bad stuff is always present. (especially for the girls compared to when I was their age). I wouldn’t want to be a young person today.