To hate the vacuousness of some young girls nowadays?

YABU and yes, judgmental.
Young people have always wanted to fit in. Whether that’s following the ‘right’ football team, having the ‘in’ trainers or fashions.
They now have ‘influencers’ who are paid a lot of money to convince them they need the latest products.
None of this makes them vacuous.
Your disdain is aimed at girls in particular and this is simple misogyny.

Ahh the sweet days of sun in, body glitter, hair mascara and impulse. Let’s not forget Benetton hot and cold. Transparent rucksacks, those black necklaces with yin and Yang pendants.

To top it all off, ‘position of the fortnight’ and MSN chat rooms - both of which make me shudder now as a parent. Absolutely unacceptable.

Fond memories though!

I was 12 (30 yrs ago) and loved make up, fashion and accessories. I don't think it's changed tbh. Only that Primark is seen as acceptable for most everyone and not just for paupers like it was in my day.

My confusion is why you are targeting young girls?

I would understand and even agree if you said - isn't it so sad that young girls are pressured into growing up so quickly and that compared to generations before, thanks to social media there's an even greater awareness of brands and higher expectations to be consumers.

Stop being vile to the literal CHILDREN and blame the adults that created the culture.

The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households.- Socrates

Do you actually know any of these girls you're judging? Or are you looking at these girls in their short skirts and making assumptions? Can't you like make up, short skirts.AND other more worthy pursuits?

Young people have always followed trends. The only difference now is the Internet, especially social media, applying pressure to conform in a different way.

But there's also more pressure to be healthy, eat well, look after your mental health, exercise etc. It isn't all bad.

This!!

I find it beyond sad that at the age of 12 girls (children) are already being judged and found wanting like they won’t get that their entire adult life when they grow into women

Probably because their mothers are as shallow as they are - grown adults queuing round the block to buy bloody cups, worshipping "influencers" and other such shite.

And yes I do have a nearly 12yr old daughter and she has no interest in this stuff thank god

Put firm limits on sm and this won’t be as much of a problem. Talk to your dc about advertising and make them wise at an early age as to how products are marketed to them subliminally and subtly through sm.

And make sure your dc are in positive friendship groups BEFORE adolescence hits, and it helps if they are focused on a sport, hobby, interest that takes them outside of themselves; scouts, music, D of E, karate, tennis, dance, horses, dog agility, art, crafts anything so that they don’t get too much time to naval gaze.

But a little navel gazing is normal I think for adolescent girls with a few obsessions thrown in. Happily this current make up obsession passed them by but my dds had a very intense and prolonged loom band phase and I occasionally still find the wretched things in the house about 10 years later!

Usually the vacuous “thing” that teen girls are obsessed with are not actually about the “thing” itself which is just a vessel for them to feel bonded to their group and that’s a perfectly normal part of development.

Yes, because anything feminine coded is trashy and crap and we must mock it.🙄

Most kids don't have one singular interest, it's possible to like boys, make up, music, art, poetry, reading, films, swimming all at the same time.

Well if the "girls your talking about" are that thick, they STILL aren't unique to this generation. There were always idiots. In the 90s they would "only know a political movement" if it was in J17!

And 100% this.

WTF!? She needs to do nothing to her skin except wash it. She's 12! Oh well you do you😑

Agree with pp that it's nothing new.

I'm 41 and at 13 was obsessed with skincare (Clinique specifically and I remember a teacher being was shocked when she saw my expensive Clinique eye cream on a school trip 😂), I spent ages doing my hair every morning and although fake tan wasn't my bag at time I remember applying copious amounts of glitter. There was also certainly a very short skirt.

I doubt the kids today are any more vacuous than I was in those days (or any girls any time before) but I still managed to grow up into a well rounded woman, as most of them will.

I think it’s always been this way to some degree, particularly with fashion, hairstyles, but I think the difference is that they are younger now when it starts.

Remember the ‘Rachael cut’ hairstyle? Lots of teenage girls had that style from the hairdressers, but not at 12. Maybe 15/16.

We liked fake tan back then but agian were were 15/16 not 12.

Eh? Brazilian Bumbum Cream is just body lotion.

My 12 year old daughter is into her skincare brands and really looks after her skin (a lot of that is my influence).

How does that make her vacuous? She’s a clever, well travelled girl (top set at school) - her love of skin care brands is one aspect of her personality. She’s also a musician and talented writer….. it’s not as depressing as you think it is.

No, they are not clones, and have plenty going on inside their heads besides brands