Where's the motivation?

I know I'm going to sound like an "old" person when I write this. And you know what? I really don't care! If you've had any dealings with teenagers in your home or your life, you'll understand where I'm coming from! So, here it goes:

What the hell is wrong with kids today? Oldest still doesn't have a driver's license, or a job. Neither do 99.9% of his friends. They are all 17 & 18, so it's not like they aren't of age to acquire these things.

They go to school, get out of school, go riding around with the ONE person who has a license and a vehicle.

They make a quick stop by each teen's house to do chores, check in with parents, etc.

Their next action? They go to one of the houses and play video games. And, at least in our home, raid the fridge and cabinets, and eat enough for four times as many people. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't mind the kids being here. And trust me when I say that if given the choice to work or stay home and play, I would probably choose the latter of the two.

The part I really don't get is WHY THE HELL DON'T THESE KIDS WANT TO DRIVE?

I can remember back in the day, we all could not wait for that driver's license! In Kansas where I grew up, we could get a restricted license at 14. You can bet your ass I was studying that nook starting at about 12 1/2. The DAY I turned 14, I was down taking the test to get my restrcited license.

While it didn't mean TOTAL freedom, it meant I could drive to and from school, and drive for work. If I remember right, as long as we were running errands for our parents (to the store, etc) we could also drive then, too. Now being normal kids, we stretched the rules, and rode around a few minutes before school, or after.

The day we turned 16, we were CRUISING! Up and down main street, to our friend's house, to the next town - in fact, any damn where  we could go & not get our ass beat when we got home.

I have to ask myself - have all of us failed as parents that our children aren't motivated to drive? Motivated to get a job so they have money in their pockets? If so, how the hell do we fix it?

Both  Husband and I worked and drove as soon as we could. We enjoyed the freedom, enjoyed that step toward adulthood. Is that the problem? Do kids today look at all of us and instead of saying, "hey, I want to be able to run my own life", they are now thinking, "i want to be like Peter Pan and never grow up and have responsibilities!"??