I RECENTLY came across a tongue-in-cheek post claiming that those born in the 1970s and 1980s somehow got the worst deal at every stage of life.

As children, if we misbehaved or failed to pay attention in class, teachers would scold us – and, in those days, may even reach for the cane. Some parents would even tell teachers: “Please be strict with my child.”

Then we grew up and became parents ourselves. Now, when our children misbehave or perform poorly at school, it is often we parents who are summoned and asked why we have not done a better job of disciplining them.

At moments like these, one cannot help doing the mental arithmetic: more than 30 years have passed, so why am I still the one getting into trouble?