It's 2017, and there's a lot of terrible stuff going on in our country right now. It's mostly been caused by all the old people who are stuck in the 70's and are terrified of gays and iPhones, so they decide to blame it all on the newest generation reaching adulthood. Bad economy? Innovating technology? Loss of jobs? Trump? Political correctness? Equality? It's all the millennials' fault. Of course none of that is true, but everyone above the age of 40 seems to think so.

So why in tarnation do we need these kids if they are the culprit for all the terrible things in our country and society? Well, I'm here to tell you. Here's 4 reasons why you need a millennial in your life.

4. When your grandpa says something racist at Thanksgiving.

We've all got one. The holidays roll around and your old man says he saw one of those "San-Francisco funny guys" kiss his boyfriend at the bar, or says we need to kick all the Mexican's out, or calls all Islamic people terrorists or, worst of all, drops a N-bomb. This is all terrible, and no one's Grandpa (or Grandma) needs to be saying this stuff. When they were growing up, this was probably just common talk, but it's 2017 and we don't say that anymore Gramps.

So when you're watching football on Turkey Day with the family and the camera zooms in on a few players taking a knee during the National Anthem, before Grandpa opens your mouth, have your millennial ready. They'll probably say something like "well Grandpa, they're just exercising their rights. That's what the flag's all about!" Grandpa is going to vehemently disagree, because he can't imagine why a black man is angry about his people being gunned down in the streets, or why a man wants to marry another man even though their love is no different than his. His life is perfectly fine, so when blacks complain about lack of equality, he doesn't understand and tells them they should be thankful for what this country has done for them. He thinks gay marriage infringes on his straight marriage. None of this logic makes any sense what-so-ever, and most millennials understand that. But for the old aging white folks out there, they just don't get it, and they sadly never will .

3. When you think being "PC" as a bunch of malarkey.

Aunt Susie takes a break from being brainwashed by Fox News to catch the new steamy episode of the Bachelor. Problem is, it's Wednesday night, not Thursday when the Bachelor airs. When Aunt Susie realizes this she exclaims "well that's gay." Uncle Bob says "hey Susie, that's not what gay means and you're using it in a derogatory way." Aunt Susie replies, "Oh shut up Bob. Stop trying to be so politically correct, you snowflake."

Ding ding ding, looks like Uncle Bob needs a millennial. Also looks like Aunt Susie has been watching too many Tomi Lahren videos on Facebook. When people complain about political correctness it's because the know what they're saying is wrong, but they don't want to admit it because they are terrible people and don't care about anyone else but their self. If every time something dumb happened we identified the situation as an "Aunt Susie," Aunt Susie might start to get offended. But because Aunt Susie isn't gay or probably has no connection to someone who is gay, she lacks any empathy or understanding for them.

Is calling the lack of Bachelor Wednesday night "gay" really the hill you want to die on, Aunt Susie? Is calling transgender people by their preferred name, or saying Native Americans over Indians, or understanding why a confederate flag is offensive, really that bad? Why is it so hard to listen to other people and identify them by what they want to be called? Being anti-PC isn't being American, frankly it's just being an ignorant piece of crap. Susie knows calling something dumb "gay" is offensive, but she doesn't care and keeps doing it to purposely be antagonistic because "PC" people are snowflakes, they're weak and feeble in her mind. Millennials are politically correct because they simply don't want to be rude and have genuine respect for other people. They aren't weak, they're actually stronger for not being so petty and shaming people who have empathy for others. Does political correctness go too far sometimes? Yes. But lots of examples out there are just simple little things that it wouldn't kill Aunt Susie to recognize.

2. When you're afraid of the impending digital future.

The future is digital. Cars will be driving themselves, drones will be delivering food and packages, and phones are going to be slim pieces of glass that control every aspect of your life. Just looking at technology now compared to 10 years ago, the staggering advances in innovation and efficiency are astronomical. We have solar panel roofs, electric cars, reusable rockets, high speed transit boring tunnels, and everything in between. This should all be incredibly exciting. If you find this incredibly terrifying, you need a millennial.

Millennials are embracing the digital future and to their benefit. Older generations that are reluctant to accept that technology is innovating and advancing are going to be left behind, but they're still going to want to reap the benefits. Advancing tech means better medicine, better energy conservation, and a better world. But it also means the jobs and traditions of the yesteryear are going to perish. Coal mining, farming, grocery stores, manufacturing, they're not going to last much longer. Machines can do it better, faster, and cheaper. Older generations just can't quite grasp this. They'd much rather hold onto the past while our future suffers. Our society isn't forward thinking anymore, that is until these young educated millennials get into a position where we can turn this country back into a force of innovation. It's time to accept our digital future.

1. When you don't know how to have compassion and empathy for another human being.

If you ever find yourself caring more about your right to a gun over the life of a few hundred people, or making decisions for women on what they can and can't do with their bodies without even asking them what they want, or refusing to understand why the confederacy shouldn't be celebrated, or having no real compassion or empathy for another human being, than you need a millennial.

This is the basic systemic issue behind many of the problems in this country. *Most* millennials understand how to put themselves in someone else's shoes and see an issue from their eyes. They care more about numbers in a bank account and bucks in their wallet. They understand equality and aren't selfish. We've grown up in a world where we've seen the mistakes of those who are intolerant and only care about benefiting themselves, so we're actively trying to flip the script. We work to bring together, instead of tear apart. We help the person next to us no matter their financial status, religion, sexuality, race, etc., not to benefit us, but because it's the right thing. That's the biggest gap between the older and younger generations. Doing the right thing. It might not be the most beneficial thing to us, but it's the right thing. Having empathy and compassion for another human being. You would think they were traits every human being understood, but unfortunately in 2017, they aren't.

if any of these situations apply to you, you may not need an actual millennial in your life, you might just need to be a better person. If you think you can't do that, I'm sure there's a few youngsters out there that will try to help.