By: Katelyn Liston, Reporter

Many people have access to high-tech gizmos and gadgets that make life incomprehensibly easy, but the lack of issues can create problems which, in retrospect, have no substantial value. Privileged people who have access to advanced technology have begun to complain about any and everything, due to not actually having any real problems to worry about. These so-called issues are referred to as “First World problems.”

A First World country is defined as a country with “political stability, democracy, rule of law, a capitalist economy, economic stability and a high standard of living.” This means anyone who lives in a country with these characteristics is subjected to having First World problems; in today’s society you can’t go a single day without hearing a complaint from a privileged person. The lives of those living in First World countries have become so simplistic that they feel the need to fabricate problems to keep themselves busy.

Freshman Kaity Hawley says, “I think [First World problems] are real but I think they’re petty. Saying ‘I have nothing to wear’ when you have a closet full of clothes is kind of ridiculous.”

Since school is currently in session, a common complaint is “I have so much homework.” First of all, if students were to spend as much time on their homework as they spend complaining about it, they would find it much easier to complete. Secondly, 73% of children in third world countries do not finish their education because they do not have enough money to pay for school or are required to work to help support their family. First World countries offer free public education and financial aid for further education after high school but there are people who see education as a nuisance.

The simplest things may be easy to complain about, but go visit a child in a third world country and see how irrelevant First World problems are. Take a second to imagine someone complaining to a kid in Africa who walks hours to get half a bucket of muddy, disease-ridden water from a lake for his family, that they don’t have the newest model of their smartphone. Take a look at America’s government that is complaining about a s’mores article which offered healthy alternatives for s’mores versus countries that have little to no government and are plagued with the AIDS disease, murder, and malnutrition.

“I get upset when people complain over minute [issues] because there are usually other people who have more pressing problems. I feel like these people just want others to focus on [them] rather than another person [who is] talking about a serious problem, who actually needs help,” says junior Chirag Lodha.

First World problems are ludicrous and widely recognized as such. There are multiple social media pages dedicated to First World problems and how ridiculous they are, as well as the #firstworldproblems tag that is trending on Twitter, all of which will give a good laugh. First World problems are just an excuse for privileged people to gain unnecessary sympathy and will never be considered valid issues.