People come from all sorts of backgrounds, so only a portion are "too soft". We must avoid stereotyping.
There are many factors that must be considered, some of which have been intensified by global moral degradation from 1914 on wards. Most of the problems we face with the younger generation is due to a flawed education method and a lack of both guidance and discipline (Nonviolent).
The book "Failiure: Why Science Is So Successful" by Firestein delves into this topic, criticizing the public education system for it's inorganic method of trying to teach students, giving a statistic that 80% of students who were originally interested in a certain scientific field often dropped out and never wanted anything to do with it ever again. The book "How Not To Be Wrong: The Hidden Maths of Everyday Life" by Ellenberg is also critical of the dispassionate lack of depth in public education which so often drives people to viewing Calculus as an esoteric practice rather than a useful extension to common sense.
I talked to a social worker a long time ago who checked up on the development on children who were being homeschooled. "When we visit children to check on their quality of work," she says, "we often find that they are just sitting there, doing nothing or playing a game of some description."
It is the job of the parent/guardian to ensure that their children are morally educated and that they actually spend time with their children. There are a few 6-10 year olds in my street that have the foulest language. When I was trying to teach them the ethics of payment and gratitude (long story), one of them shouted: "WHAT IS forgetIN GRA'IPOOD" repeatedly.
After unsuccessfully trying to teach them, they would often knock on my door asking to come in because they wanted money and chocolate, which they were vocal about. I never opened the door after their first attempt, and they eventually stopped.
TL;DR: The education system, methods of parenting and state of moral degeneracy is at fault for incorrectly programming children.
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