"I think that people don't know how to do anything anymore. My father was a janitor. He could take a car apart and put it back together. He could build a house in the back yard. Today, if you ask people what they know, they say, 'I know how to hire someone.'"

This quote by Walter Mosley speaks to the suggestion that people today lack the abilities as well as understanding that previous generations had. Mosley's daddy was a janitor, yet he was able to take a car apart and also put it back with each other, in addition to develop a home in the backyard. This talks to the degree of understanding and also skill that was commonplace in the past. On the other hand, when asked what they know today, individuals typically reply that they understand just how to work with somebody. This suggests that individuals today do not have the skills and understanding that previous generations had, and also rather count on hiring someone else to do the help them. This quote talks to the concept that people today are not as self-dependent as they made use of to be, which the understanding and skills of previous generations are being shed.