Remember these guys?
Or these, from the eighties?
In the fifties, when my mother was a young woman, women in trousers still created discomposure. Even with me, my parents tried to force me into dresses on Sundays.
In the late sixties and seventies, there were the hippies; in the 80ies we had the punks; ravers in the 90ies, and so on.
Youth has always, and will always, create their own subculture. Outfits are an important part of it. And of course the outfits are meant to create discomfort, aversion and irritation among the older generation. That's the whole purpose of it, distancing themselves from their elders.
If the young wore outfits that were different, but acceptable to the older generation, it wouldn't make much sense, now would it?
Personally, I'm not keen on the low hanging pants and übercool attitude of the guys in the right picture. But this too shall pass.
Not everybody in the fifties had "class". There were 'outsiders/misfits' too. Rock 'n Roll and everything it stands for had the potential to shock the older generation back then. Or women in pants, like I already said.
And not every young person nowadays goes with their pants in their knees.
Once a trend reaches a certain mass of followers, it changes from 'cool outsider' status to mainstream, gets dampened down by fashion industry and in the end the tamed version of it gets broadly accepted in societey. Which of course makes it then useless for provocation, and the young will find another trend.
Low, baggy pants, heavy tattoos and huge chains will not be the end of civilization as we know it.
