DEAR Editor,

On 29th September at around 4.50pm I walking back from Tesco in Buckingham Parade up Homesteads Road nearing the side passageway, short-cut back to Coniston Road, a teenager emerges on a bike all over the road doing wheelies, as he passes me he says 'hello mate' – well, I don’t know him and he’s most certainly not my mate! As I get closer to the passageway another four (might be five) emerge and as one of the boys goes past he says 'alright mate' – I’m not his mate and don’t want to be his mate or the other kids mate either now or anytime soon!

I was taught at school not to talk to strangers!

Just last Friday morning 23rd September I was walking into town from Cliddesden Road, and using the narrow passage way link between Cliddesden Road and Beaconsfield Road, as I get towards the end, four college students, three girls and one boy are heading towards me, the boy completely oblivious to everything around him with nose firmly buried into his iPhone. As we end up face to face I say, 'take your face out of your stupid phone and damn well look where you are going'.

So my question to all you out there: Is this the way of the future generations? Because, if so, God help us.

Nigel Johnson 

Basingstoke