Older people say it because they've had time to see how true it is. Sucks, but that's why we have elders to tell us this shit, right? Maybe we won't end up doing the stupid stuff ourselves.

[ There's a laugh there, because yeah right. Also because he is one of the older people and knows it for the painful fact that it is. ]

Just think of it this way. How do we know something is positive? Because it's not a negative.