'The Real World' has become such an ingrained part of our pop culture, most people who are fans of the show these days probably don't realize that the program has been on for 18 long years. This means that some of the "kids" who populated the show during its early seasons are now old enough to have real, adult jobs.

So, for anyone who decried the fact that one day the "slackers" on 'The Real World' will one day run the country, take notice: one of them just got elected to help do just that.

Sean Duffy, a cast member of 'The Real World: Boston' in 1997, was elected to Congress last night by residents in Wisconsin's 7th district. The Republican district attorney of Ashland County won quite handily over opponent Julie Lassa, for a seat that was held by Democrat Dave Obey since 1969 (two years before Duffy was born).

And while this event may indicate to people my age (I'm about five months older than Duffy) and older that we're going to hell in a handbasket, what I thought when I heard about Duffy's victory was: why didn't this happen sooner?