Posted on 12/09/2004 10:13:49 AM PST by qam1
Ping list for the discussion of the politics and social aspects that directly effects Gen-Reagan/Generation-X (Those born from 1965-1981) including all the spending previous generations (i.e. The Baby Boomers) are doing that Gen-X and Y will end up paying for.
Freep mail me to be added or dropped. See my home page for details and previous articles.
Generation Jones? Well, I was born in 1964, but I've always identified with Generation X. What's in a name?
Fascinating. It's obvious from people I know that not all Boomers are Boomers. I'm sure a lot of Freepers belong to the Boomer generation but don't identify with Woodstock. I'd be interested to see further analysis of this thesis.
Interesting. Usually 1946 to 1964 are all lumped together. This seems to make more sense, to the extent we're going to examine by age.
One thing the GOP needs to keep in mind: these voters are not neccesarily "cultural conservatives". 1980s popular culture was anything but. Indeed, one of the secrets to Reagan's success with young voters is the fact that he basically left the culture alone.
-Eric
They also may be less divisive and less harsh in their rhetoric, having not had to deal with the major conflicts of the Civil Rights and Vietnam eras.
I am less divisive BECAUSE I remember the Vietnam era, and all those stupid hippy freaks...
For the uninitiated, Generation Jones is the large, heretofore lost, generation between the baby boomers and Generation X. Born in the years 1954 to 1965, Jonesers are not a small cusp generation that slipped through the cracks but rather the largest generation in American history, constituting 26 percent of all U.S. adults today. Mistakenly, they were originally lumped in with boomers for one reason only: their parents and boomers' parents happened to have a lot of kids.But generational personalities come from shared formative experiences, not head counts. This original flawed definition of the baby-boom generation has become widely discredited among experts, which is partly what's given rise to the emergence of Generation Jones, a cohort with significantly different attitudes and values than those held by its surrounding generations.
Sorry but they are boomers. We (Gen-Reagan) are the Baby Bust generation (lower birth numbers).
Associate with whoever y'all wish and distance yourself from some of the "baby boom" but it is all a part of the same block that forever changed society's mores and social institutions.
A generation is typically ~20-25 years so 1946-1964 IS a generation. Deal with it.
Well wudda ya know! I'm not a late boomer after all. I'm a Joneser!!
Never heard that term before, but I get the sense of it. I was born in late 53, and was really on the trailing edge of the boomers. (I was only 13 in the 67 "Summer of Love") My perspective of my so-called "generation" was not typical of most boomers. I was too young to join the Grateful Dead, but ended up too old for the Dead Kenedy's.
Very interesting article. My wife and I are both Bush voters and what the authors call, "Jonesers."
Mistakenly, they were originally lumped in with boomers for one reason only: their parents and boomers' parents happened to have a lot of kids.
While that may be true, I have to admit I'm somewhat more of a boomer than is my wife, for the simple reason that both of my parents grew up during the Great Depression and turned 20 near the end of WWII. Obviously, those two periods shaped not only the people who lived through them, but also their children (e.g. me). My wife's parents being 14 years younger than mine, they have no recollection of the Depression and were too young to 'appreciate' WWII.
At any rate, the authors might be onto something with this "jonesin" thing.
Finally! My friends and I have known for YEARS that we are not Boomers. We have different music, movies, new events and values.
We are more traditional, less gullible (in terms of talking heads and "experts"), more stable, less trendy, more optimistic, less fearful and we're a lot more okay being outside the crowd.
We could have a better name, though.
bumping for later. I guess I'm one of these people, but hubby's still a boomer.
I always had my doubts about being a true boomer, primarily because I don't remember "howdy doody"!
I was born in 65 and never felt any affinity to the boomers, whom I basically got lumped in with by the MSM.
My growing up years was watching Vietnam, Scooby-Doo, All in the Family, the Brady Bunch, Walter Cronkite, and the Partridge Family(etc.etc).
The first political campaign I remember is Nixon trouncing McGovern, and then came Watergate, and then Carter barely winning over Ford, and then the awful Carter years(bad economy and impotent America).
Then in 80, Reagan appeared on the scene. Optimism personified, and I was hoping he would win(although the media was pushing Ed Clarke, Libertarian, as a conservative alternative(wedge), and actually supported Clarke and in a high school debate, debated for his candidacy, and it is also interesting that 1980 has been the highest vote total for the Libertarian party, but we all grow up, and I did so after that debate)
After that debate I threw my support to Reagan, due to his can do and eternal optimism, and I was actually scared that Reagan would not win, given the MSM coverage of the time.
Well the rest is history, the race was called at 8:15 EST, and Carter rode off to a bitter sunset(as acknowledged by Carter's lukewarm and tardy praise on hearing of President Reagan's death).
After Reagan's ascendency to the Presidency in 80, the press became even more partisan and in the most recent election, I've never seen them more partisan for their side, the democrats. I think it is becoming apparent to many non-political people that the MSM is nothing more than an organ for the democrats and the new political debate is on the internet and FR was a pioneer in the MSM's decline.
Sorry about the long tome going down memory lane, but it was refreshing to see an article that didn't lump me with the self-absorbed boomers.
Its pretty hard for most of them to accept this...seeing as they don't understand accepting responsibility, common sense, and consequences to their actions. They gave us victimhood, political correctness, "if it feels good...do it!", latch key kids, the feminist movement, a bloated national deficit to fund their entitlements, birth control/abortion, and gross degredation to the nations morality and innocence of our youth. Not suprising though...what would you expect out of a group of people who are flaming, "Me, Me, Me" anti-God, anti-life, anti-freedom, anti-truth and anti-American socialists.
Good post! I share a lot of your memories. I was actually a Democrat for a long time (it's almost genetic in my family), but that's a long time ago. I'm a "Zell Miller" democrat (i.e., a Republican) now. :)
bump for later
Props to Generation Jones BUMP!
bump
A little harsh don't ya think? (Obviously not a Joneser)
Jonesers are the kids of the Korean War vets. There is a whole
different dynamic. I can tell you, as little kids, we all laughed at the whole
hippy peace and love crowd. FYI, most advertising and marketing firms
truncate generations at 10 years.
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