Posted on 12/11/2005 10:11:05 AM PST by LouAvul
They partied and protested, then grew up to dominate America with their chutzpah and sheer numbers. Yet now, as the oldest of the baby boomers prepare to turn 60, there are glimmers of doubt within this "have it all" generation about how they will be judged by those who come next.
The ferment of the '60s and '70s -- when boomers changed the world, or thought they did -- faded long ago. Nostalgic pride in the achievements of that era now mixes with skepticism: Have the boomers collectively betrayed their youthful idealism? Have they been self-centered to the point of shortchanging their children? Anthony DeCurtis, one of the boomers' pre-eminent rock 'n' roll journalists, hears the occasional barb from his creative writing students at the University of Pennsylvania and it gives him pause.
"There's a fear that there's going to be nothing left -- that they're going to be picking up the pieces for this six-decade party we had, cleaning up the mess," said DeCurtis, 54. "There's some truth to that, I guess."
The boomers -- 78 million of them born from 1946 to 1964 -- are wealthier and more numerous than any generation before or since.
They have controlled political power long enough to stack the financial deck in their favor.
"It's economic and policy imperialism," said University of Oklahoma historian Steve Gillon, 48, author of "Boomer Nation."
"The boomers have set up institutions that will continue to benefit them, at the expense of other groups, as they grow old and live longer than any other generation," Gillon said.
"It's spend what you want, cut your own taxes -- the ultimate baby boom philosophy of 'We want to have it all.' We're not a generation that's had to deal with the reality of sacrifice."
(Excerpt) Read more at modbee.com ...
And lest we forget the "War Between The States" generation, who held together this Republic upon which if lost might have eventually resulted in a complete splintering of the United States into something more resembling Europe ... the 'country' of Alabama, the 'country' of Texas, the 'country' of Illinois ... ect ect ect ...
You're absolutely right. I stand corrected on the greatest generation.
Neal Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, was born in 1930. Deke Slayton was born in 1924. Michael Collins was born in 1930. Buzz Aldrin was born in 1930.
When the first astronauts walked on the moon, the oldest baby boomers were 23. While I'm not particularly familiar with NASA requirements for employment, I would assume that to work on the space program they required a minimum of a Bachelor or Masters degree. I know that Chuck Yaeger was turned down as an astronaut because he did not have a college degree. I would guess that working as an engineer for NASA would require a master's degree, and that most have doctorates. Am I wrong in assuming that the average NASA engineer has six to eight years of post high school education? If so, the oldest baby boomer would not have completed his post-secondary education by the time men walked on the moon.
I find it difficult to believe that even a baby boomer that was born in 1946 had worked his way into a position of any significance with NASA by 1964, when NASA began testing the Saturn I rocket. I've checked the names of all the space mission people from around 1969 that I can find, and I haven't found anyone born later than around 1930-1935. Who were the baby boomers that had any significant impact on the Apollo program? I can't find them.
I stand by my statement that the boomers cannot take any credit in any way, shape or form for the Apollo program. I believe that the boomers may have started at the bottom of the ladder, probably beginning around 1970-1974, but that during the last twenty years (1985-2005), boomers have been calling the shots at NASA. The actual turnover of personnel, of course, occurred over a period of years. I'd pin 1985 as a good breakover point, but others may have better information.
People who think they speak for others don't........your "opinion" is noted.
Because many of them live in neighbourhoods where it's too dangerous to play outside, either the neighbourhood is too violent or because the parents fear their children might be kidnapped right in front of their house.
No. I lived it and I saw it.
That is a generalization and it does not apply to ALL the Boomers but, taken as a whole, the Boomer generation marked the start of the decline of American society.
You hit the nail on the head. (Funny how people can take such observations so personally.)
I'm sick of the Boomer Bashing.
Most of us have worked hard and played by the rules.
Many served and died in a war that the nation abandoned.
Many of us LIKE MYSELF volunteered and stood on the ramparts for the last half of the Cold War which we won.
Our votes brought on the Reagan Revolution.
Many of the most destructive social programs aren't our legacy. They are the legacy of an older generation.
The "Greatest Generation" came home from war and proceeded to break the piggy bank with deficit spending. THEY pushed for the expansion of Social Security and brought in the Medicare Monster.
Boomers can take credit for the computer revolution, the internet and all manner of digital technology. They must now shoulder the blame for puka shell necklaces and pet rocks!
Ditto for me too! The only "boomers" complaining that the "boomers" have destroyed things are the ones that haven't doen anything with their lives. I'm proud of what I've done and the children that I've raised. I won't be burden on society as I've prepared for my retirement (but, I will take the SS payments because I want to get back some of the large amount that I've paid in...) If you ask me, the ones that are getting the best of things are the ones who at one time had the worst of things, the Greatest Generation.
It's never too late. One other thing. Many commentators focus on the "materialism" angle. However, for me, the biggest problem with the Boomers has been their impacts on tradition, and on geopolitics. The youth rebellion of the 1960s undermined our efforts to contain Communism in SE Asia. The world noticed that. We've never been the same since.
Yep, I agree. Whereas, those of us who came of age during the massive cleanup after Stagflation and malaise, experienced the Great Depression in miniature. We stuggled to get jobs when we finished college and had to put up with crummy careers for our first 10 years of worklife. People made fun of us calling us slackers. But actually, we worked much harder than our older coworkers. We were passed over for promotions and raises, while those older than us fought over the pie. We really did have a glass cieling. Now, at long last, the log jam above us is starting to break up. Patience is a virtue.
But percentage-wise, social degenerates form a larger fraction of the Boomers than of other generations. The Boomer generation, as a group, destroyed tradition. Sure there are exceptions to this overall situation, but the social destruction which occured after the Boomers started to come of age is obvious. It's really hard to build it all back.
Most of the Greatest Generation were born during the Depression and could not vote until at least the late 1940s. Let's not forget the voting age was 21 back then. It was not the Greatest Generation who supported FDR and his Fabian Socialism, it was their parents! The Greatest Generation's first election of note was the reelection of Truman. And their second ('52) said no the the Democrats and yes to the GOP.
We do know all that. But still, the Boomers are, overall, a looser, more tolerant (in a bad way) and whacked out group then any generation prior. It is undeniable. There was no real concept of a youth revolution prior to the 1960s. The 1920s were the closest thing, and by comparison, tame.
The "decline" started well before the sixties. Remember the welfare state was created during the FDR admin. All the leading leftist lights of the sixties, Chomsky, Zinn, etc. were virtually all pre-boomers. We've always had a certain number of far leftists. The fact is that as the population reached a certain number, the weight of the leftists began to tell. To blame boomers for the fact that the culture started to go downhill with their generation is like blaming them for dutch elm disease. The rot started a lot further back. If people from one generation were transplanted back or forward to another, they'd behave about the same. There are spoiled brats in every generation, but if todays Gen Xers or Yers think that boomers were spoiled, they should have grown up in my house, in my neighborhood, in my city. If they'd had, they'd think different.
All generations have been morally looser than previous generations. Today's youth are looser than Boomers who were looser than their parents. The fact is a appreciably higher percentage of Boomers voted for Bush than younger voters.
I'm glad you brought them up. I was thinking of them when I posted about the Revolutionary War generation. They're right up there with the best this nation ever produced.
Maybe if Bill Clinton and his hideous bride would just STFU I would not be so unhappy.
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