Gen X: Sherpas of the American Economy?

http://jasonseiden.com/gen-x-sherpas-of-the-american-economy/ ^ | September 18, 2008 | Jason Seidon

[Nowhere Man]

I define Baby Boomers as those people who are old enough to remember Woodstock and the Tet Offensive but not old enough to remember World War II. I define Generation X as those people old enough to remember the Cold War but not old enough to remember Woodstock or Tet.

That reminds me, I'm an avid role playing gamer and my favorite games are "Twilight: 2000" and "The Morrow Project" where the Cold War was the theme behind them. In "Twilight," written in 1984, NATO and the Warsaw Pact engaged in World War III in 1996 and had the limited nuclear exchange in late 1997 and you are a G.I. stranded in Europe in the year 2000 just trying to survive and look for a way home. "The Morrow Project" (1980) is where you are frozen to rebuild civilization after a nuclear war or some other disaster. The first canon of the game, the nuclear war happens in 1989 and you wake up 150 years later.

Most players of both games are in their 30's and 40's and some even 50's (I'm 42), people who remember the Cold War. Although you can always adjust the timelines for different collapses, alternate histories where the USSR still exists now, or substitute Red China and/or Islamo-Fascism and push the date back, to many "yung uns" today, the Cold War seems to be ancient history.

[Nowhere Man]

AIDS has been around during these times, but it could have potentially affected anybody in any generation. All that was needed to prevent it, once the blood donation procedures were tightened up, was to avoid risky conduct. On the other hand, once upon a time, every summer during the first half of the 20th Century, children faced the possible tragedy of polio no matter what they did.

Last I heard, the earliest tissue sample with AIDS as well as possibly the first case was in 1959. IIRC, there was another early case in Chicago back in 1968. So it could have been around for years, centuries or even longer but it took a while and some dummy to introduce it to the human race.

[Nowhere Man]

Come to think of it, both tickets this year feature a member of the Silent Generation (1925 - 1942) and depending how you see it, an early X’er (1961 - 1981) or perferably in my eyes, a “Generation Joneser” (1955 - 1965/66). John McCain (1936) and Joe Biden (1942) are from the Silent Generation, like my parents (Mom 1938, Dad 1937) where Barack Obama (1961) and Sarah Palin (1964) are “Jonesers.” I think when it comes to the Presidency, the “Silent Generation” is a good title, we never had one from that generation, hopefully John McCain will change that and anyways, I think McCain is the last shot they have to have a “Silent” as a President.

[Nowhere Man]

The biggest story of Gen X is one they won't write about. But is the most important and fundamental point. Widespread abortion practiced on a whole generation.

Gen X was the first to "benefit" from Roe vs. Wade. The first generation to have 1 out of 4 murdered. Collectively that has a huge impact on a systemic/sociological scale. IMO it has a personal impact on the psyche of the generation. The baby boomers murdered their offsrping.

It's one reason the baby boomers still dominante political discourse today. They culled the herd. The book "Freakonomics" discusses some of the economic/criminology ramifications of the widescale abortion. (but sidesteps the spiritual/moral/social political issues)

From this end it looks like the political mess we are in is directly related to the "sins of the hippie mothers and fathers". Its all connected, mass ilegal immigration to do the jobs our aborted babies can't do. Colleges full of aging hippies who relive their heyday brainwashing and trying to hit on young coeds with little resistance from the culled herd. National Socialist control of every aspect of our lives. etc.

True, very true, you removed a good number of X'ers and Y'ers, potential workers and taxpayers, hence, as you pointed out, the Boomers have had a longer dominant run. It goes back to what I have always said, "nature abhores a vacuum" so something has to come along to fill it.

[Polybius]

Last I heard, the earliest tissue sample with AIDS as well as possibly the first case was in 1959. IIRC, there was another early case in Chicago back in 1968. So it could have been around for years, centuries or even longer but it took a while and some dummy to introduce it to the human race.

[Our man in washington]

I’m a generation Xer.

On the subway, a common sight is twentysomethings locked into their Ipods. The women are in flip-flops and the piercing is in all the wrong places. I look at them and think “is it possible that America has produced a generation even dumber and more self-centered than the Xers?”

[RipSawyer]

Baby boomer is a term used to describe a person who was born during the Post-World War II baby boom between 1946 and 1964. There IS NO “43 to 53 league of baby boomers”. The baby boom is defined as starting after the end of WWII. Those like myself who were born in the years between Pearl Harbor and the surrender of Japan are NOT baby boomers.

[RipSawyer]

They are the most uneducated on a grand scale, as, I believe, they were the first generation to be publicly educated.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

You are dead wrong on the most uneducated bit. They were far more knowledgeable than most of generation X in many important areas such as history. They may not have boasted of so many degrees but high school graduates were more than capable of doing many of the jobs that require a college degree now.

[equaviator]

“They were far more knowledgeable than most of generation X in many important areas such as history. They may not have boasted of so many degrees but high school graduates were more than capable of doing many of the jobs that require a college degree now.”

Zing!

[redgolum]

Those games still exists!???!

I remember them from the 80’s! That is cool! If I was still near some of my old friends, I would love to dig those up!

[Nowhere Man]

Yeah, that’s about right, some say some body was doing something with a monkey they should not have or ate a monkey and brought AIDS into the human race.

[Nowhere Man]

Those games still exists!???!

I remember them from the 80’s! That is cool! If I was still near some of my old friends, I would love to dig those up!

Yeah they do. You can go to Timeline LTD and order The Morrow Project. You can get the third edition and the fourth edition should be out soon.

Twilight: 2000, you can get versions 1.0, 2.0 and 2.2 on Drive Thru RPG and at 93 Game Studio, they are working on a Twilight: 2013 game and maybe you can get the original there too.

[wardaddy]

The sherpas of this economy are anyone who actually pays net taxes and actually raises their children they spawn.

That in itself is now a minority of citizens and the fruits of this decline across the board are ample evident.

The largest taxpayers have always tended to be those at peak earning power....late 40s to mid 60s

[Nowhere Man]

Sorry, bad links:

Timeline LTD
Drive Thru RPG
93 Game Studio

[kb2614]

Do I get a book or something?

No, how about a well done and a virtual pat on the back!! :-)

[kb2614]

Thanks for the earworm :/

Your welcome!! BWHAHAHAHA!!!!

[Cymbaline]

I’ve always heard that the Baby Boom generation ended in 1964, and that Gen X started in 1965. I was born in 1965, so I’ve always assumed I was an early Gen X’er.

[Jotmo]

I'm an avid role playing gamer...

Have you ever heard of the game author Matt Forbeck?

[bobjam]

“Gen-X uses the 70s and the 80s as their cultural heritage. Star Wars, Jaws, and ET were the major movies of our youth.”

We can’t forget the Atari and Dukes of Hazzard

[Nowhere Man]

Have you ever heard of the game author Matt Forbeck?

Not offhand but I did a search and found out he did "Blood Bowl" and "Warhammer 40,000."