Can the Lost Generation Be Found?

American Greatness ^ | 27 Nov, 2025 | Victor Davis Hanson

[MtnClimber]

A generation sidelined by debt, ideology, and stalled adulthood is drifting—but it won’t stay lost if society restores real opportunity, accountability, and purpose.

TA generation sidelined by debt, ideology, and stalled adulthood is drifting—but it won’t stay lost if society restores real opportunity, accountability, and purpose.

Zoomers rarely date, supposedly out of fear that they would have to grow up, take charge, and head a household.

Yet the opposite, sympathetic generalization of Gen Z seems more accurate.

All through K-12, young men, particularly white males, have been demonized for their “toxic masculinity” that draws accusations of sexism, racism, and homophobia.

In college, the majority of students are female. In contrast, white males—9-10 percent of admittees in recent years at elite schools like Stanford and the Ivy League—are of no interest to college admission officers.

So they are tagged not as unique individuals but as superfluous losers of the “wrong” race, gender, or sexual orientation.

Gen Z men saw themselves scapegoated by professors and society for the sins of past generations—and on the wrong side of the preposterous reductionist binary of oppressors and the oppressed.

Traditional pathways to adulthood—affordable homes, upwardly mobile and secure jobs, and safe and secure city and suburban living—had mostly vanished amid overregulation, overtaxation, and underpolicing.

Orthodox and loud student advocacies on campus—climate change, DEI, the Palestinians—had little to do with getting a job, raising a family, or buying a house.

During the Biden years, white males mostly stopped enlisting in the military in their accustomed overrepresented numbers.

In Iraq and Afghanistan, they had died in frontline combat units at twice their percentages for the demographic. No matter—prior Pentagon DEI commissars still slandered them as suspects likely to form racist cabals.

Gen Z males seemed bewildered by women and sex—and often withdrew from dating.

[MtnClimber]

VDH ping

[equaviator]

"Zoomers rarely date, supposedly out of fear that they would have to grow up, take charge, and head a household."

More like "...and head a highly dysfunctional household".

[ClearCase_guy]

Good article.

But VDH barely touches on the long-term issue: there will be a demographic collapse after Gen Z. Gen Alpha is already born, so they will come along in due time, but after that? The follow-on generation is going to be tiny. And it won’t be white.

[central_va]

In before they are “just a bunch of cry babies “posters.

[Grey182]

Never liked VDH, and this is a prime example, he thinks like a boomer. He is stuck in an old reality, and not in a good way.

[Dartoid]

Thank you for self identifying as a moron

[equaviator]

IMO, VDH thinks like the genius that he is.

[unread]

"Gen Z males seemed bewildered by women and sex—and often withdrew from dating."

It's the women...they've become U-G-L-Y.! Physically and mentally, plum down to the bone.

[cgbg]

Article:

“Gen Z males seemed bewildered by women and sex—and often withdrew from dating.”

They are not bewildered at all.

They know the deck is stacked against them—that is called wisdom.

[T.B. Yoits]

From the article: Zoomers rarely date, supposedly out of fear that they would have to grow up, take charge, and head a household.

Absolutely disgusting shaming tactic.

These younger folks are well aware of just how screwed up their world is and are done taking the blame for it.

No one talks about a major reason that these younger generations don't want kids is that they've already been forced to be the adult because their parents are stunted individuals who refuse to leave their fantasies fueled by television, movies, and pop culture.

[Justa]

Marxism destroys everything it is applied to. That is its purpose and function. Women allowed it to control and define their relationship with men.

If nothing else it proves how gullible, haughty and frivolous Western women are. But this has been known for centuries. It’s just been suppressed recently as they were being tricked and turned against their families, men, society, Christianity and Western civilization for the sake of “social relevance” appeasing mass media propagandizers aka the Marxists pushing that crap on them.

“It was always the women, and above all the young ones, who were the most bigoted adherents of the Party, the swallowers of slogans, the amateur spies and nosers−out of unorthodoxy.” ― George Orwell

[Brian Griffin]

My neighbor Mark works nearly all the time. About the only time he takes it easy is when he throws pool parties for his friends and co-workers.

His neighbor to the east is an Eastern European who does finish carpentry that did much of the work on his huge new house and two huge outbuildings.

My neighbor Brent takes care of about 75 lawns and most of associated landscaping needs. His helper is fluent in both English and Spanish.

My neighbor Johnny is a roofing contractor. He is going to move soon to his huge new house.

[MayflowerMadam]

We’ll have dinner today with my nephew and his kids. I’ll check to see if his team girl still has the Gen Z Stare. 👀

[Brian Griffin]

It is unlikely for you to thrive economically unless you got married and stayed that way.

[caddie]

The op against the Zers: Hyperinflate college and home prices for 30 years. Block their education at the secondary school level. Block their ability to support themselves by bringing in millions of illegals and millions of pounds of drugs. Frustrate marriage and household formation with a repulsive feminism. Bash them as if it's all their fault that they can't read, add, marry, reproduce, etc. Neutralize religion.

Terminate any agent like Kirk who tries to reverse the above op.

Paint Communism as the solution to all their problems.

The Rat Communists have had impressive success with this 30 year op.

[central_va]

Oh everything is hunky dory. Out of touch.

[Mr. Jeeves]

One, an end to DEI hectoring and blame-gaming, and a return to class rather than race determining “privilege.”

Two, some sanity in the war between the sexes. When women represent nearly 60 percent of undergraduates, why does gender still assure an advantage in admissions and hiring?

Three, the federal government needs to stop funding $1.7 trillion in student debt, often for worthless degrees, and wasting away one’s prime twenties and thirties.

The Left will not voluntarily give up any of these things, which are key parts of their plan to disrupt and overturn Western Civilization in favor of a global collectivist state. Gen Z men are already refusing in large numbers to participate in these rigged systems, which is the only long-term solution - though their generation may remain "lost" for a while as a result.

[Ezekiel]

VDH is filled with negative waves.

A Moriarty of this generation, headed straight into the dark place he sees.

A 'mechanical' genius, so a lot of people follow his lead. All science, no art.

I've seen the math, the signs, the symbols, the letters and the codes, so I know that the rescue lot fell upon Gen X.

Flag-wise, the message there is, "Stop carrying out your intentions and watch for my signals."

As such, there's the element of sublime humor. In his case, it's the irony of the chronically humorless "Victor" who's got it all worked out:

😉

[central_va]

What comes after gen Z? Gen turkey baster?