Politics

[Josh P]

...the Boomers? The same generation who has dominated the political landscape since the time before the majority of Millennials and all of Gen Z were even born?

They also raised both the millennials and gen z by handing them over to educational systems without any accountability. But hey, bootstraps, ya'll.

 

[Doug3006]

I generally loathe and avoid generational arguments because they are inane, unproductive, and often devolve into an us vs. them, but let me get this straight:

Baby Boomers have been the dominant voting block for almost 40 years, and based on voting trends and life expectancies, they may very well remain the dominant generation in politics for another decade or more. Since 1992, four of five U.S. Presidents have been Boomers, with the lone exception being Joe Biden, who is actually older than the Boomers. Boomers have held a majority of congressional seats for decades now and likely will continue to hold a majority of the senate and house through the next handful of election cycles.

Along this same timeline, the government has devolved into endless corruption and scandals, and is so poorly run that it's apparently slipping towards central American junta-tier levels of awful. Things are worse than they were 50 years ago and are only getting worse, and we need another American Revolution to clean out the tyrants. The only people who can save us from the downward spiral of the last few decades and from the Millennials and Zoomers are...

...the Boomers? The same generation who has dominated the political landscape since the time before the majority of Millennials and all of Gen Z were even born?

I understand it's easy to slip into age-based tribalism and to throw shade on younger generations. It's the natural course of life. But that doesn't mean it's accurate or productive. In their heydays, I'm sure the Lost Generation and Greatest Generation thought Boomers were entitled sh*t-heads and good-for-nothing hippies who would send the country to hell in a handbasket.

Now THAT’S a solid response! We Boomers don’t exactly have a great resume do we? Plus, if the later generations are so useless, who raised them? Some mirror gazing might be in order.

 

[Brent in Az]

So what's the point of all that babble?

From what I've seen, Patriotic Boomers that actually have a pair, are a dying breed. Qualities that could save this country, should things continue on it's present course.
White Liberals, minorities,and generation pansy, is what has caused the current state of affairs in this country by voting foolishly. They will be the ones responsible for everyone living under the thumbs of dictators, 10, 20, or 30 years from now, because they have all been socially castrated.
Look at the hard & tough men that sent the Redcoats packing. How many men like that are left in this country, and which generation do they come from?

I generally loathe and avoid generational arguments because they are inane, unproductive, and often devolve into an us vs. them, but let me get this straight:

Baby Boomers have been the dominant voting block for almost 40 years, and based on voting trends and life expectancies, they may very well remain the dominant generation in politics for another decade or more. Since 1992, four of five U.S. Presidents have been Boomers, with the lone exception being Joe Biden, who is actually older than the Boomers. Boomers have held a majority of congressional seats for decades now and likely will continue to hold a majority of the senate and house through the next handful of election cycles.

Along this same timeline, the government has devolved into endless corruption and scandals, and is so poorly run that it's apparently slipping towards central American junta-tier levels of

awful. Things are worse than they were 50 years ago and are only getting worse, and we need another American Revolution to clean out the tyrants. The only people who can save us from the downward spiral of the last few decades and from the Millennials and Zoomers are...

...the Boomers? The same generation who has dominated the political landscape since the time before the majority of Millennials and all of Gen Z were even born?

I understand it's easy to slip into age-based tribalism and to throw shade on younger generations. It's the natural course of life. But that doesn't mean it's accurate or productive. In their heydays, I'm sure the Lost Generation and Greatest Generation thought Boomers were entitled sh*t-heads and good-for-nothing hippies who would send the country to hell in a handbasket.

 

[Doug3006]

The point Louis made, very well, is simple. The boomers got us where we are today. You can’t put all of the blame on the generations who haven’t had their chance to drive the bus yet.

 

[Brent in Az]

The point Louis made, very well, is simple. The boomers got us where we are today. You can’t put all of the blame on the generations who haven’t had their chance to drive the bus yet.

I'm a boomer, and I didn't contribute to the current state of political muckery.
The POINT is, who will be the ones to extinguish this dumpster fire? It sure and the hell isn't the XBox generation.

 

[Doug3006]

I'm a boomer, and I didn't contribute to the current state of political muckery.
The POINT is, who will be the ones to extinguish this dumpster fire? It sure and the hell isn't the XBox generation.

And there are many young people today who aren’t XBoxers and degenerates. I did my part too, by raising a couple of kids who stayed off drugs, got an education, and are contributing members of society. They will have to carry the torch after we’re fertilizer.

 

[Mekaniks]

I generally loathe and avoid generational arguments because they are inane, unproductive, and often devolve into an us vs. them, but let me get this straight:

Baby Boomers have been the dominant voting block for almost 40 years, and based on voting trends and life expectancies, they may very well remain the dominant generation in politics for another decade or more. Since 1992, four of five U.S. Presidents have been Boomers, with the lone exception being Joe Biden, who is actually older than the Boomers. Boomers have held a majority of congressional seats for decades now and likely will continue to hold a majority of the senate and house through the next handful of election cycles.

Along this same timeline, the government has devolved into endless corruption and scandals, and is so poorly run that it's apparently slipping towards central American junta-tier levels of awful. Things are worse than they were 50 years ago and are only getting worse, and we need another American Revolution to clean out the tyrants. The only people who can save us from the downward spiral of the last few decades and from the Millennials and Zoomers are...

...the Boomers? The same generation who has dominated the political landscape since the time before the majority of Millennials and all of Gen Z were even born?

I understand it's easy to slip into age-based tribalism and to throw shade on younger generations. It's the natural course of life. But that doesn't mean it's accurate or productive. In their heydays, I'm sure the Lost Generation and Greatest Generation thought Boomers were entitled sh*t-heads and good-for-nothing hippies who would send the country to hell in a handbasket.

This is the best post I seen in along time

 

[Josh P]

Hence the popularity of the response, "Ok, boomer."

 

[BSO Dave]

You can’t put all of the blame on the generations who haven’t had their chance to drive the bus yet.

Actually, you can put quite a bit of the blame on them...

Millennials and Gen Z's are voting and their voting record is directly reflective of the entirety of these asinine ideologies that are dictating democratic policy. Aside from their age and voting record, their grossly ignorant and naive ideologies are destroying the culture and the moral fabric that used to unify this country.

I appreciate that a small minority of these kids are still being raised to have morals, values, respect for others, and an understanding of the Constitution, but not nearly enough of them... The vast majority are driving the bus, and they are driving it off a cliff...

 

[Louis Toadvine]

I'm a boomer, and I didn't contribute to the current state of political muckery.
The POINT is, who will be the ones to extinguish this dumpster fire? It sure and the hell isn't the XBox generation.

So what's the point of all that babble?

From what I've seen, Patriotic Boomers that actually have a pair, are a dying breed. Qualities that could save this country, should things continue on it's present course.
White Liberals, minorities,and generation pansy, is what has caused the current state of affairs in this country by voting foolishly. They will be the ones responsible for everyone living under the thumbs of dictators, 10, 20, or 30 years from now, because they have all been socially castrated.
Look at the hard & tough men that sent the Redcoats packing. How many men like that are left in this country, and which generation do they come from?

One of the points I hoped to emphasize in "all that babble" was that blanket statements about generations are futile and often ignorant, since generations are inherently large and diverse and cover fairly large age gaps. This includes the "Patriotic Boomers" and "generation pansy."

My making any generalizations about Boomer behavior, values, or social norms would not be accurate, because the Boomers are a huge generation made up of many different types of people with varied backgrounds. The generation includes many of the "Patriotic Boomers" as well as the "White Liberals, minorities." They've all played a part in the current state of affairs because they've been the dominant voting block for nearly half a century.

 

[Brent in Az]

And there are many young people today who aren’t XBoxers and degenerates. I did my part too, by raising a couple of kids who stayed off drugs, got an education, and are contributing members of society. They will have to carry the torch after we’re fertilizer.

That's why I said MOST, but not all. I wasn't making a blanket statement. There certainly are exceptions.
I know a few fine millennials serving in the military. I know many more millennials & Gen Z who aren't worth the underwear they walk around in.

 

[Doug3006]

I’m sure that when folks my age (I’m in my 60s) talk about our generation, we don’t mean these paragons of Boomer Supremacy.

 

[Brent in Az]

One of the points I hoped to emphasize in "all that babble" was that blanket statements about generations are futile and often ignorant, since generations are inherently large and diverse and cover fairly large age gaps. This includes the "Patriotic Boomers" and "generation pansy."

My making any generalizations about Boomer behavior, values, or social norms would not be accurate, because the Boomers are a huge generation made up of many different types of people with varied backgrounds. The generation includes many of the "Patriotic Boomers" as well as the "White Liberals, minorities." They've all played a part in the current state of affairs because they've been the dominant voting block for nearly half a century.

I think you seriously misinterpreted my original post with a tangent that's gone way into left field.

It's hard to take someone seriously, who's screen name is based on a violent fictional outlaw killer from Blood Meridian.

 

[BSO Dave]

My making any generalizations about Boomer behavior, values, or social norms would not be accurate, because the Boomers are a huge generation made up of many different types of people with varied backgrounds. The generation includes many of the "Patriotic Boomers" as well as the "White Liberals, minorities." They've all played a part in the current state of affairs because they've been the dominant voting block for nearly half a century.

I don't necessarily disagree with anything you have said here... However, there are some very significant differences between then and now that I believe you and a few others here are failing to recognize as part of the problem that is unique to the last 25-30 years...

The obvious bias that is omnipresent in the media and social media in particular was non-existent 25-30 years ago. This has enabled very radical minorities to have a disproportionate platform in politics, society, and culture that they would ordinarily never have. The power of propaganda of these institutions have inflicted upon our culture is far beyond what any "boomer" could have possibly conceived. So much so that it has literally influenced the outcome of national elections. Technology and digital media have created new challenges in influencing society and culture that conservatives have yet learned to deal with.

I also believe the seeds of socialism planted by the white liberal minority boomers you referred to is finally bearing its fruit in these younger generations. They knew it would take a generation or two to take hold, but they also realized a disease like socialism takes much deeper root when it is introduced via generational indoctrination.

 

[jpr9954]

Justin Trudeau & wife are separating after 18 years.
Some women can only deal with a Beta male for so long......

 

[Dragan N.]

A good friend's son married a Swiss girl. He relocated there, learned Swiss German, and was able to get into an apprenticeship program in carpentry. From what his dad was telling me, it was exacting and impressive in what was being taught. The son and his wife are now back in the US and he has started his own custom home building business in Colorado.

Yes it seems in Europe there system for training skilled tradespeople is a bit more straightforward and structured than it is here. In Ontario skilled trades suffer from the following 2 problems:

1) Trades have a somewhat "bad rep" in high school. Teachers and guidance counselors typically encourage the students who are flunking school to go into trades. If a student has decent grades they encourage them to go and get a university degree. Even if is a nonsensical degree like gender and sexuality studies.

2) Getting into the trades is a bit convoluted. It can be a bit tricky to get an apprenticeship, as you have to find someone or a company that is willing to train and pay/hire you. One problem I have noticed is that some people use their apprentices for manual/menial labor and they don't really teach them all that much. Obviously the reverse holds true as well- there are journeymen who go above and beyond when it comes to training their apprentices. In Europe it seems this process is a bit more streamlined and structured. It is a mixture of dedicated in-classroom training time and practical experience...

 

[mdwest]

@Louis Toadvine makes valid points..

I still remember sitting in a sociology 101 class as a sophomore.. where one of the very few points a professor has ever made that I found lifelong value in was made..

He was discussing the US welfare system (as it existed in 1988).. and asked the class about how they felt when they saw 18 year old, able bodied men sitting on the porch in the projects drinking a 40 oz at noon, drawing welfare checks to live on rather than pursuing work (that they were clearly capable of doing)..

The class was more than a little vocal about how it pissed them off.. (Im sure the class would respond very differently today when filled with Gen Z'ers as opposed to all the Gen X'ers that were in the class with me at that time)..

He then went on to explain that the welfare system was created in 1935.. and that at the time of his lecture we were at the onset of the 4th generation of families in this country that had never worked.. that while it doesnt apply in ALL situations... it was far more common than any of us understood... that the 18 year old kid was the product of the parenting and of the system he was raised in.. and that his 36 year old daddy had essentially trained him to be who and what he is... and that oh, by the way.. the 36 year old daddy was trained by society and by his 54 year old parents (the grand parents).. and oh, by the way.. those grandparents were trained and raised by their 72 year old parents (the great grand parents).. and that society had been telling 4 generations that it was perfectly ok not to work even when able to do so... you'll be taken care of...

Its easy to get pissed off at the 18 year old sitting on the porch drinking the 40 at noon, collecting a check, refusing to work...

but who we should all be getting pissed at is the 72 year olds that were absolutely capable of working, but instead gamed the system, trained others to game the system, and all of society that sat around in 1935 and thought "this is all going to work itself out at some point".. and for decades did nothing to correct the system or society itself..

Its easy to get pissed at millennials.. they give a lot of reasons for older generations to be pissed at them..

but we shouldnt forget.. millennials didnt create helicopter parenting.. Gen X did.. millennials are simply the product of it... millennials didnt create the concept of participation trophies.. Gen X did... millennials are simply the product of it.. etc..etc..

And guess who created the Gen X'ers... that was the boomers...

so.. hate the guys that decided helicopter parenting and participation trophies were going to be the solution for setting society straight? well.. ownership of that probably falls upon the generation that created them (the boomers)..

and it goes on, and on, and on..

We can all claim "well... Im not like that!"... (I am not like many in my generation (Gen X)).... so what?.... the truth is most of the boomer generation is a particular way.. as most of Gen X is a particular way.. as most of Gen Y / millennials are a particular way, etc.. and if youre not part of the solution, you are indeed part of the problem...

 

[Wheels]

@Louis Toadvine makes valid points..

I still remember sitting in a sociology 101 class as a sophomore.. where one of the very few points a professor has ever made that I found lifelong value in was made..

He was discussing the US welfare system (as it existed in 1988).. and asked the class about how they felt when they saw 18 year old, able bodied men sitting on the porch in the projects drinking a 40 oz at noon, drawing welfare checks to live on rather than pursuing work (that they were clearly capable of doing)..

The class was more than a little vocal about how it pissed them off.. (Im sure the class would respond very differently today when filled with Gen Z'ers as opposed to all the Gen X'ers that were in the class with me at that time)..

He then went on to explain that the welfare system was created in 1935.. and that at the time of his lecture we were at the onset of the 4th generation of families in this country that had never worked.. that while it doesnt apply in ALL situations... it was far more common than any of us understood... that the 18 year old kid was the product of the parenting and of the system he was raised in.. and that his 36 year old daddy had essentially trained him to be who and what he is... and that oh, by the way.. the 36 year old daddy was trained by society and by his 54 year old parents (the grand parents).. and oh, by the way.. those grandparents were trained and raised by their 72 year old parents (the great grand parents).. and that society had been telling 4 generations that it was perfectly ok not to work even when able to do so... you'll be taken care of...

Its easy to get pissed off at the 18 year old sitting on the porch drinking the 40 at noon, collecting a check, refusing to work...

but who we should all be getting pissed at is the 72 year olds that were absolutely capable of working, but instead gamed the system, trained others to game the system, and all of society that sat around in 1935 and thought "this is all going to work itself out at some point".. and for decades did nothing to correct the system or society itself..

Its easy to get pissed at millennials.. they give a lot of reasons for older generations to be pissed at them..

but we shouldnt forget.. millennials didnt create helicopter parenting.. Gen X did.. millennials are simply the product of it... millennials didnt create the concept of participation trophies.. Gen X did... millennials are simply the product of it.. etc..etc..

And guess who created the Gen X'ers... that was the boomers...

so.. hate the guys that decided helicopter parenting and participation trophies were going to be the solution for setting society straight? well.. ownership of that probably falls upon the generation that created them (the boomers)..

and it goes on, and on, and on..

We can all claim "well... Im not like that!"... (I am not like many in my generation (Gen X)).... so what?.... the truth is most of the boomer generation is a particular way.. as most of Gen X is a particular way.. as most of Gen Y / millennials are a particular way, etc.. and if youre not part of the solution, you are indeed part of the problem...

You would probably enjoy reading, "The Fourth Turning", which deals with generations and the cycles created by every fourth generation. The book helps explain what America and the West is going through currently.

 

[Red Leg]

You would probably enjoy reading, "The Fourth Turning", which deals with generations and the cycles created by every fourth generation. The book helps explain what America and the West is going through currently.

I read it while on a three month deployment to Kuwait in 2000. I was the Joint Force Commander in a rotating billet before the world went crazy on 9-11. It was a pretty useless "command," experience, but I had plenty of time to catch on reading material. I also read Strauss and Howe's earlier "The History of America's Future, 1584 to 2069" at the same time. A lot of academics have criticized their lack of rigorous research methods. My response would be - simply look around.

 

[Wheels]

I read it while on a three month deployment to Kuwait in 2000. I was the Joint Force Commander in a rotating billet before the world went crazy on 9-11. It was a pretty useless "command," experience, but I had plenty of time to catch on reading material. I also read Strauss and Howe's earlier "The History of America's Future, 1584 to 2069" at the same time. A lot of academics have criticized their lack of rigorous research methods. My response would be - simply look around.

It is amazing how every four generations the saeculum plays out.



1. Will be interesting to see how the crisis we are in will play out in the next decade.

2. WWII

3. American Civil War

4. Revolutionary War

5. British Civil Wars and Puritans to America

6. Reformation

7. Can't remember the previous one(s) offhand.


With what the west has been going through the past few years, it is a lot easier to see the cycle than when you originally read the book over 20 years ago.