3 ms·

"I once read Baby Boomer culture described as an ugly toad squatting on the rest of society, holding it back. The truth turned out to be a bit different though.

"I once read Baby Boomer culture described as an ugly toad squatting on the rest of society, holding it back. The truth turned out to be a bit different though. Even the younger generations still willingly embrace 20th century life (probably more than they realize)." I think part of this isn't the selfishness of the new generation but because society hasn't really changed since 2001 and 2008 in terms of major problems. Children grew up in the rapid privacy and legal rights violations caused by the fallout of 9/11 are still dealing with it and nothing has been resolved regarding the erosion of consistutional and human rights. Global warming is still a major concern and that is also being exacerbated. Several places never recovered from 2008, and the younger generation is among the top in terms of disenfranchisement by being saddled with all this student debt- which also hasn't been resolved. Same for healthcare, income inequality, etc. Arguably, all of society's problems are still the problems of 2001/2008. Doesn't it make sense that our culture has also somewhat been placed in amber within that generation?

wutbrodo 7y ago
I don't think this is remotely true. The rise of China as a notable geopolitical force, the wave of populism across the world's democracies, the return of interpower conflict (by proxy, so far), the retrenchment of globalism, the rapid decline of organized religion as a political force in the US: these are just the big headline-grabbing trends off the top of my head, and I didn't even touch on the societal changes caused by bringing the world online.
malvosenior 7y ago
I'm actually talking more specifically about the culture and philosophy that arose during the 1960s-1980s. It's not so much about the problems each generation are facing (older generations having dealt with a constant reminder of potential nuclear annihilation of the human race), but the underlying philosophy and goals that drive individuals. The dissolution of the family unit and an extreme focus on the individual and personal satisfaction being the core tenant. We've gone from "sex, drugs and rock 'n roll" to "follow me on Instagram" but the theme is the same.
- chipotle_coyote 7y ago
  The problem with that characterization of the 1960s and 1970s is that it's also the period of the civil rights movement, the rise of the environmental movement, and anti-war protests in the United States whose scale dwarfed anything we've seen here since -- protests the police responded to at times by opening fire with live ammunition. When the boomers were the age that the millennials are now, a lot of them were expressing -- and acting on, and in some cases literally risking their lives for -- goals that are a lot less solipsistic than "me me me." I'm far from convinced that most millennials can be summed up with "like and subscribe," either, though. If anything, this seems to be an extremely politically engaged generation with an interest in radically reshaping their world. Which sounds, you know, an awful lot like the boomers, originally.

wutbrodo 7y ago

I don't think this is remotely true. The rise of China as a notable geopolitical force, the wave of populism across the world's democracies, the return of interpower conflict (by proxy, so far), the retrenchment of globalism, the rapid decline of organized religion as a political force in the US: these are just the big headline-grabbing trends off the top of my head, and I didn't even touch on the societal changes caused by bringing the world online.

malvosenior 7y ago

I'm actually talking more specifically about the culture and philosophy that arose during the 1960s-1980s. It's not so much about the problems each generation are facing (older generations having dealt with a constant reminder of potential nuclear annihilation of the human race), but the underlying philosophy and goals that drive individuals. The dissolution of the family unit and an extreme focus on the individual and personal satisfaction being the core tenant. We've gone from "sex, drugs and rock 'n roll" to "follow me on Instagram" but the theme is the same.

chipotle_coyote 7y ago
The problem with that characterization of the 1960s and 1970s is that it's also the period of the civil rights movement, the rise of the environmental movement, and anti-war protests in the United States whose scale dwarfed anything we've seen here since -- protests the police responded to at times by opening fire with live ammunition. When the boomers were the age that the millennials are now, a lot of them were expressing -- and acting on, and in some cases literally risking their lives for -- goals that are a lot less solipsistic than "me me me." I'm far from convinced that most millennials can be summed up with "like and subscribe," either, though. If anything, this seems to be an extremely politically engaged generation with an interest in radically reshaping their world. Which sounds, you know, an awful lot like the boomers, originally.