Who's to blame -- Generation-Xers or Boomers?

[John]

At first, I always used to blame the Boomers for the paralysis of
government and for the financial problems. After all, the dot-com
bubble was clearly perpetrated by Boomers.

But by 2007, it was clear to me that the picture was much more
complex.

The first big clues appeared in early 2007, with the interactions
between Democrats in Cogress (Boomers and Silents) and the activists
in media such as the <i>New York Times</i> and MoveOn.org
(Generation-Xers). It was clear that the activists were taking
destructive, vicious positions that were close to being treasonous,
and were forcing those positions on the Democrats in Congress, often
against their will.

As 2007 progressed, I was studying CDOs and the structured finance
vehicles that created the credit bubble and led to the current
financial disaster.

One thing that became increasingly clear was that these structured
finance vehicles and lies and deception surrounding them were created
and perpetrated by "youngsters" in Generation-X, right under the
noses of their Boomer and Silent bosses.



** Generational 'moods' overlaying Dow Industrials since 1950
** http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi ... 21#e071121

My conclusion was that Boomers and Generation-Xers form a lethal
combination:

• Generation-Xers perpetrate the deception and fraud, motivated by
  hatred and contempt for Boomer and Silent values and accomplishments.
• Boomers go along with the crimes, for their own desires for power
  and money.

One thing that surprised me was that many Generation-Xers completely
agreed with this description. Several of them expressed their own
disgust with what their peers were doing.

Furthermore, the deception and fraud were clearly ubiquitous. I made
a list of all the crimes, big and small, that had been committed to
bring about the credit bubble:

• Individual homeowners who lied on applications to get a mortgage.
• Lenders who practiced "predatory lending" practices, like offering
  low teaser rates. Mortgage brokers who recommended loans with low
  teaser rates, took a big commission from the loan, and then got out of
  town before the teaser rates ended.
• Homebuilders and lenders or brokers who colluded with each other
  to inflate the market value of a home in order to get a larger
  mortgage and a larger commission for themselves.
• Financial advisers who protected their own assets from a crash,
  while telling clients that the stock market can only go up, so they
  can keep getting commissions.
• Individual people who "borrowed" money from the till at work,
  expecting to pay it back as soon as their hedge funds paid off.
• Ratings agencies (S&P, Fitch, Moody's) that gave CDOs and other
  near-worthless mortgage-backed securities AAA ratings, in return for a
  fat fee.
• "Monoline" bond insurers (Ambac, MBIA, FGIC, and ACA) that
  guaranteed CDOs and other near-worthless mortgage-backed securities,
  in return for a fat fee.
• Hedge fund, mutual fund, money market fund managers who sold these
  worthless securities to investors, lying when they said they were "as
  good as cash."
• Journalists, analysts, pundits and politicians, who are supposedly
  financial "experts," but who kept saying (and still keep saying) that
  everything is ok.
• Government regulators who have been openly encouraging banks to
  commit fraud by telling them to delay, for as long as possible,
  writing down the values of their near-worthless securities.
• "Brilliant" Nobel Prize winners
  in Economics and other macroeconomics experts who were clever
  enough to devise extremely complex structured financial instruments,
  but too stupid to see that these financial instruments would default
  if real estate prices ever leveled off.
  
  ** Brilliant Nobel Prize winners in Economics blame credit bubble on 'the news'
  ** http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi ... b#e080427b
  
  ** WSJ's page one story on Bernanke's Princeton 'Bubble Laboratory' is almost incoherent
  ** http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi ... 18#e080518
• Fed Chairmen (Alan Greenspan, Ben Bernanke).

We can now see that the deception and fraud were ubiquitous, occurred
in every financial, real estate and government organization, from
top-level management to bottom-level salesmen. Furthermore, it
occurred throughout the world.

That's why the crimes had to be generational. There is no other
possible explanation for how they could have occurred at every level
of employment in every company.

Sincerely,

John

John J. Xenakis
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com/forum

[John]

A message from a web site reader:

I read your opinions about how my generation is destroying it all.
Its a cop out.

I get up everyday and I do what I am told to do by people who do not
understand what I do. They only understand the outcome they want. I
give it to them. oh, occasionally they will want some insight as to
what I do and why I do it and patiently explain it to them until they
are satisfied that they understand conceptually what is going on.

I work in the engineering field and I am a high school drop out. I
hate the values of the boom generation that is true. These jerks
outnumber us two to one and have all the money and power.

You make it sound as though we are seething and looking to screw them
at every turn. That is just you rationalizing what the boomers are
doing and blaming the result on those directed to their bidding or get
out. Maybe this makes you feel better about yourself.

If you are a boomer it would explain to me why you say "well boomers
suck but at least we don't suck as bad as the Xers". This personifies
to me the boomer mentality.

You know pal buildings don't fall down in general, all the digital
technology you depend on for your quality of life seems to chug on
invisibly.

I could go on ad nauseum. Your big fat examples of money and power
(politics) are arenas that attract greedy scumbags no matter the
generation. There is much more to civilization than those two dirty
worlds.

We are the glue that is keeps the whole rube golberg contraption that
the the boomer's created working while your idiot progeny (who also
outnumber us 2 to 1) grow up to form warm and fuzzy land.

So point your finger at the those that are really to blame the greedy
self absorbed hedonists that turn wrong into right and right into
pariah and your sissyfied touchy feely progeny that want everything to
be a group effort and if it fails they want no part of any
consequences.

Because after all they mean well.... Oh, and before you say they are
my generation's kids do some homework and look into all these
"biological clock" babies and understand who their mother's were.

[John]

> I read your opinions about how my generation is destroying it
> all. Its a cop out.

> I get up everyday and I do what I am told to do by people who do
> not understand what I do. They only understand the outcome they
> want. I give it to them. oh, occasionally they will want some
> insight as to what I do and why I do it and patiently explain it
> to them until they are satisfied that they understand conceptually
> what is going on.

> I work in the engineering field and I am a high school drop out.
> I hate the values of the boom generation that is true. These
> jerks outnumber us two to one and have all the money and power.

There's a lot about your message that really bothers me.

First, I've been a computer consultant for many decades, working for
many different firms, and I've also worked for managers who were total
morons. I told some of my stories in the following article,
including places where I was fired simply for "doing what's right."

** Boomers and Gen-Xers: Dumbing down IT
** http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi ... java080701

I've divided the many managers that I've worked for into three
classes. The worst are the ones who have no idea what's going on,
but think that they know more than I do; these are the total morons.
The next group are the ones who have no idea what's going on, but
realize it, and trust me to do the right thing; these are good,
honest managers, but they make me nervous, because all the pressure
is on me. The best managers to work for are the ones who are very
technically savvy, know what's going on, and appreciate what I do for
them.

I would assume that you've been in similar situations, but that isn't
what bothers me about your message.

> You make it sound as though we are seething and looking to screw
> them at every turn. That is just you rationalizing what the
> boomers are doing and blaming the result on those directed to
> their bidding or get out. Maybe this makes you feel better about
> yourself.

What do you mean by "do their bidding or get out"? Suppose your
manager asked you to kill his wife? Would you do it?

Every worker in every company sometimes has to do things that he
dislikes. This is nothing new, and it certainly didn't start with
Boomer managers.

There is absolutely no doubt whatsoever that the "financial
engineers" who created the structured finance vehicles that turned
out to be fraudulent were Generation-Xers. (I'm sure you'll agree
that Boomers were too stupid to have created them, just as your
managers are too stupid to understand what you do.)

> You know pal buildings don't fall down in general, all the
> digital technology you depend on for your quality of life seems to
> chug on invisibly.

Well, since I've spent most of my life developing that kind of
technology, I won't disagree with this.

> We are the glue that is keeps the whole rube golberg contraption
> that the the boomer's created working while your idiot progeny
> (who also outnumber us 2 to 1) grow up to form warm and fuzzy
> land.

Fair enough.

> So point your finger at the those that are really to blame the
> greedy self absorbed hedonists that turn wrong into right and
> right into pariah and your sissyfied touchy feely progeny that
> want everything to be a group effort and if it fails they want no
> part of any consequences.

Now we're getting to my central point. Your intense hatred of people
in generations other than your own is the problem. You say earlier
that I "make it sound as though we are seething and looking to screw
them at every turn." In fact, people in your generation are like
that. Not all of them, but enough of them to have created the
disastrous credit and real estate bubbles that have destroyed the
world's financial system.

That's what's mean by Generation-X nihilism. That's not to say that
Boomers aren't stupid and greedy, but that doesn't excuse your
nihilism.

** The nihilism and self-destructiveness of Generation X
** http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi ... c#e080121c

** Reader comments on the Nihilism of Generation-X
** http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi ... 29#e080129

Yes, I HAVE written that Gen-Xers are worse than Boomers, but that's
part of a context in which I warn you to be careful:

> "I'm sorry that I hurt your feelings, but what you and other
> Gen-Xers don't understand is that, as bad as Boomers are, Gen-Xers
> are worse. You think you'll be cleaning up after our mistakes, but
> you'll actually be making one huge blunder after another.
> Motivated by fury and anger at Boomers for doing nothing, you'll
> rush in to "do something", and the things you do will be
> disastrous -- lead to world war, lead to financial disaster. Your
> generation's utter contempt for everything that came before you,
> and your recklessly eager willingness to destroy it, will backfire
> on you and lead you to desperation and self-destruction. We're
> already seeing that with the disastrous results of the "financial
> engineering" that was implemented by Xers under the nose of
> Boomers. If you even survive the next 10 years, you'll come out of
> it bitter and angry. And it won't be the Boomers who'll be blamed
> or remembered for these disasters. You'll be blamed."

You have a choice. You can continue on your present path, as it
leads to your own self-destruction.

Or you can appreciate whatever virtues and accomplishments the
Boomers have, and learn from these, as well as from Boomers'
mistakes.

John

[John]

From a web site reader:

> Interesting article:

> http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/10/ ... pance.html

> October 05, 2008
> The Great Boomer Comeuppance
> By Richard Berry

> My cohort, the sainted Boomer generation, now rules this country
> and its institutions. The elite of this generation, graduates of
> the finest schools, cosmopolitan in taste and sensibility, and
> left-liberal in political and cultural allegiance -- have always
> been counted the smartest people in the room (just ask them).

> Now these new Masters of the Universe have made a shambles of the
> US and world financial system. This is, to be sure, not the
> construction put upon things by the main stream media, but it is
> plainly the case. The current market turmoil is a product of every
> bad trait the Boomer Elite has long exhibited in other social and
> political contexts: unbridled greed and hubris, exorbitant
> self-regard, breathtaking recklessness, insatiable appetite for
> immediate gratification, and a rollicking sense of entitlement.

> ...

[drsteph]

John,

I have some disagreement with you on the GenX - Boomer debate. Full disclosure, I am 40, so I consider myself an X'er (perhaps a cusper if you want). I have always been under the thumb of liberal boomers and their rather judgmental and unyielding approach to those who disagree with them. However, I see different trends in my generation than you do. While financial engineering has been implemented by 'Xers' it has 100% been controlled by their Silent and more importantly Boomer managers. It was the boomers that gave the yea to go ahead with these instruments of financial mass destruction, and they who allowed the regulatory laxity to occur. To a certain extent, the silents were also complicit. I view the actions of X-ers in the financial markets as consistent with their worldview - here is the legal, financial, tax and political environment I am in. How can I make a good living for myself using that?

I see my contemporary X'ers as family men and women, protective of their young (the next silents) and seeking out more traditional institutions such as church and school to reform and to offer their children the environment that they were denied. Yes, we are nihilists, but of political & economic structures rather than spiritual ones.

FWIW, its the millenial / hero generation that bothers me the most - from what I am seeing of the young 20-somethings, this generation that was supposed to have saved us is not looking particularly promising. They are the most spoiled, lackadaisical, and ambitionless youth I have ever seen! Worse than us, and we were supposed to be the worst! Here's where I differ from S&H (since I see a number of names coming across from the 4T boards).

SO, I blame boomers. Squarely.

BTW John, please finish your re-write of Gen Dyn. The torch I feel has been passed to you on this subject. You are part of an interesting lineage coming at least from Toynbee (& perhaps before that, but noone to cite).

[Matt1989]

John,

I have some disagreement with you on the GenX - Boomer debate. Full disclosure, I am 40, so I consider myself an X'er (perhaps a cusper if you want). I have always been under the thumb of liberal boomers and their rather judgmental and unyielding approach to those who disagree with them. However, I see different trends in my generation than you do. While financial engineering has been implemented by 'Xers' it has 100% been controlled by their Silent and more importantly Boomer managers. It was the boomers that gave the yea to go ahead with these instruments of financial mass destruction, and they who allowed the regulatory laxity to occur. To a certain extent, the silents were also complicit. I view the actions of X-ers in the financial markets as consistent with their worldview - here is the legal, financial, tax and political environment I am in. How can I make a good living for myself using that?

I see my contemporary X'ers as family men and women, protective of their young (the next silents) and seeking out more traditional institutions such as church and school to reform and to offer their children the environment that they were denied. Yes, we are nihilists, but of political & economic structures rather than spiritual ones.

FWIW, its the millenial / hero generation that bothers me the most - from what I am seeing of the young 20-somethings, this generation that was supposed to have saved us is not looking particularly promising. They are the most spoiled, lackadaisical, and ambitionless youth I have ever seen! Worse than us, and we were supposed to be the worst! Here's where I differ from S&H (since I see a number of names coming across from the 4T boards).

SO, I blame boomers. Squarely.

BTW John, please finish your re-write of Gen Dyn. The torch I feel has been passed to you on this subject. You are part of an interesting lineage coming at least from Toynbee (& perhaps before that, but noone to cite).

I'm not so sure we're unambitious (is that a bad thing anyway)? Hero generations have a tendency to be a little carefree (see descriptions of the GIs in the 1920s) until the crisis hits.

Also, the "blame game" is a little nonsensical. The failure of institutions is an unavoidable process as the world changes faster than any government response can react properly. It's not the bubbles + panics that create the problems in state capitalism; they just make them visible to all. Anyway, in 1929 there were plenty of Lost at the financial wheels.

[The Grey Badger]

This Silent says "Fix the problem, not the blame."

[Hank]

I would like to respectfully address The Grey Badger's comment:

This Silent says "Fix the problem, not the blame."

You have to understand the root of the problem before you can solve it. As such, it helps to know how it has developed and who has aided it along. Full disclosure: I am 42 and consider myself a leading edge X-er. Obviously, I am not as nihilistic as the rest of my generation or I wouldn't be here.

As far as blame goes, I think there is enough of it to go around for everyone. That includes the "Great Generation", who fought and won in WWII and went on to make the rest of the world safe for their children and grandchildren. This generation did an outstanding job making the world safe, but some time after the war, when they went about building institutions for the future they forgot to connect with their children. They spent time building institutions rather than relationships with their families.

The Boomers who grew up in this situation grew up in comfort with plenty. However, not having had to strive for it, they developed a contempt for their parent's and their parent's institutions. When they came of age, they started tearing apart the institutions that their parents had built. They also developed an amoral culture. This concept will be put into play shortly.

As the X-ers came along, they grew up in the amoral culture that the Boomers established. They came to work (when they could find jobs) in a corporate America where middle management either was being or had been gutted. People who had been "employees" were now "human resources" to be layed off or re-hired on the company's whim (Compaq, IBM anybody?).

At this point in time, middle management is pretty much gone and there are few opportunities to mentor with an older employee. Of course, Boomers being who they are they have contempt for that stuff anyway so opportunities are extremely limited to learn how things should be done. Now, mix in a paradigm shift in technology (personal computers and expanded computing capabilities). X-ers grew up with computers and mastered them. I'm not saying some Boomers didn't, but the X-ers have dominated here. Now you have a limited number of Boomers controlling a group of people who are doing a job that the Boomers don't understand. As if this wasn't dangerous enough you have two generations who have been raised in an amoral culture. The Boomers don't know what's going on; so as long as the dollars keep adding up, they don't care. How do you evaluate an employee, excuse me, a "resource", if you don't understand what he/she does? You look at the dollars generated of course. So as long as the dollars keep adding up that employee keeps his/her job. Who is going to go the farthest in this situation? Someone with no moral scruples to restrain them. If their boss doesn't understand what they are doing, how is he/she going to restrain them? And if the boss doesn't have any moral scruples it gets even worse. (I think this latter statement applies to Wall Street - bosses with no moral scruples supervising employees with no moral scruples.)

This is a gross oversimplification, but it shows how the faults of the proceeding generation (I have left out the Silents) affect the next generation and how the next generation adds their own faults to those of their predecessors. What we are primarily dealing with here is a moral failure - the Hero generation has failed to pass down the morals that made it great. I just feel sorry for the children of the Baby Boomers - the third generation raised in an amoral culture. When it hits the fan, it's going to be ugly...

[ainsleyclare]

I'm 37 and definitley a gen-Xer, but I rejected the labels attached to my generation when I first heard them (sometime in the early 90's), and here I find the same labels being attached- hasn't anyone considered that my generation has now gone to college, perhaps beyond, worked to support ourselves, had and raised childen (the next silents?)...even if the label fit when we were in our late teens and early twenties (which it didn't for myself or anyone my age that I knew), isn't there ample evidence that we've grown up since then?

[John]

Dear Ainsley,

> I'm 37 and definitley a gen-Xer, but I rejected the labels
> attached to my generation when I first heard them (sometime in the
> early 90's), and here I find the same labels being attached-
> hasn't anyone considered that my generation has now gone to
> college, perhaps beyond, worked to support ourselves, had and
> raised childen (the next silents?)...even if the label fit when we
> were in our late teens and early twenties (which it didn't for
> myself or anyone my age that I knew), isn't there ample evidence
> that we've grown up since then?

You're making this sound like a discrimination issue. One can say
that all people are the same regardless of skin color, but really
that's as far as it goes. The older I get, the more I realize that
women are different from men in almost every possible way, while
still being able to survive together in the same world.

And the whole point of generational theory is that people in
different generations are very different from one another. Gen-Xers
are completely different from Boomers, and Boomers are completely
different from Silents.

What's remarkable, of course, is that people in the same generational
archetype really are similar. Thus people in the Lost Generation
(born in the 1890s and 1900s decade) are very much like people in
Generation-X.

Sincerely,

John