Dear Trevor,
Trevor wrote:
> What I've noticed from the Boomers is that even though there isn't
> the same hatred that Generation X has for them, many of them look
> down on them. I've mentioned Generation X to some of my boomer
> acquaintances and the general response is something like
> "Generation X is lazy, stupid, and don't care about anyone but
> themselves".
This is certainly true, and is one of the reasons why Gen-Xers dislike
Boomers. But there's a broader picture than that.
During the 1960s, Boomers alienated themselves from their parents.
Then they got married and divorced, alienating themselves from each
other. So it's not surprising that they also alienated their
children.
One thing that's been surprising to me is how easy it is to get along
with Millennials. I can joke around with a Millennial in the same way
that I've always been able to joke around with Boomers. But I don't
dare try to joke around with a Gen-Xer, because it will infuriate him.
As I've said before, when you're talking to a Gen-Xer, you're always
in danger of stepping on a land mine.
OLD's list of articles was very interesting, and possibly the most interesting
was this one:
> For some members of Generation X, the cohort sandwiched between
> the Baby Boomers and the so-called Millennial age group of many
> Occupy Wall Street protesters, the demonstrations represent a
> missed opportunity in their own youth to take up the cause of
> combatting economic inequality.
> But for others, the Occupy movement is at best a showy rehash of
> similar recessionist angst they weathered with self-sufficiency
> and little more public display of disaffection than grunge rock
> and goatees — and at worst a reflection of a younger generation
> with a whiny, overweening idea of its own importance.
> "Generation X is tired of your sense of entitlement. Generation X
> also graduated during a recession … and actually had to pay for
> its own music," declared Mat Honan, 39, a San Francisco-based
> writer for the technology blog Gizmodo.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/sto ... 52046498/1
In other words, Gen-Xers dislike Millennials as much as they dislike
Boomers. So my perception is that Millennials and Boomers form a sort
of "axis" that Gen-Xers dislike.
The other thing I've noticed in the last decade, with respect to
Gen-Xers and Boomers, is that both sides may have mellowed. I and
other Boomers have learned to be very careful around Gen-Xers for fear
of getting them mad. Gen-Xers appear to be more accepting of Boomers
because they've learned, to use the phrase I've used before, that
basing your life on hatred of one-third of the population makes you
dangerous to yourself and others. So it's possible that the two sides
are getting along better -- sort of a cold war rather than a hot war.
John