Have you noticed the manure-laden apologies coming left and right from certain Baby Boomers at graduation ceremonies? Wonder who paid for the university degrees?
Baby Boomers had no control over the population explosion that resulted from returning war veterans. Would these "apologists" have us curse our fathers for surviving World War II and Korea?
We were raised by parents who survived the Great Depression. We knew the stories, and believed them. Older Boomers remember attending class with polio victims. Our parents were frantic from the polio death threat, and made sure we took naps. We remember our parents glee when the Salk Vaccine was introduced. Should we apologize for surviving polio and measles in large numbers?
Boomers were the first generation of children to get bombarded by greedy television advertising. Should we write hate letters to Fess Parker for planting the seeds of early greed in our demand for coon-skin hats and Mattel for mass production of Chatty Cathy?
Perhaps our parents understood the horror that economic depressions and war brought and "over-reacted" by insisting that we get an education. If nothing else, Boomers left home around 18 and we made our way in the world. Not many of us returned to take up permanent residence with aging parents. We left the immaturity of young ways when we went into a working world to make a living with 14% inflation. Due to this high cost of living, both Boomer parents had to hold jobs.
Not everyone in the Boomer generation did drugs or did we all attend Woodstock. Many were really trying to get an education, and a large number were dying in a war themselves. The Boomer generation disagreed with their parents,and much of it in an immature way. Yet we did bring about "real change".
Let's think of a few things this selfish generation accomplished:
1) We produced Bill Gates...Yay for our technical advances!
2) We cut cancer deaths in half! Yay! Hurrah for Baby Boomers!
3) Our generation insisted on Civil Rights!
4) Most Baby Boomers continue to be concerned about the environment.
Steven Moore at WSJ explains why he won't apologize for Boomers and global warming:
"Whenever kids ask me why we didn't do more to combat global warming, I
explain that when I was young the "scientific consensus" warned of
global cooling. Today's teenagers drive around in cars more
than any previous generation. My kids have never once handed back the
car keys because of some moral problem with their carbon footprint --
and I think they are fairly typical."
Obviously, it is foolish to blame one demographic, and a wide-spread demographic classified from 1944 to 1964. In fact, it is ignorant to blame any generation for all the woes of the world.
Unfortunately, for those who resent the "Age Wave", we are going to outlive every other generation! We are predicted (due to this terrible economy) to take over the internet with a gigantic wave of entrepreneurship. Darn! Baby Boomers are not all going to retire.
So as we watch Obama (technically voted in by the X,Y, and Echo generation) fix the issues with "spending", let's see what this generation can do. Boomers may even live to see Generation X and etc. get blasted by their ungrateful offspring.
Recent Comments