Young People Hate Baby Boomers

The Barbarian

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I’m not a millennial, I’m almost 50. Again, you’re not providing solutions or even acknowledging the issues being raised. I’m not asking boomers to bow out, I’m asking what their proposed solutions are besides "work hard," which is an incredibly insulting thing to say to someone who is working measurably harder than they did, for even less money.

Let's just say I'm an older boomer. I had a rather long reproductive life, so my youngest daughter is a millennial. She has a very good degree from a very good university, one that in my lifetime would have been the ticket to wealth.

Her husband has a degree and a professional job as well. Several years out of college, they are still looking to save enough to buy a house.

I bought my first house while I was a first-term NCO in the Air Force, having been drafted out of college. Didn't even have my degree yet.

That's how things were/are. She's a realist, and they are doing what they have to, without complaint. But they have every right to be resentful.
 
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Chesterton

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Okay Boomer.
Pretty much every time I've heard "ok boomer", it translates as "I've heard what you just said before, therefore I reject it because I've heard it before". The result is usually that the more common sense a statement makes, the more easiliy it's rejected and mocked.

"Look both ways before crossing the street."
"OK boomer"

"Don't stick a metal fork into a toaster."
"OK boomer"

"Socialism sucks."
"OK boomer"
 
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iluvatar5150

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What's the alternative? We had our hard times too. I worked full time both while going to high school and while going to college. Did Millennials work harder than that? I'm not trying to be insensitive to the unique challenges facing people today, the US manufacturing base probably isn't coming back. But every generation thinks no one has gone through what they have (and that's not only with the economy). I felt the same way when I was younger.

Did your college job cover your tuition and expenses or did you still have to incur a mountain of debt?
 
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Ignatius the Kiwi

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Pretty much every time I've heard "ok boomer", it translates as "I've heard what you just said before, therefore I reject it because I've heard it before". The result is usually that the more common sense a statement makes, the more easiliy it's rejected and mocked.

"Look both ways before crossing the street."
"OK boomer"

"Don't stick a metal fork into a toaster."
"OK boomer"

"Socialism sucks."
"OK boomer"

It was an easy joke to make. It's not that I literally hate Boomers or anything.
 
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Arcangl86

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Pretty much every time I've heard "ok boomer", it translates as "I've heard what you just said before, therefore I reject it because I've heard it before". The result is usually that the more common sense a statement makes, the more easiliy it's rejected and mocked.

"Look both ways before crossing the street."
"OK boomer"

"Don't stick a metal fork into a toaster."
"OK boomer"

"Socialism sucks."
"OK boomer"
Except that's not what it means. It means more that the other person is so out of touch that there is no point continuing the conversation.
 
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iarwain

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I think that @Paidiske laid it out really well in post #75.
So improve things?
Your union suggestion is interesting. Unions only work if the workers have leverage though. There's also a problem with unions similar to political parties - at some point they seem to stop working for their constituents and start serving themselves.

I just don’t understand why these massive changes wouldn’t seem like a problem to you.
Where did I say there wasn't a problem? I don't deny we had things better, for a variety of reasons, but a lot of people have lived through hard times. I bet a lot of them would look at the world the Millennials consider hard times and they would laugh themselves silly.

You seem to think it's an easy fix, and we can just turn back the clock to 1970 or whenever it is you're talking about. We cannot. A lot of the problems we face now are due to the continued moral decay, like the deterioration of the family. A lot of people were unhappy with things in 1970 too, there were young people getting drafted and shipped off to Vietnam.
 
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iluvatar5150

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So improve things?
Your union suggestion is interesting. Unions only work if the workers have leverage though. There's also a problem with unions similar to political parties - at some point they seem to stop working for their constituents and start serving themselves.

Unions (at least in theory) are the mechanism by which workers gain leverage. They're essentially cartels, controlling the supply and pricing of a certain good by drastically curtailing competition (among workers).

Where did I say there wasn't a problem? I don't deny we had things better, for a variety of reasons, but a lot of people have lived through hard times. I bet a lot of them would look at the world the Millennials consider hard times and they would laugh themselves silly.

The issue isn't that other generations didn't have it rough. The issue is that past generations didn't have as many of their older generations standing in their way.

You seem to think it's an easy fix, and we can just turn back the clock to 1970 or whenever it is you're talking about. We cannot. A lot of the problems we face now are due to the continued moral decay, like the deterioration of the family. A lot of people were unhappy with things in 1970 too, there were young people getting drafted and shipped off to Vietnam.

By most any metric, "moral decay" has plateaued and/or been improving for a few decades. Except for a recent rebound, violent crime has been falling since the 90's. The percentage of children raised in two-parent households hasn't fallen since the mid 90's and risen slightly since then. The divorce rate in the US is the lowest in 50 years. All sorts of discrimination protections (and attitudes to go along with them) are in place now that didn't exist 50 years ago. We're somewhat less war-mongery now.
 
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iarwain

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he issue isn't that other generations didn't have it rough. The issue is that past generations didn't have as many of their older generations standing in their way.
Ah, I see. How exactly is the older generation standing in their way? By still being alive? We realize it is an inconvenience, but it will be remedied soon enough.

By most any metric, "moral decay" has plateaued and/or been improving for a few decades. Except for a recent rebound, violent crime has been falling since the 90's. The percentage of children raised in two-parent households hasn't fallen since the mid 90's and risen slightly since then.
I just know that young people who want a family do not have a high level of confidence that their marriage is going to last. I think men probably feel this way more than women. Single mothers have the safety net in place, while men feel like they are going to be used for their resources.
 
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Paidiske

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Ah, I see. How exactly is the older generation standing in their way?

By continuing to support policies which perpetuate and entrench the problems we've been discussing.

Take, for example, the question of housing affordability. One mechanism which has been identified which could improve that situation (in Australia at least) is the abolishing of tax benefits on negative gearing. But older voters have refused to support that policy, because it is they who benefit from those tax benefits.

I just know that young people who want a family do not have a high level of confidence that their marriage is going to last. I think men probably feel this way more than women. Single mothers have the safety net in place, while men feel like they are going to be used for their resources.

I have not noticed this lack of confidence in my context. There are some cynical young men (mostly being noisy on the internet), but frankly, their attitude towards women tends to be so exploitative in general that it doesn't surprise me that they expect the same in return. The whole incel-pickup artist-MGTOW-red pill-whatever ecosystem is deeply concerning.
 
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iluvatar5150

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Ah, I see. How exactly is the older generation standing in their way? By still being alive?

Still being alive is merely a prerequisite for obstructionism.

Part of it is the longevity of their professional tenures - many are staying in their positions far longer than previous generations. The average age of Congress, for example, is the highest it's ever been, and has been climbing pretty steadily since the early 1980's:
2 charts that show just how old this Congress actually is - CNNPolitics
Average age of Congress over time

Sticking around in those positions puts them literally in the way.

But as @Paidiske pointed out, it has more to do with their intransigence on a number of policies.


I just know that young people who want a family do not have a high level of confidence that their marriage is going to last. I think men probably feel this way more than women. Single mothers have the safety net in place, while men feel like they are going to be used for their resources.

What kind of people do you hang around with? Meathead dudebro's? I know loads of young people (by "young", I mean <=35) and I can't think of anybody who sees things that way. Oh wait, no - I know one guy like that and he's such a Jersey Shore-esque doofus that he's a walking parody of himself. But I know lots of people who delay marriage for the sake of shoring up their financial and career stability because they want their marriages to last and are gun shy after having seen their friends, parents, and other family members go through breakups.
 
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iarwain

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But I know lots of people who delay marriage for the sake of shoring up their financial and career stability because they want their marriages to last and are gun shy after having seen their friends, parents, and other family members go through breakups.
Just the fact that you say this demonstrates that people are not confident in the state of marriages these days.

As for older people being intransigent about certain policies, everyone is an individual and has their own politics. This is the political section of the board (well, close enough), and I don't see too many people here being flexible about their political opinions. It's not just old people who are stubborn. Besides which, I don't know too many old people who are passionate about tax policies concerning negative gearing ( @Paidiske ).
 
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Paidiske

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Besides which, I don't know too many old people who are passionate about tax policies concerning negative gearing ( @Paidiske ).

It's been a massive election issue here for our last two national elections.

It's not a question of just being stubborn. It's a question of, on average, one generation favouring policies which actively disadvantage a following generation.
 
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iarwain

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It's not a question of just being stubborn. It's a question of, on average, one generation favouring policies which actively disadvantage a following generation.
Well, I hope things turn out better for you. I don't know too many parents who want things to be worse for their children.
 
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iluvatar5150

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Just the fact that you say this demonstrates that people are not confident in the state of marriages these days.

What does “the state of marriages these days” even mean? The dynamics of marriage in the US have been changing for what, 60-70 years? Not all that long ago, women were financially shackled to their husbands, unable to do much for themselves, having to take whatever was given to her. That’s not a good or stable marriage; that’s a potentially abusive marriage that only looks good on paper if you don’t look any farther than the “Still Together” checkbox.

People are moving beyond the pretense of marriage and being married for the sake of being married. They want their marriages to last, so they’re rearranging their lives in a way that establishes a more stable base for those marriages.
 
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iarwain

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What does “the state of marriages these days” even mean? The dynamics of marriage in the US have been changing for what, 60-70 years?
Well sure, but remember we're comparing today with baby boomers. Most of whom remember a time when marriages were more stable.

People remember the '50s as a time when marriages were more successful. Having the mother home with the children was better for the kids, I defy anyone to argue that. But I agree that men abused their power and position, which led to women focusing more on career and independence.
 
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Paidiske

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People remember the '50s as a time when marriages were more successful.

Do they? I agree the divorce rate was lower, but to consider a marriage "successful" I'd be looking for a lot more than "not divorced." I think there were a lot of abusive and/or miserable marriages, in a social set up which prevented a lot of women, particularly, from realising their potential.

From that point of view, and looking at (say) my grandmothers' marriages and lives compared to my own, I'd take my own, hands down, no question.
 
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