Boomer or Gen-X

[The_Man]

How do you think that the generation in which you grew up effects the views you have on the world?:confused:

[Teiwaz]

Massively. The climate you grow up in shapes your view of the world. Growing up through wars and depressions is totally different to kids today, and even Gen x cf baby boomers are different. Bigger difference I think in Genx to Gen y though. I am 35, and 18 to 21 yearolds want very different things and have different priorities to what my crowd did. They are the beginning of the real technology babies. They barely, if at all, recall a time without their own PC, the internet, icq and chat, free music downloads, MTV and 200 channels, mobile phone ubiquity and good economic times. (comparatively).

[Moondog]

I have always felt that everything one knows and the feelings one has is based on the times and environment they live in. It is the only true benchmark that one makes decisions against because it is their reality. Having said this, one must always remain flexible as the world is constantly changing. These differences in time depict the way people think and view everything. It can either open doors or leave doors unopened as a result of awareness. Living in my generation has enabled me to take measure in how I can live my life with the tools and means at my disposal that my parents and grandparents did not have. In some ways I feel the world has became much easier to navigate with the advents of modern technology. In other ways I feel that the world may be harder for younger people to navigate without having had to learn the meaning of physical labor and hard work ethic. This will not effect all people the same. It is an intersting question and I am not sure there is any one correct answer.

[Teiwaz]

I look at the world my kids are growing up in, and I don't think they will have an easier time than me. Quite the opposite. More information, more choices, less certainty, less safety. Things are more complex. I am constantly just trying to help them relax and screen all the distractions.

[The_Man]

All good points and from what I can tell they are responses made by the Gen-x members. There is hope for us yet.
Not to upset anyone’s feelings but the moral decay and lack of personal accountability that seems to be so prevalent in today’s society is in large part reflected the in the actions of the Gen-X crowd. (Gen-X responders so far excepted). But who is to blame, My generation. The late boomers who once given the freedoms not afforded previous generations went wild for about 25 years and when we woke up it was too late. Or is it?

[Captain Dan]

Pre boomer here (by a year)

[Teiwaz]

" moral decay and lack of personal accountability that seems to be so prevalent in today’s society "???

Look at history. I am reading The Tyranicide Brief at the moment (amongst other things, it is a bit of a slog) - a book by Geoffrey Robertson, QC. He is an expat Aussie who made his way in the UK as a very clever and astute barrister. The man has a HUGE brain, scary smart. The book is about the trial and execution of King Charles the 1st. He was a Stuart. Basically a complete meglomaniac and a terrible tyrant. Read this http://www.british-civil-wars.co.uk/biog/charles1.htm

What was my bloody point? Oh yeah! Look at history - England in the 1600's. openly corrupt Judges and public officials, a ruling class (a REAL ruling class) that had totally different rights and priveleges to normal people living depraved existences, A King who ruled on a whim and horribly oppressed the masses, most people treated at law and in reality as scum, the priesthood openly morally degenerate - you name it. It has been a massive eye opener to me, and most of Europe was like it.

I don't reckon things are all that bad on the whole these days. Depends on your perspective.

[The_Man]

I guess I become more of an idealist the older I get. The era in which you speak of was indeed a terrible point in history, but things have gotten much better since then.
My point is that there seems to have been a slight step backwards in societal evolution in the US over the last 10-20 years, we seem to be becoming more of a me generation than a we generation.
People of the early boomer generation had the, we mentality and the country prospered. I worry that the, me mentality could be a very destructive in the years to come.

[Teiwaz]

It isn't a swing in the US alone. It seems to be global. I suppose it is tempered by age a bit as well. As you get older, you end up with more responsibilities to others - wives, kids, bosses, employees, banks etc.

And as long as people are aware of it, and talking about it, I think that helps. The "old world" values are still held up as an ideal.

And I don't know if it was a "we" mentality that helped the country prosper. The prosperity came with the rise of the corporation, free markets and was driven by entrepreneurs and businesspeople, and they ain't altruists. If they were, we wouldn't have needed the Union movement to get decent pay and conditions for workers. \

What you are talking about as societal DEvolution I think (correct me if I'm wrong) is more about attitudes linked to respect, manners, family values, personal accountability and responsibility (ie not looking to blame others for everything), and morals like attitudes to sex, pornography, dress standards, business ethics, personal financial advancement as the holy grail and measure of your worth (not there haven't always been crooks in corporations) etc.

For all of those things, there are bastions of resistance decrying those developments, and groups just walking the walk, who are trying to keep core values and behaviors, or at least the ones they see as core, from becoming extinct. Nothing remains the same however.

The point of my comparison though to the UK in the 1600's is that in 400 years time our society now will look as alien to Buck Rogers in the 25th century as London in 1649 does to us. That doesn't make when Buck lives bad necessarily, just very different. And we would not be able to accept it any better than if you grabbed an English Noble from the Court of King Charles and dropped him in the boardroom of Coca Cola Amital.

[The_Man]

[QUOTE=Teiwaz][The point of my comparison though to the UK in the 1600's is that in 400 years time our society now will look as alien to Buck Rogers in the 25th century as London in 1649 does to us. That doesn't make when Buck lives bad necessarily, just very different. And we would not be able to accept it any better than if you grabbed an English Noble from the Court of King Charles and dropped him in the boardroom of Coca Cola Amital./QUOTE]

The social shift that I am talking about has taken place in a very short time. That is the reason that I framed it between these two generations, not picking on any group, it is just an observation that troubles me.

[September]

IMHO the "problem" is because the we generation was given access to technologies and social concessions that focused on the individual in ways never seen before and as a result individuals became the focus. Cable television, cell phones, MP3 players, satelite radio, and personal computers all foster the belief that "I" can have the world as "I" want it. Cookies on computers are meant to track the individual not the masses.
We are in the process of redefining the common ties that bind us away from geographically based cultures and societies. New boundaries are being formed and as they do social values will be reformed.

[nelson]

All good points and from what I can tell they are responses made by the Gen-x members. There is hope for us yet.
Not to upset anyone’s feelings but the moral decay and lack of personal accountability that seems to be so prevalent in today’s society is in large part reflected the in the actions of the Gen-X crowd. (Gen-X responders so far excepted). But who is to blame, My generation. The late boomers who once given the freedoms not afforded previous generations went wild for about 25 years and when we woke up it was too late. Or is it?It isn't a swing in the US alone. It seems to be global. I suppose it is tempered by age a bit as well. As you get older, you end up with more responsibilities to others - wives, kids, bosses, employees, banks etc.

And as long as people are aware of it, and talking about it, I think that helps. The "old world" values are still held up as an ideal.

And I don't know if it was a "we" mentality that helped the country prosper. The prosperity came with the rise of the corporation, free markets and was driven by entrepreneurs and businesspeople, and they ain't altruists. If they were, we wouldn't have needed the Union movement to get decent pay and conditions for workers. \

What you are talking about as societal DEvolution I think (correct me if I'm wrong) is more about attitudes linked to respect, manners, family values, personal accountability and responsibility (ie not looking to blame others for everything), and morals like attitudes to sex, pornography, dress standards, business ethics, personal financial advancement as the holy grail and measure of your worth (not there haven't always been crooks in corporations) etc.

For all of those things, there are bastions of resistance decrying those developments, and groups just walking the walk, who are trying to keep core values and behaviors, or at least the ones they see as core, from becoming extinct. Nothing remains the same however.

The point of my comparison though to the UK in the 1600's is that in 400 years time our society now will look as alien to Buck Rogers in the 25th century as London in 1649 does to us. That doesn't make when Buck lives bad necessarily, just very different. And we would not be able to accept it any better than if you grabbed an English Noble from the Court of King Charles and dropped him in the boardroom of Coca Cola Amital.I think when you grew up, and in what context, has everything to do with who you are.

Teiwaz I get your comparison between eras... similar things happen in different times, that's for sure. And I agree, like our societies, these evolutions are less local, and more global.

I am 35 years old; for me to blame another for the failures of my generation would be convenient. Blaming the previous generation is like blaming your father -- you can, and to an extent you may be justified, but your father strove through the failures of his father, and so on. Should we fall to this temptation, then the people we blame may as well fault their own predecessors, and so on, until the beginning of time. That's pointless. If everyone sought to blame and wallow, the successes that occurred despite their accusations would be completely ignored.

But understanding how and why things take place is still important, and The_Man I really think you are on to something.

If Boomers have always valued hard work and achievement, maybe it could be traced to their arising from survivors of the Depression. And, after generations of hard work and conforming, glorified images of rebellion (in film and media) may have underwritten some Boomer impulses to protest, follow their emotions, avoid accountability, or make-love-not-war. Financial success achieved may have made it more feasible for Boomers to gratify their now very important emotions, including as parents, perhaps even by over-providing.

If any of that is true, then Gen-X youth seemed to have almost entirely forgotten the discipline and values known to encourage success in our society. Their cut-and-paste families may create some of the most morally devoid offspring America has ever seen. Maybe not... but to those of us observing today, it would seem so. Perhaps the entitlement of Gen-X youth manifested in Gen-X adults as a decreased ability to solve problems, and therefore an increased tendency to make problems worse by not dealing with them, but doing more drugs instead. With infinite television has come the perfection of marketing, having even greater power over dull minds. Fed by potent propaganda from liberal media, perhaps controlled by those Boomers who are still avoiding accountability, Gen-X'ers may believe they don't need a strong family, more often exploring individual transgenderism and other deviant sexual behaviors, thereby weakening family bonds between people, further weakening communities, leaving strength to their governments... satisfying the designs of many.

Ok I went a little off the deep end. But maybe some of it's true. :)

[Freethinker]

Gen-X youth seemed to have almost entirely forgotten the discipline and values known to encourage success in our society. Their cut-and-paste families may create some of the most morally devoid offspring America has ever seen. Maybe not... but to those of us observing today, it would seem so. Perhaps the entitlement of Gen-X youth manifested in Gen-X adults as a decreased ability to solve problems, and therefore an increased tendency to make problems worse by not dealing with them, but doing more drugs instead. With infinite television has come the perfection of marketing, having even greater power over dull minds. Fed by potent propaganda from liberal media, perhaps controlled by those Boomers who are still avoiding accountability, Gen-X'ers may believe they don't need a strong family, more often exploring individual transgenderism and other deviant sexual behaviors, thereby weakening family bonds between people, further weakening communities, leaving strength to their governments... satisfying the designs of many.

Ok I went a little off the deep end. But maybe some of it's true. :)
Interesting take on Gen X Nelson. I do agree with alot of this last paragraph. I belive you can trace the disposable nature of marriages and familys to the CRAP on t.v. There are lots of people who are more interested in television than they are in their own lives. They will never form the bonds that are the spice of life. Television only requires 10 minutes of attention at a time. Great Brainwashing techniques.

[TaxmanHog]

Boomer, 1962

[Remphoto]

Thanks for bringing this thread back to life. Nelson, then, as now, is a wise man. I totally agree with his point of view regarding Gen X. My daughter, who is Gen X would agree too (though she is the exception). Having parents hovering over the kids, ready to "helicopter" them out of problems has not done much to build character and common sense skills. The "everyone gets a ribbon" mentality has also destroyed achievement.

[Jeb]

We the people have forgotten why this nation became and is still the greatest on earth...we individually dreamed and achieved! We did not wait for the damn Feds to save us from floods or storms, as we took care of our families and our churchs! Now, we make sure to get that dvr on high ground and check the mail box for a free check! "Where is my Obama stash?'

[MYCAR47562]

Im Gen Y So I Guess I Need Not Apply

[Motive]

I think I'm "gen x"? 1973? But my parents didn't helicopter me outta anything. I've been fending for myself since I was old enough to pull a chair over to the stove.

[Remphoto]

I think I'm "gen x"? 1973? But my parents didn't helicopter me outta anything. I've been fending for myself since I was old enough to pull a chair over to the stove.

I know from past posts you've had a tough life and I applaud you for how you coped. You also have an advantage over others of your generation who have been coddled. I raised my gen x kids with tough love - to be independent and to reap consequences of their actions. Also, required them to put themselves thru college - no free ride from dad. Results are 2 great, functionaladults, successful in their fields (no competion from slackers) and personal lives. Our govt teaches just the opposite--dependence and no consequences for poor choices.