Tom Brokaw writes books and travels the world, pounding his chest and lecturing about what he perceives to be the Greatest Generation. Those about whom he discusses are the ones born into war and born to fight wars. Depression babies who fought in WWII then came home to build and rebuild the country. My grandparents were a few of these people. He makes several good points, although quite historically one sided.
My conversation is, and will always be as it relates to these posts, about the generation that was born from that Greatest Generation. I have labeled these people the Greediest Generation. I plan to break down these thoughts as the days move along, but for now I will begin by making a gross generalization. The baby boomers are the source of many of the greatest challenges we are to face over the next decades.
They were handed a country fresh off a WWII victory for which they didn't have to fight. They were handed a period of incredible economic growth, of which they were not a direct part of building. They were given family businesses and social safety nets such as Social Security and Medicare by the voting public made up of their parents and grandparents.
What did they do with these assets? The started and fought unnecessary fights (Vietnam, Iraq, Grenada, Nicaragua, etc). They took all the money out of the system, basically converting the US from the richest and greatest creditor nation in the world to the greatest debtor nation the world will ever know. They have used our natural resources with the knowledge that they will not last forever, but without a thought of what future generations will have to do. They went to college for peanuts, have sold off the family farms and family businesses and bankrupted the social safety nets they were handed but for which they never had to work, effectively insuring future generations will not be able to count on Social Security and Medicare as they are now and as they are enjoyed by this generation.
Again, generalizing, they have taken all the options that were theirs by their perceived birth-right and have succeeded at the cost of, and by limiting the options of, future generations.
The generation before them worked hard and fought harder to make sure their kids had a better life. The baby boomers have worked hard, in a world that was built and secured for them, to make sure they have everything they need with little to no respect for those who are to come.
This is the premise. Over the days, I will try to refine and discuss. Call it sour grapes if you will...Or jealousy...Or outright anger. But it's not. This is merely a profile and a series of observations from the only perspective I have.
Talk hard.
No comments:
Post a Comment