Should we invest in more mass transit in the ATL? (Millen: middle school, university)

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by Cameron H

If you're going to show us the can, have the courage to open it. I'm not a Baby Boomer, but I certainly don't see the laundry list. The world and the country are a hell of a lot better off than when the Boomers came of age. Unless you have a problem with more human rights, more prosperity, more equality, more technology, less pollution, less crime, less war, less poverty, less disease, and less discrimination, I'm not sure what you really have to whine about. More traffic?

Yeah, perhaps those Boomers made a habit of spending beyond their means. For the most part, if you're a Millennial, they spent it on you.

To me, the Boomers are like the New York Yankees. Everybody else likes to point out their flaws, or when they can't do that, simply talk trash about them. But none of it changes the fact that the record of success looks pretty damned good.

The world was a better place for Boomers, only if they were white middle class and above. 50% of AA lived in poverty. The world lived with a threat of Nuclear War everyday.

[JPD]

Originally Posted by Cameron H

If you're going to show us the can, have the courage to open it..

Fine.

The embarrassment that is the War on Drugs.
The obvious conflict of interest that is our for-profit prison system.
Every industry moving towards monopolization.
Endless military boondoggles.
Consolidation of lavish wealth to a few, while everyone else gets scraps.
The climate emergency.
Destruction of the environment.
Crumbling infrastructure.
A legal and political system that consistently favors corporations over people.
Constant roadblocking of clean energy initiatives.
Consistently worsening quality of public education.
A medical system that heavily favors selling pills over improving health.
Horrible farming policies.
The ubiquitousness of processed and fast foods.
Sprawl.
Outsourcing jobs.

Shall I go on?

[CashmereEsquire]

I`m going to sit this one out LOL.

[glovenyc]

Originally Posted by cqholt

The world was a better place for Boomers, only if they were white middle class and above. 50% of AA lived in poverty. The world lived with a threat of Nuclear War everyday.

Agreed, the good old days were very selective.

[Gulch]

[JPD]

I tried to warn them, but they insisted.

[demonta4]

A new episode of CD drama-Atlanta edition.

[skbl17]

Oi vey, so much crap to sift through in this article and in the thread.

1) To answer the question in the thread title: YES. A better question is, why not? Is there some kind of irreparable harm that will be inflicted on Atlanta if we invest more in MARTA, the streetcar, and the Beltline?

2) Hey, another thread turns into a generational pi**ing contest! Haven't seen one of those in....weeks. Come on, I'd hope that you people are more mature than that! The primary MARTA funding mechanism outlined in the MARTA Act of 1965 applies to everyone who buys things, regardless of age, race, gender, disability, or generation. Millenials pay the same 1% that Gen Xers and boomers do.

- skbl17

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by skbl17

Oi vey, so much crap to sift through in this article and in the thread.

1) To answer the question in the thread title: YES. A better question is, why not? Is there some kind of irreparable harm that will be inflicted on Atlanta if we invest more in MARTA, the streetcar, and the Beltline?

2) Hey, another thread turns into a generational pi**ing contest! Haven't seen one of those in....weeks. Come on, you people are more mature than that (I'd hope)! The primary MARTA funding mechanism outlined in the MARTA Act of 1965 applies to everyone who buys things, regardless of age, race, gender, disability, or generation. Millenials pay the same 1% that Gen Xers and boomers do.

- skbl17

It also allows tourist and non-residents to help pay for the transit system.

[Cameron H]

Originally Posted by cqholt

The world was a better place for Boomers, only if they were white middle class and above. 50% of AA lived in poverty. The world lived with a threat of Nuclear War everyday.

What? I said the world today is a better place than when the Boomers came of age. They've left it better than they got it, so quit complaining. Are you just agreeing with me?

Originally Posted by JPD

Fine.

The embarrassment that is the War on Drugs.

Ha! The Boomers were the first generation to bring those drugs into the popular culture, and the "war" was declared by their nemesis, Richard Nixon.

The obvious conflict of interest that is our for-profit prison system.

The Boomers created the for-profit prison system? You'd prefer to go back to the chain gangs that still existed when they came of age? Alcatraz? Attica?

Every industry moving towards monopolization.

You should inform those Boomer-era juggernauts like IBM and General Motors about that. I'm sure they'll be relieved.

Endless military boondoggles.

Really? Would you like to compare them to Vietnam? How many tours did you serve when you were drafted?

Consolidation of lavish wealth to a few, while everyone else gets scraps.

"Scraps" meaning dramatic reductions in global poverty, I guess.

The climate emergency.

An emergency in the making since the industrial revolution, and a first response led by...Boomers. Even at home, where we've done less than other developed countries, a Boomer recently reached a major climate agreement with China and announced far-reaching regulations on carbon emissions.

Destruction of the environment.

You've got to be kidding. Our air and water are far cleaner than when the Boomers came of age. Check out Silent Spring some time. Nearly everything we've accomplished to clean up and protect the environment has been accomplished during the Boomer Era.

Crumbling infrastructure.

We have more and better infrastructure than the Boomers did when they came of age. You know, like MARTA. Around the globe, the transformation has been even more dramatic. Really, what are you talking about?

A legal and political system that consistently favors corporations over people.

That sounds like an Occupy Wall Street slogan, but it certainly has no basis in fact. Compare your consumer protections, as just one example, to the situation that maintained prior to the publication of Unsafe at Any Speed in 1965.

Constant roadblocking of clean energy initiatives.

Put another way, the greatest global investment in clean energy initiatives since the industrial revolution.

Consistently worsening quality of public education.

Desegregated schools and consistently improving test scores?

A medical system that heavily favors selling pills over improving health.

Less disease, lower infant mortality, longer lifespans?

Horrible farming policies.

Kinda vague, but global hunger is way down compared to when the Boomers came of age, so...

The ubiquitousness of processed and fast foods.

More affordable and accessible healthy and organic foods than in the DDT era when Boomers came of age.

Sprawl.

Yes, Boomers and their spawn are largely responsible for the population growth that drives sprawl in this country. So I guess a legitimate criticism of the Boomers is that they exist and there are a lot of them.

Outsourcing jobs.

Global trade that has lifted billions out of abject poverty around the world?

Shall I go on?

Yes, please do. I honestly don't understand how any rational person can compare the world today to the world the Boomer inherited and then indict the Boomers for their "failures."