Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The young tend to keep blaming us Babyboomers for all the problems with Social Security and the lack of planning for having enough money to live on in retirement.
What they don't consider is the fact that most of the boomers had parents that grew up during the depression. Those were tough times, and most people that came through it, became extremely frugal for the rest of their lives. When the boomers of today were children, their parents, being so frugal, could not or would not provide their kids with much more than what they needed to get by. Even if they had it, they would not use it, for fear that it wouldn't be there if and when it was needed.
Most of the kids who grew up to be Babyboomers, made unconscious or conscious decisions to do better for their children than their parents did for them. So they often sacrificed their futures for the betterment, so they thought, of their children. Bigger houses so their children can each have their own bedrooms. A bigger yard so they can play outside without having to go to a nearby park. A college education for kids who, in some cases, should never have gone to college. You name it. We did a lot more for our kids than our parents did for us, because they could not bring themselves to spend more than they considered necessary, due to what they had gone through. Did we spoil our children?
I blame the Boomers because:
--All of the Boomers knew this demographic problem with Social Security was going to happen, yet none of them did anything about it, including Boomer presidents Clinton & Bush as well as Congress.
--The Boomers are hypocrites. The older Boomers started out life with the hippie attitude that money and material things weren't important. They quickly changed their tune to an overly materialistic outlook toward life.
--The Boomers put too much emphasis on "stuff" and not enough on creating family stability for their kids. Divorce, latchkey kids, started removing the stigma of single parenting--all of these trends have been proven harmful to children. Even liberal researchers now admit it.
--Doing a lot for your kids has proved to be a problem. We now see evidence of that with 30 year olds who haven't launched. Granted, some things really are tougher today (like college tuition and health care costs), but we've become a nation of enabling parents. That started with the Boomers and it hasn't served us well.
I would have to disagree that the baby boomers were brought up with welfare. If anything the welfare state came up in the 70's and 80's, after the 60's revolution stabilized.
The welfare state really began in the 1930s with Social Security. Most people get more out of it than they ever paid into it. Yet they will not admit it.
I disagree. The parents of the boomers had it so rough they made sure their children, the boomers, had everything they needed and a lot of things they wanted. How you describe the next generation was the boomer experience that I grew up with. The people in their 60's now had it made when we were kids.
The boomers grew up in new houses in suburbia with a yard, not some old house in the city. Look at the years most suburbs started. It was when the boomers were kids.
The boomers went everywhere. They took lessons for everything. I don't think I know a boomer that did not take music lessons, dance lessons, swimming lessons, or any other type of lessons.
The boomers had the best toys. My Johnny Reb cannon, Lionel train sets, erector sets, chemistry sets, telescopes, microscopes, and every kind of ball and equipment. Some even had Estes Rockets. Our parents who had none of these things enjoyed them as much as we did.
Scouting, YMCA programs, camp, and many other activities were filled when the boomers were growing up.
I could go on and on.
And most of this was done with stay at home moms and dads that may not have finished high school.
I don't know where you lived but not a single statement you made pertains to any of the siblings in my family. My parents had three boys under 4 years old when the depression showed up and lived in a 12x12 basement with the first floor floor as a roof. How you would think they ever recovered enough to give us all the things you mention I'll never understand.
And both my parents worked until the day they died.
Despite the fact that I've thrown my share of aspersions at the Boomers, I think in many ways it's a diversion from more important things. The elites running the show want people divided against each other every which way. Parents vs. children. Blacks vs. white. Men vs. women. Rich vs. poor. Boomers vs. their kids etc. One religion vs. another.
The divisions promoted by the elite so they can rule over us are never ending.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
