Sunday, Aug 22, 2010
The Baby Boomer entitlement culture
Guardian: The baby boomers and the price of personal freedom
Don't look away now baby-boomers - this is your legacy!
Posted by paul @ 08:03 AM (1582 views) Add Comment
14 Comments
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1. paul said...
Hutton doesn't go anywhere near far enough to start explaining the extraordinary hipocrisy of the baby boomer generation in this article.
- While boomers had free love, they now happily bemoan single mothers and benefits scroungers.
- While boomers had weed and psychedelia, they are now happy to criminalize drugs to the point where bored kids take dangerous quasi-legal drugs as an alternative.
- While boomers stayed out at discos and rock festivals, they are now happy to bemoan the local police's refusal to issue more asbos to younger people.
- While boomers had jobs for life, they are now happy to axe recruitment for younger job market entrants (youth unemployment is now over 25% in the UK).
- While boomers has defined salary pensions, they are happy to close off the schemes to younger workers.
- While boomers bought their first houses for a song, they are now happy to scream in anger at any proposal that their property wealth is taxed in line with other assets.
My own late grandmother dried teabags on the washing line to give her kids what they needed. It is *so* true that the first generation earns it, the next generation spends it, the third generation pays for it.
2. Carol said...
Please, who is this "they" you are talking about? Not everyone born between a particular pair of years acts the same, thinks the same, is the same.
3. Righttoleech said...
How much do you hate your parents for being born in so called 'boomer years'.? In the 70s 10% of school leavers went to university it was far from 'universal free education'. Your stereotypical scorn for 'boomers' is as one sided as a Daily Mail article. Why don't you set up extermination camps for 'boomers' then you can requisition their property with even less effort than every single one of the lazy scum excerted to aquire it.
4. Enoughalready said...
Absolutely spot on. The Boomers have got away with too much, yet hide under the 'poor pensioner' guise when challenged. I've even read one blog from a 64 year old Boomer claiming he'd worked hard for his luxurious lifestyle (one which he is denying other generations - hard working or not!) and also that he had 'fought in the last world war' to entitle him this lifestyle!!! Incredible - his parents probably hadn't even met then!
These despicable sods will try anything to keep their great wealth and deny their children/grandchildren any chance of earning their own. They've even managed to get the law changed which allows them to work (aka hog-the-best-jobs) for ever! Sickening!
5. Stevie Dee said...
Good luck to the baby boomers (leo-pluto generation) lol. Because you are going to need it! ;)
6. Stevie Dee said...
My grandmother 91, 5 children, in an old peoples home paying £500 per week. Her bungalow was sold to pay for her care. My parents get £300 approx state pensions and other pensions on top and don't need to sell their house. My grandmother lived through the great depression and one world war. Need i say more. Yes, she and her generation were a remarkable generation, something we can all be proud of and aspire too!
7. i remember the 90`s said...
Its time to get over this now ,i`m not a boomer but to keep getting it out of the closet every week won`t do anyone any good .
8. wally said...
I came on to the job market at the time the government were targetting inflation at the expense of jobs.
It took a few years to get myself sorted, then I got stung by the housing crash of the 80s and lost everything.
Sometimes life sucks. No point in blaming others or being jealous.
9. paul said...
Nothing to do with jealousy or getting it out of the way. The fact is that younger generations will pay for the largesse of the boomers *FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES*. This is about recognising and acknowledging the damage boomers have wreaked and most importantly how as much of the damage can be undone as possible.
10. This comment has been removed as it was found to be in breach of our Blog Policies.
11. powerofnow said...
"We have been bought off with rising equity in our homes and liberties we once could only dream of."
12. righttoleech said...
Extermination camps for the boomers Paul? They are all 100% winners, and back in the 70s all of them went to university.
13. techieman said...
paul its just dumb blaming the boomers for being born. read some of harry dents work. its just cycles. you have to take on board what has happened and use your brain to make something of it. all this chip on the shoulder crap wont get you anywhere mate.
yes to raise it once or twice is fair enough - but to keep on about it, at every opportunity does smack of jealousy. you cant blame people for being people. youth wasted on the young and all that.
your examples in 1. to me are just what all kids do when they develop into parents. yes the boomers have a bigger voice because of demographics, so yes u have a point. when the boomers were kids there was very clear class distinctions - which have now thankfully been eroded.
and maybe you should blame the reasons for their being a baby boomer generation.
logans run?
14. techieman said...
blimey grammar is crap - apologies.