Talkin’ ‘bout my generation
So, are Boomers self-obsessed? We received 114 letters in response to Meghan Daum’s Op-Ed “Why don’t you all f-fade away?†which complained about Baby Boomers’ narcissicm, annoying music, and other impositions on the rest of us. (To put this in perspective, The Times received just 30 letters about Bill Stall’s Proposition 13 Op-Ed. Normally, that would qualify as a blackbuster response — at least, for an article that doesn’t deal with the presidential election.)
Ninety-six percent of the Daum letters — all but five — were negative. (Click here to see letters that appeared in print.)
The most common trope: Boomers might be annoying. But Generation X is, like, totally lame.
Mitzi March Mogul of Los Angeles accused Daum and her cohort of overlooking the lessons of history:
The reason Meghan Daum is so annoyed by older people is that she, like so many GenXers, believes that the world began with her. What a surprise it will be when she reaches the age of 60 and wonders why younger people find her irrelevant, or perhaps a “moronic aging GenX poser.â€The fact is that all of the events the she cites, and more that she doesn’t, were and remain seminal, historic (not supposedly) moments that defined and altered the course of the world. I wonder how far her annoyance with the past extends: it must drive her crazy that we still reference World War II and Pearl Harbor. And what about all the fuss about a little thing called the Great Depression — who wants to be reminded of that?!...If Meghan Daum continues to discount and discredit the events of the recent past, she will find it impossible to understand the distant past, and therefore will be unable to fully comprehend contemporary life and her own place in the continuum. It may be many years before she is dismissed as self-rightously by the next generation as she dismisses those before her, but eventually she will feel the sting of her own words.Not long ago a young person remarked to me, “What is it about the 60’s generation? You just can’t let go.†I responded, “What is it about your generation? You have nothing to hold onto.â€
Nels Norene of Camarillo was similarly unimpressed:
In the midst of the genocidal ugliness of Daum’s essay, the author chose to define “the original sin of the baby boom generation†as being “not knowing when to quit.â€Does this mean she considers “quitting†to be the foundation of her Gen X philosophy? Scary.
Reader Fred Fisher called Daum a brat and blamed himself:
Meghan Daum’s epistle-like tantrum published in Sunday’s Opinion section epitomizes what is wrong with her generation together with the mistakes of the boomers — not our privileges, but how we raised our children. I myself am proud of our record in stopping a war (in Vietnam) and proving how our government has, can and will lie to its people, thus justifying our collective anti-authority attitude.If we made mistakes, it is not about our “cool ponytailsâ€, it was raising our kids with such tenacious concern about their “self esteem.†This resulted in Xers and Yers thinking everyone is a winner, everyone is a hero, every team wins, and everyone is entitled to a $100,000 annual salary to start and a VP promotion after 6 months. Worse, rather than earning their place, they must cheat with Google and lie about their work and salary history to get ahead. Ask any employer which is the desired work ethic — a boomer’s or an Xer’s — and is it no wonder no one wants us retiring.
Wrote Shanz Boilini of Los Angeles:
...One can only deduce that [Daum] is an extremely unhappy person.
Several suggested that Daum “get a life,†including Elizabeth Ghaffari of Santa Monica:
Ms. Daum dwells more on Boomer 40 year anniversaries than any Boomers I know — perhaps because, as a Gen-X-er, she finds it so important to be intravenously connected to everything media. If her Gen peers were a tad more original, capable of producing other than the mental quicksand of Survivor, Idol, Grand Theft Auto, among other “realities,â€perhaps she might have something worthy to keep her attention rapt. Get a good book — even electronically — Ms. D, and please get a life.
Margie Roblin of Simi Valley:
Sounds like a case of sour grapes to me.And as you so graciously suggested, I’m not ready to “f-fade away†and leave things to your whining “entitlement†generation.So get a life and be grateful that we opened the doors to civil rights, political activism, women’s pro-choice, and humanitarian outreach, i.e., the Peace Corps, etc. Peace Corps’ ranks were at its highest levels in the sixties and as we retire, the boomer generation is once again filling its ranks.Instead of making snide remarks as our generation looks back on the triumphs and turmoil of the sixties, your generation needs to emulate our activism. Where are the protests as thousands of our young men die in a war that was orchestrated by lying politicians? We stopped the draft, stopped a war, and then forced a lying President to resign. Top that.
Some writers pointed out that the war of the generations is nothing new. Offered Rebecca Hardin of Santa Barbara:
I apologize for being part of an overwhelming demographic, but it’s important to note we Boomers had nothing to do with our numbers. And I find it curious to read, “Even though I wasn’t alive when any of this stuff happened, I sure feel like I was.â€So what? Every generation is exposed to stories of those gone before, and one can benefit from the “stuff.†For me, it was WW I, the Great Depression and WWII, the latter still ceaselessly mined for marketable material on heroes, villains and repercussions.The re-interpretive energy of nostalgia should be viewed with caution and compassion, not as high crime. For the more frivolous takes on the 60s Daum catalogues with such scorn: so what?Few Boomers I know spend time even thinking about the recycling that inspires her ire. We’re busy, and we know how to turn off the media avalanche, which she has just contributed to with her piece.Up next? Gen-X nostalgia, of course.
Wrote Allan Ides, of Los Angeles:
As a person born in 1949, I have memories of events that occurred before Ms. Daum was born. Those memories do not vest me with any particular point of view, nostalgic or otherwise. The fact that I lived during a time that pre-dates Ms. Daum’s birth simply makes me a person who is older than Ms. Daum. No one I know, including folks of my age, is celebrating the anniversary of 1968 or of any other event from out of our collective past. That we are so engaged (and collectively) is a pretense of pop culture. We do have memories, but we live in the present, we play with our high-tech toys, and we contemplate the future, both our own and that of those born or who will be born after us. So please, enough with the generational cliches. They are figments of an under-active imagination.
A few readers, true to the Boomer stereotype, took advantage of the opportunity to demonstrate that they can still be hip, too. Amy Huggins wrote:
About Meghan Daum’s anti-boomer blast: After reading it, I still don’t know why we touch such a nerve. Speaking of which, she has some.Oh, and was the review of the book about Carole King, Carly Simon and Joni Mitchell deliberately placed two pages away? If so, right on.
Wrote Richard Vidan of Lawndale:
Ms. Daum would probably castigate me for fitting the profile by suggesting this, but maybe she needs to take a pill and calm down regarding this particular issue.
John Vasi of Santa Barbara:
Meghan, you need a good trip. We have an extra ticket to the sold-out Crosby, Stills, and Nash Concert next month under the stars in Santa Barbara. No one will care that you’re too young. I realize that it’s not disco, but the music tries to compensate with harmony, meaningful lyrics, and social relevance.
The last word goes to a member of another widely stereotyped group. Marjorie Roberts of San Jacinto, of the “Geriatric Generation,†offered this perspective:
A letter to Baby Boomers. Please remain as bombastic and egotistical and demanding as you’ve always been. You will redeem yourselves and do a good turn for those who follow. As for us of the GG (geriatric generation), maybe your early retirement noise will even help us Elders.When you’re 70, 80, 90 or more...and can’t drive, fix the transportation for Elders. Insist on packages that can be opened without danger. Be sure to be seen in printed ads (we’re not....ever). Be sure the young sets visit you and keep in touch. Ours (you) does not; we’re ignored by most of society. Be seen on TV even when you’re grey and really, really old! Find a way to read a phone book when you cannot see.Toss the current trashy HMO system and get decent health care for yourselves; don’t let yourselves be pilled to death.Look at us Elders now and see just what in our circumstances you will not stand for. Fix everything.Actually do it now. We Elders may get some of the perks you promise for yourselves. Later we’ll look down and bless you.
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