I Apologize for My Generation

Throughout the twentieth and now the twenty first century, each American generation has taken on an identity of its own, shaped by the circumstances that surround it during its most seminal years. It is also an American tradition for clever Madison Avenue types to attach a nickname to each generation that embodies its most weighty attribute; the “Baby Boomers” after the post-war spike in childbirth, which lasted almost two decades. The “Greatest Generation” was branded due to the overwhelming hardships that generation overcame in order to deliver a more prosperous and safer nation to its successors. There is “Generation X” and “Generation Y” - the offspring of “Baby Boomers” who dragged us into the high-tech revolution of the present by its demand for more gadgets, and its penchant for multi-tasking. The current group of twentysomethings is aptly referred to as the “Me Generation” for its members’ apparent empathy deficit and attitudes toward marriage and family. http://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/02/the-culture-of-narcissism/

My parents are of the Greatest Generation, I am of the Baby Boomers, and my children are of the Me Generation. Throughout my life I have learned that those from the Greatest Generation tend to be more identical in the attributes they share. From the emphasis on religious and family values to their sense of economy and loyalty, the Greatest Generation was shaped by events that had a far greater impact on their lives and upbringing than any other generation alive today.

We Baby Boomers, who flourished in an America that enjoyed mostly vibrant economic growth and relative peace, became more diverse in our mores and values, as there was no great life-changing event to cause us to unify. We a...

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...ollapse under their own weight, and that when government intervenes in an industry like healthcare, prices will soar. We should have been aware of politicians entering Congress with a modest net worth, and exiting as millionaires. Only we were too busy tending to our own needs.

The current Great Recession may serve as a life-altering experience for Generations X and Y, and may create an environment where tried and true fundamentals will drive decisions and not feel-good experiments. Perhaps these generations will learn the value of the energy sources we have and not chase the fairy dust mirage of solar and wind power without regard to current energy needs.

If the Great Recession is merely a course correction that builds a foundation for future prosperity, then my generation’s reckless disregard for anything but self-satisfaction will not have been in vain.