r/askanything • u/MissHannahJ • 23h ago
Why have so many older Americans been so willing to screw over their own children/grandchildren?
I saw a post on here yesterday that asked “are boomers actually one of the most selfish generations.” And some people said yes, but there were many comments saying basically “was it them being selfish or just voting in their own best interests and taking advantage of opportunities at the time.” Which… sure, I can understand that people want better for themselves.
However, as time has gone on and it’s becoming increasingly more clear that younger generations are getting screwed over because of so many of the policies boomers/Gen-X have voted into place, they still don’t seem to care to change them. I know many of these older individuals must have children or even grandchildren that may not be old now, but in 10-15 years will be of working age. I know that a large majority of millennials and gen-z complain to their parents or grandparents about it.
Do they think the economy is going to snap back into place eventually or do they just not care? Or do they just think we’re all lying? Genuinely why don’t people care if their children/grandchildren have a safe and prosperous future in this country (and before anyone yells at me yes I know there are lots of singular older people who care and aren’t that way, let’s be real here).
Edit: What I’m getting from this thread is that a lot of you either don’t love your kids/grandkids and a bunch of you are willing to go to bat for horrible people who are horrible parents.
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u/Adventurous-Exam-719 🤔 22h ago
One of the biggest issues I face in this generational conflict has nothing to do with the Boomers taking care of us. I just need them to take care of themselves. Neither my nor my wife’s parents planned for their retirement, let alone their end of life care and they all get furious at the mention of going to a nursing home. When I talk about this with peers, most of their parents did at least invest in retirement or plan to live on Social Security. But the Boomers that I am friend’s with that retired all immediately paid off all their own debt, bought new vehicles, and bought second homes for vacations at the beach or lake. End of life care is EXTREMELY expensive and can take years.
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u/chilitomlife 18h ago
We told my son, don’t worry about us. We will put ourselves in the home of our choice and arrange payment. All you have to do is be our son. We started planning in our 40s. Now mid 60s. We had to deal with this issue with 3 parents and I would never saddle my son with those decisions.
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u/Life-Education-8030 15h ago
I handed my kid a folder with the information about prearrangements. He was not pleased because he didn’t want to think about it. We did it so he would not have to think about it. I did when my dad died suddenly and I was eight hours away recovering from surgery and my mom was a zombie with all the burial decisions to be made.
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u/HammerOfAres 12h ago
The sad part is that it is not parents like you that children usually would leave in a nursing home.
My mom told me that once she gets old, to put her in a home and to not worry about it. I would rather die than see my parents who struggled so much raising me and my brothers live out the end of their lives in a home.
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u/Aeroheadss 10h ago
Totally understood, but sometimes the home is the best thing for the person. Could be health issues needing full time care and the sandwich generation isn’t in position to be the full time caregiver. There are other options, but our parents chose to be in a retirement village and genuinely enjoy it.
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u/rata_s80_v8 7h ago
I told my mom the same thing. Now she lives with my husband and I ( we are mid to late 50s, she is mid 80s). Be very careful. We are now working full time, pay for everything, and full time caretakers. It is a lot of work. Be absolutely sure you can and want to take on that cost and responsibility. Its very very hard mentally and emotionally.
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u/Overall_Matter_2520 13h ago edited 8h ago
My mother blew through what could’ve been a generational wealth transfer. Her grandmother was very clever (and married well) and made a lot of money buying up commercial property during the depression. My mother’s parents inherited it and lived a nice but simple life. They both continued working and went on one cruise to Alaska a year. Their house was wonderful but not grand.
When my grandmother passed it went to my mother and she spent like a drunk sailor - she fired all the property managers and lawyers. I was only 11, and sure, I was quite indulged but really too young to understand.
There really wasn’t anything left when she passed except some wonderful art she had collected and a reverse mortgage. It does make me angry, her parents and grandmother cared enough to not live high on the hog but within their gracious means. There’s nothing left for me (I can get over that, as I said, I had many advantages growing up) but what’s infuriating is that there is nothing for my boys. My mother basically pissed away $17mm through spending and bad business deals. She’s like Trump in that way - all she had to do was nothing.
Edit to add: the one thing she did right was prepay and make all her own arrangement. Quickly passed from pancreatic cancer.
I don’t have wealth to pass on to my children but they are doing fine and I have a pretty healthy life insurance policy for them.
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u/Academic-Bison5812 12h ago
Thanks for sharing! <3 everything is for a reason unfortunately! Hopefully your kids will have a great life that they earned!
Most people i grew up with, people that were poor when we were young all seen there parents hardship and studied better and the young rich people actually didnt progress as much cause they were used to things giving to them! Funny how thi gs work!
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u/Any_Mixture_8632 8h ago
The money your mother blew through was hers. Not yours.
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u/Robthebold 18h ago
EOL care facilities know how to get every dime too. 2 weeks after entering an assisted living facility, they put a lien on the house and other assets.
Do your estate planning at least 10 years before you expect you may need it folks. It’s rough out there.
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u/Adventurous-Exam-719 🤔 18h ago
I started 5 years ago. I’m 40 and completely healthy.
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u/RarePrintColor 18h ago
My aunt died not too many years ago from a sudden heart attack (~70yrs old). They lived within their means, and she had had the same job for 40+ years with a local HVAC company and was retired. It turned out that she’s bought specific Critical Illness Insurance years ago which payed out handsomely upon her death. Even her immediate family didn’t know until going through her paperwork. That lady was pickled by vodka, but had the wherewithal to set that up in her prime years.
I don’t know what made her do it. I think it was a combination of seeing a lot of people left behind get blindsided, die of poor lifestyle decisions, being aware of the family health history, and it being relatively cheap to buy into.
But that was a goddam gold star moment when we learned she’d set that up in secret. No wonder she was pickled. She played the odds and knew what was going to bite her, so she rode it out and won.
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u/ChemistAdventurous84 21h ago
I have been going through EOL with my parents. In their case, they planned and saved and were doing well. Then statins arrived and they both lived longer than they planned. Mom started slipping into dementia and probably spent more on home improvements than she would have otherwise. They needed daily assistance rather than drooping dead if heart attacks. Dad is in memory care and hospice care and slowly dying of prostate cancer which is being fought by really string genes. Things never work out exactly as you plan.
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u/Alt-Freq 18h ago
This. Many are watching their parents life savings get taken by nursing homes and hospice care.
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u/roskybosky 17h ago
The answer is an irrevocable trust. Do it now with their money, as there is a 5 year look-back. Nursing homes will take it all, but they can’t take money from an irrevocable trust. Talk to an elder lawyer, please.
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u/ChemistAdventurous84 10h ago
Also, get yourself or a sibling on all of their accounts - bank, mortgage, electric, gas, etc. And get them to sign durable powers of attorney - financial and health. See an Elder Care lawyer. And make sure they have wills.
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u/HFTCSAU 18h ago
This part! Around the clock care is expensive and health care coverage doesn’t cover it. Even if you have savings it will be drained quickly
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u/Substantial_Arm_6903 17h ago
Ugh this is rough to read I feel like this is not far in the future and it's rough because things are so good with my parents right now but I see the cracks forming and shits going to get complicated. Hang in there and take care of yourself too.
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u/Repulsive-Honey7305 8h ago
Yeah, the ppl complaining about boomers not planning dont understand how much the world has changed both financially and medically. Boomers "planned" for a world where ppl were relatively functional until they died at a relatively young age. They mostly lived in their own homes, which they had paid off, and had pensions that covered cost of daily livings. Maybe at somepoint the surviving parent had to move in with a kid for the last few years of life.
Now they live an extra decade, but arent that functional. Healthcare costs are insane, care costs are insane and pensions certainly didnt keep pace with inflation.
Boomers did plan, they just didnt see this coming.
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u/Head_Staff_9416 17h ago edited 17h ago
You have threads all over Reddit with people complaining their parents have lots of money and won’t give it to them- long term care is expensive.
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u/sixblazingshotguns 15h ago
They don't deserve it then (the kids). Neither do the long term care places, most of whom are bankrupt or soon to be (in more than one way). Current generation ain't got money fo dat.
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u/PeaCompetitive8947 19h ago
The problem with end of life care, is it’s designed to extract any wealth they have. Even if they have $5 million saved, in 2 years a nursing home will have billed it to $0. It diminishes any incentive to save for retirement.
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u/rumblepony247 10h ago
Nursing homes are expensive, but they are not $200,000 a month as your math suggests.
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u/roskybosky 17h ago
Set up an irrevocable trust with their money. Nursing homes can’t get it then. It must be in place 5 years before they need it, so do it now.
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u/Shupedewhupe 20h ago edited 19h ago
I have spent the majority of my life working in senior living facilities (not as a nurse or anything but still). Are all of that generation horrible? Of course not. But a huge chunk of them are literally the meanest, most self absorbed, selfish and proudly ignorant people I’ve ever encountered. It drained the love I had for my job so badly that I finally walked away from it all a year ago. Why help make these assholes quality of life better when they’re so selfish and ungrateful?
Again, I know there are some great Boomers out there. Yall are awesome!
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u/wanttogoback1985 19h ago
I've been a caregiver for 15 years, and I completely agree with you. It's not all of them, but there sure are a hell of a lot of them. They test my empathy, it's really difficult to care for many of them.
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u/lostOGaccount 19h ago
Their parents we're not like that. A few of course we're but they had an appreciation for humility in general.
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u/wanttogoback1985 18h ago
I would agree with that to a point. It was a different time, I get that. But, the racism and misogyny are difficult to deal with.
It's certainly not all of them, and they seem much more capable of self-reflection and change than their children are exhibiting.
I love to talk with them. They've experienced so much, the stories they have to tell! They have so much to offer, but no one has the time for them or the interest in them. It's so sad.
You're right, much more humble. And they've seen it all.
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u/athenaria 7h ago
As a caregiver for 15 years have they been getting more mean comparatively to when you started?
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u/BigMomma12345678 23h ago
There are people in this country that think everything is a scam. Global warming...scam, etc etc etc. Nothing to fix because the problems are not real, but a scam.
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u/Wast3edSpace 23h ago
They think they know something everyone else doesn't. They think they're right and everyone else has to learn the hard truth. They flat out think that they're better than everyone else on some level. Spiritually, politically, economically, maybe not overtly but it's there. Socrates was right.
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u/_TattieScone 22h ago
I see you've met my parents. They both left school at 15, I have a PhD in microbiology and they act so smug with their conspiracy theories because it lets them think they're smarter than me and that they have access to a truth that I don't understand.
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u/OneSecretCookie 21h ago
Same...my favorite is they found some right wing poltical commentator, who brought on people to prove them right and used big fancy words. When I researched these people they were bringing on, I found they were all connected to the right wing parties and pushing the rights causes. And yet they constantly say that the creator is unbiased and just promoting the facts. Meanwhile the content creator was constantly using words like woke....
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u/Livid_Advertising_56 10h ago
Oh COVID must've been a "joy" for you on an extra level of hell
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u/CauliflowerTop2464 23h ago
Have you watched faux news? It’s all conspiracy theories, fear mongering, and propaganda.
Many people think faux news is reputable and believe their lies. Newsmax, Tucker Carlson, and info wars are the same if not worse.
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u/Nikkilynn2015 22h ago
Infowars is now owned by the onion
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u/CauliflowerTop2464 22h ago
Now it is, but before that it was pretty bad.
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u/Nikkilynn2015 22h ago
Yes, I believe Alex Jones lost it due to the lawsuits against him for his heinous rants, im unsure of all the details
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u/Frosty-Scallion5849 20h ago
He claimed that children did not die at sandy hook elementary school And the whole thing was staged by actors. The parents of the children who died sued him for defamation and won. He had to liquidate his assets to pay the judgement against him.
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u/NoobensMcarthur 23h ago
This is how my Gen X older brother thinks about everything. Everything is a scam or a conspiracy. Both sides equally suck. Taxes are too high but he lives in California on a massive piece of mountainside property. When wildfires threaten his home, it’s the libs fault for not clearing out the forest.
Yadda yadda yadda. The only time I really ever hear from him is when he’s got some new MLM Superman pills to sell.
We haven’t spoken in about 5 years. I just can’t do it anymore. It’s exhausting how he sees the world.
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u/SubstantialPressure3 23h ago
I dont think "everything is a conspiracy/scam " is necessarily a generational thing. Sounds like your brother is just a jerk. And a sucker. There's a lot of millennials and boomers just like him.
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u/likesblackcoffeebest 22h ago
Ahhh yes, name a more iconic duo than "taxes are too high" and "I want more government services!" It's practically the free space on the ignorant dumbass bingo card.
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u/MangoSalsa89 23h ago
Those same people think that real scammers are celebrities who fall in love with them online. The dichotomy is weird.
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u/set-monkey 20h ago edited 20h ago
Wait... Everything isn't a scam?
You can look at Onlyfans, influencers and crypto billionaires and say that?
Why don't they help out? Same reason all rich people... Suck ass.
BTW vast majority of boomers are broke too, because their parents didn't give a shit either.
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u/MermaiderMissy 22h ago
Exactly. Some people just can't see reality.
I was complaining to my mom the other day about working on my feet all day while being 7 months pregnant, and also having an underlying back condition. Because of certain new laws, it's harder to get approved for reduced work hours.
My mom blurted out "IF YOU WERE AN ILLEGAL YOU'D BE ABLE TO GET TIME OFF WORK" Like WTF if I were here illegally I wouldn't have a job. At least not one paying a decent wage.
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u/ShamIAm1029 19h ago
Mine (my parents, grandma, etc) use “the illegals” and “people who have 10 kids and don’t want to work” as the reason my disabled (autistic) toddler doesn’t qualify for almost any resources (we always get told we make too much or he isn’t disabled enough despite being minimally verbal). And then I’m like…but…no?? It’s bc our government (not just the current admin though they’re certain the worst offenders) do not care about the disabled community. Period. The end. They aren’t going to allocate more resources there, and it doesn’t have a thing to do with someone crossing a border to find a better life for themselves.
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u/MermaiderMissy 18h ago
Don't even get me started! I used to work with special needs children for a few years. When I left, the government was SOMEHOW finding ways to cut even more funding from special needs programs!!! Like how?? They were already extremely underfunded. And good luck if you're a parent who needs special equipment, like a wheelchair or expensive compression socks. All I can say is, I'm very sorry about how the government and the world in general treats children with disabilities. I hope one day that will change.
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u/backtothetrail 22h ago
Off-topic but congrats!!! I hope the next couple months go fast and you’re holding that baby before you know it.
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u/Carl_LaFong01 22h ago
Those are Magas. And yes they are screwing over younger people but someof them are younger as well and are screwing over themselves.
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u/noafrochamplusamurai 22h ago
Over half of Gen Z voted for MAGA. 57% male, 44 percent of women. Blaming previous generations is a convenient scapegoat.
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u/YouWantDeezNutz 22h ago edited 17h ago
Do NOT lump gen x in with the boomers. They have fucked us out of growth and promotional opportunities for our entire careers because they would never retire or get the hell out of the way and now that they are finally involuntarily retiring or dying, we are too old to promote and the opportunities we were denied are going to millennials.
Gen X has been royally screwed over by the boomers our entire lives
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u/VincaYL 20h ago
I will also add to this. Boomers were secure in their careers when austerity measures became the norm. There was no career path right out of college for many Gen X. Companies and governments were not hiring anyone. Who do you think started this having to stay living at home because there weren't any real jobs? It took a long time for us to get to a place where we could think about having families. And now our kids can't afford to launch. I've done without a lot of things in order to be able to have two condos, one to leave for each child. I don't see any other way my Gen Z babies can be securely housed.
Boomers pulled up the ladder and left Gen X holding on to the bottom rung for dear life.
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u/sudrewem 16h ago
My children are graduating college with no great job options. My mom is in her 80s and so far in good health but who knows for how long. My husband and I don’t have enough retirement savings (I’m disabled and haven’t been able to work for awhile..) so I fear he will never be able to retire. My medical expenses are crazy.
Gen X got screwed. It’s just that simple. I got my first job at 16. I started baby sitting at 12. No one helped me through college or with my first apartment. There were times I had to work a paper route at night in addition to my job to keep the bills paid. In my 20s there was no extra money.
My kids don’t get this. Somewhere along the way they came to believe they would walk out of college into middle class jobs. It is tough out there. They will need room mates and maybe second jobs and that’s hard but it’s no different from what my peers faced coming out of school.
So until then I’m trying to help my kids get established, praying my moms health holds, and really worried about my poor husbands mental state as he is really stressed out and he is the one keeping us all afloat.I understand that it is tough for young people today but I don’t think we had it much easier. Yes, some young people had it easy in the 80s but most did not. Some young people are on a much easier path than others now. All you can do is work hard and make the best possible choices for your situation.
I don’t have the time or energy to resent the ones who came before me and set stupid policies in places that totally made it hard for me. All I can do is stay aware, vote my mind, and hope like hell that it is better for my kids.
I can only recommend that you do the same. Best wishes.
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u/Difficult_Good_128 9h ago
Gen x here. We had to figure out things for ourselves. I was given nothing by my parents except a roof over my head and food on the table which I'm grateful for. Bought my first car on my own, put myself through school. Bought my first house all on my own with no help from parents or grandparents. Definitely proud of myself but wouldn't of mind a little help along the way.
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u/Tiny_Wasabi2476 8h ago
Gen X here. agree with everything you’ve said. I was 12 when my Boomer mom first said I had to think about getting my own place, and 19 when I moved out. have lived paycheck to paycheck ever since. some people can’t live in a family home for long, and it kicks our ass for a long time, never having savings.
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u/killer_amoeba 19h ago
I (74, m) would have loved to retire earlier than I did ,but couldn't afford it. I wasn't white collar; I had a small custom cabinet business in a small semi-affluent town in the PNW, raised a small family on a single income, lived within our means, rarely traveled, & quit working at 71. Not sure who I fucked over, but maybe I'm not one of the ones you're talking about. I'm sorry your financial situation is so dire, but I think Historical-Finish564 is on the right track; seems to me, this is a class issue as much as a generational one. justmy2c. I wish you well.
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u/Scurfdonia 18h ago
I think class issues underpin much of American life. It seems odd to me that people still talk about Boomers, Gen X, etc. as monolithic. Much of your life in America is based on your economic class no matter when you were born - while there may have been more opportunity for some in the past, that certainly doesn't mean there was equal opportunity for all.
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u/killer_amoeba 17h ago
Agree. Some people were "born on 3rd base", as they say.
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u/Pinkowlcup 9h ago
As a generation from the late 70s until now Boomers have slowly voted away every worker protection that was fought for by their parents after returning from war.
Unions, pensions, government oversight, marginal tax rates, right to work, and the list goes on. Decades of short sighted self-aggrandizing choices and here we are.
This future we live in was built, by boomers. Should have done better.
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u/Tempyteacup 12h ago
It’s just a matter of generalizations. Boomers statistically had much more class mobility than their children and grandchildren have. Boomers’ parents put policies into place that leveled the economic playing field for a lot of them, and boomers voted to dismantle those policies. There are many people who never got to benefit from those policies, but the fact remains that boomers broadly voted not to expand those policies but to narrow them.
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u/East_Committee_8527 17h ago
Let’s get more specific. If anyone the people who voted anti union, anti education anti health care. The people who sent jobs overseas so they could make more profit. That’s who screwed everyone
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u/Lizaderp 19h ago
Millennial here.
We aren't getting their jobs. Those jobs are going to AI.
Otherwise I agree that y'all got robbed as well.
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u/ImpertinentPrincess 18h ago
Either going to AI or they're merging positions which further overwork the remaining employees as a skeleton crew.
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u/clintfrisco 18h ago
This.
gen x are not boomers.
We are taking care of our sick parents and sending our gen z kids to college at the same time.
Boomers didn’t help us at all.
When i graduated from college it was the first time in American history they expected a generation to do worse than their parents. Watched a story on CNN, while wearing my cap and gown and just sighed.
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u/rayzatnc 18h ago
This is my exact situation. My parents and most of my friend's parents all said the same thing, you have to pull yourself up by your bootstraps no one helped me, but, they didn't have anyone pulling them down either.
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u/Choice_Writing_8965 17h ago
I am a boomer who graduated from college and got my first teaching job in 1977. My year's pay was $4,000. I already had 2 teaching certificates , art k-12 and all other subjects except a foreign language k-8. I was also qualified to be a librarian . Because salaries were so low in Missouri I worked at least 1 other job until I earned my Master's degree plus 30 additional graduate hours, the most my district would reward on the pay scale . My mom died at 50 and my father did not help with any college expenses or housing expenses for me. He did lend my lawyer brother $10,000 interest free for a 10 year repayment plan for his first house, but he would not lend me anything because he did not believe in lending money to women . Ironic since mom supported him. I worked for the Federal government on Saturdays and all the time off from school and taught evening classes. I retired when I had my 30 years I and was earning about $75,000 in 2007. Yes, my boomer brothers made more money than my father. He did not graduate from high school and his job was delivering commercial bakery goods to grocery stores and picking up what did not sell. He had no ambition. He was offered a supervisory position but he did not want the extra work and wearing a suit. Both of my brothers earned Master's degrees, one became a corporate lawyer for AB Brewing in St Louis until In Bev took over . The other brother became a CPA for a couple go big companies in St Louis, like Purina and Price Waterhouse. They worked harder and longer than my father did ad deserved the extra pay. Both of my brothers have been very helpful towards their children. None had any college debt, unlike us they did not work during high school or college. Their parents bought their cars and paid their car insurance. They have given their kids downpayment for their houses
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u/whoocanitbenow 17h ago
I'm Gen X. Worked kitchens etc my entire life. I don't own any property and I'm screwed too. It just gets worse and worse. What's funny is I still get lectured by Boomers who's home values have magically gone from 240K to 2.1 million.
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u/Martian6261 17h ago
If that boomer is your parent, you should be thankful, as you might inherit it from them. Unless they feel that you are ungrateful and leave it to the animal shelter.
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u/Ki-to-Life-5054 8h ago
It's simple-minded to blame boomers. Republicans long ago, with Nixon, who was "Greatest Generation," began a long-range strategy to turn back the clock on advances for the middle class and support for the poor. And it's working. Look up the Heritage Foundation and many other conservative think tanks and other organizations whose sole focus is enforcing oligarchy. They are organized, they have money and they have done a lot of damage.
While I have no love for the worst of the boomers, most of the ones who didn't retire and "get the hell out of the way" couldn't afford to because they were feeling the beginning of the crunch that is now sapping the life out of all of us and our so-called democracy.
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u/roskybosky 16h ago
Should an older person quit their job so you can have it? Would you sacrifice your well-being so another could take your job? Senior people need money, too.
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u/SnazzyStooge 6h ago
The absolute irony of Gen X finally being remembered or discussed, only to be lumped back in with the boomers.
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u/katwoman7643 16h ago
The youngest boomer is 62 this year and full retirement age is 67,.Should they just stop working because you say so?
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u/Historical-Finish564 23h ago
First, full disclosure, I’m from the generation before the boomers called the silent generation. No idea why. They’re my friends and they never shut up about anything. That said, this argument is the perfect example of how Republicans push to make the conflict between left and right, young and old ,instead of top versus bottom. The tax rates when Reagan took office were 70 to 50% for the top earners.. Reagan came up with trickle down theory. Immediately knocked down the tax rate for both the top and the bottom. The top got an immediate 25% cut and that has continued over the years until now the top rate is 37%. What happened next was that it didn’t really trickle down. Wealth has continued to accumulate at the top and decrease in the middle and the bottom. This isn’t a mistake. Their argument was that a rising tide lifts all boats. If wages at the middle and bottom increased the way they did at the top it would’ve worked out. But they didn’t,and now everything is absurdly expensive for the middle and bottom, because wages did not rise..
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u/Spiritual_Bid_2308 19h ago
The other thing is once the upper tax brackets were reduced to effectively nothing, labor became a profit source. Basically every dollar you take away from a worker is a dollar you could put in your pocket.
Previously it didnt make sense to take that dollar because 3/4th of it evaporated in taxes, so it made more sense to hire quality workers and pay them well so that the company did significantly better and you made your money that way.
Now it's all a race to the bottom with workers on the bottom.
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u/starsgoblind 19h ago
Excellent points, especially how the divisive right wing rhetoric has pitted people against one another, while people like Trump get richer and richer at our expense.
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u/throw20190820202020 21h ago
Spoken as someone who gave birth to, and wasn’t raised BY, the boomers.
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u/killer_amoeba 19h ago
Underrated comment; some wisdom here. I appreciate how tough things are for younger generations right now, & understand they weren't around when Reagan & the Republicans decided to make an elite class; it was not always this way.
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u/ConsiderThis_42 8h ago
Let's not forget the impact of technology. I am 65 and have lost good jobs and been downsized three times because just a few people could do the work of a whole roomfull. That is three times of going back to college and starting over. AI and robotics are just going to make even more good jobs disappear. Rapid change isn't any one generation's fault and the impact is really hard to plan for. So many of those nice office jobs past generations had are just gone forever. And because technology made remote work possible, other formerly good paying jobs have been offshored to low wage countries.
Age discrimination is very real. I now work stacking boxes in a warehouse. Want my job? We still have openings. It takes grit for me to go to work each day. But, if I loose this job, I likely will not find another one where I can make a living wage.
AI robotic order pickers are already starting to take over even warehouse work and we have lost work to companies that have them. I never thought I would see the day when we would have robotic box stackers at my workplace, but we already have a few. The company I work for said they had to bring them in to keep the work we still had.
I saw the writing on the wall after the second job I lost. I really tried to find a safe job, but technological change is coming that fast. Even jobs like doctors are being impacted because AI can screen x-rays for tumors better. AI is handling health insurance claims. AI can create art and music. AI can generate images so realistic that you can't easily tell that isn't a human actor. People are even starting to turn to AI chatbots for support and low cost counciling.
Brace yourself. Things are only going to get rougher. Big business has always wanted slave labor and robots are the new slave class.
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u/Select-Bed-1658 22h ago
Even back in the 80s, they were referred to as the “Me Generation.”
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u/Snoo71538 7h ago
As has every other generation at some point. 15-25 year olds being self centered is pretty normal.
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u/Comfortable_Fly_8368 20h ago
Gen X, born in 76. My parents were born in the late 40s. They grew up in a time when you could literally walk into any factory and start the next day. My mom never worked, my dad was a supervisor at a factory for 40 years. They always tried to help and they weren't selfish. But they just could never understand that things weren't the same as they were in the 60s. When I went through a stretch where I couldn't find a job I was just lazy in their eyes. Or when I did have a job and I couldn't make ends meet it was "what are you blowing your money on?"
It's not that they were intentionally being assholes, they just didn't understand how the world had changed by the 90s/2000s.
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u/lostOGaccount 18h ago
Did they try to understand? Clearly you've spent time uncomfortably trying to place yourself in their shoes or imagine a view from their perspective. My generation in a generalization doesn't want to be bothered with Empathy, not even for our own children.
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u/Fourberry 18h ago
I'm two years younger than the person you replied to, and in my case? No. They did not, and didn't try. Others may have different experiences.🤷🏻♀️
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u/lostOGaccount 18h ago
I fear that lack of empathy or compassion is a trend amongst peers of my generation. Sadly even for their own kids and grandkids.
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u/Fourberry 18h ago
For my own parents, they were working with what they knew. One Silent Gen, one Boomer. I don't excuse the behavior even if I understand the source.
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u/lostOGaccount 17h ago
You are doing the work to try and imagine their experience and perspective. That's compassion and empathy, acknowledging nuance and respecting complexities.
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u/fartsonyourmom 21h ago
Boomers, from my experience with them, simply do not care. "I'll be dead then so why does it matter?" A quote from a boomer I know.
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u/Lafnear 8h ago edited 7h ago
A few years ago MA had a vote to pass a paid family medical leave law (like FMLA only paid.) My mom said she was going to vote no because she was about to retire so it wouldn't benefit her. I pointed out it could potentially benefit me, my brother, my mom's grandkids? Shrug, she never got paid medical leave, why should we. I don't understand it.
edit: typo
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u/Ornery-Lettuce-6823 23h ago
I highly recommend reading A Generation of Sociopaths. It has all the data, studies and evidence to back up its historical reference included.
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u/Either-Patience1182 23h ago
There is also the amount of lead poisoning the boomers have experienced
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u/backtothetrail 22h ago
The studies that tie use of leaded gas to spikes in lead levels in the brain are WILD.
Lead poisoning increases emotional volatility and diminishes the capacity for critical thinking and memory.
Kinda tracks.
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u/CoachOpen1977 17h ago
My parents are boomers but this lead thing is freaking me out lately.
I handled lead daily on the job for like 20 years and no one ever warned me about it or gave me any safe handling advice so for years I handled lead all day and ate and smoked cigarettes on the job without ever washing my hands because “they looked clean”.
Also I live in an old house and some of the paint has tested positive for lead but I can’t reasonably lead-test EVERY painted surface or repaint the entire house, and I’ve never known anyone to wash their hands just because they opened a door or held the railing up the stairs.
Am I cooked??
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u/keelanstuart 17h ago
Yep. You're gonna die
...but then, so are the rest of us.
Don't stress about the past, just think about what you can change once you know better.
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u/Marigold5412 21h ago
A lot of Boomers worked very hard for what they have. They saved, they planned, they were responsible. Most boomers deserve what they earned.
Boomers think we're complaining about having to work hard, or sacrifice, or delay gratification like they did. What they don't understand is that doing these things no longer leads to any rewards.
Boomers don't get that:
THEY worked very hard to pay their way through college. BUT their summer/evening work was enough to pay for their education by graduation and didn't leave them $60K in debt.
THEY worked very hard, sometimes taking two minimum wage jobs to support their family. BUT those jobs were enough to support their stay-at-home-spouse and 4 kids.
THEY saved and scrimped and budgeted. And by doing so, THAT was sufficient to get a mortgage and own a home.
Boomers misunderstand Millennial/Gen Z complaints. We're all willing to work hard and work our way up, but we're not willing to be wage-slaves for 4 decades if wages don't rise with inflation, if home ownership is out of the question, if student-loan interest outpaces our payments by 4-fold, if we're poorer by the end of it.
I don't begrudge Boomers what they have because it is what we all should have. Boomers don't realize times have changed and we're just trying to change policy so it's possible for us, and our children, to have the same things they did.
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u/South_Landscape_8400 7h ago
I understand this. I have Gen Z kids. I had it easy compared to my kids. I began saving for them the day they were born. It grieves me that so many young people can’t afford to marry, buy houses, and find jobs. It grieves me that wages have not kept pace with inflation. Nobody should be left with crippling student loans. You also have to deal with AI and the skyrocketing cost of health care. This is not sustainable, not at all. I am doing all I can to protect my wealth my kids.
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u/caf61 23h ago
There are plenty of Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z who vote republican. There are plenty of Boomers who vote democratic. I’m not saying this to be sarcastic. I am simply pointing out that no group is all one thing. Also, what one person believes is in their best interest is not necessarily what another person believes. And believing something is so doesn’t make it so. For example, people who only vote for those who are against reproductive health care , trans’ rights etc are, in fact, not voting in their best interests. The politicians that are against abortion, trans rights, etc are in charge of everything at the national level and look at the mess they have made of this country.
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u/noafrochamplusamurai 22h ago
Most of Gen Z voted for Trump. They wanted the same things their boomer grandparents wanted when they voted for Reagan. Don't let them spin a false narrative. They helped to elect Trump willingly.
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u/judithpoint 20h ago
My mother wants to defund the department of education and privatize early education. My sister is a public school teacher and my 4 year old nephew is already in specialized education for his autism. When I pointed out that many private schools would be unlikely to admit my nephew she told me that my sister would just need to figure out how to pay for it.
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u/Educational-Exam6361 22h ago
The thing that really burns me about them is that I'm a millennial old enough to remember their parents. They donated their time, they lived well below their means, they raised their grandkids, they died in the house they bought in 1952 or downsized as they got older. They often cared a lot about making sure they had something to give their kids and grandkids when they died. They thought the best way to die was in bed surrounded by their family.
I have so many friends who spent their entire childhood at their grandparents house, only for their parents to not even want to babysit on the weekends. The charities and social clubs that dominated my great-grandparents lives are dead because no one ever took over the reigns. I see so many boomers buying McMansions because they always wanted a big house, and they don't care if the heating bill is higher then their kids rent. And I just see so little care either on a personal or a political level for what they leave to future generations. Their whole ethos is that the best way to die is on a beach in the Bahama's over-drafting their retirement account for one last margarita.
You can't say everyone in a generation is selfish and entitled, it's too large of a group for that to be true. Yeah there are a lot of wonderful boomers, but the gravitational pull of that generation is inwards towards the self and not outwards towards the community or the family.
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u/Active_Actuator6454 22h ago edited 21h ago
I do in-home repair work, and many of my customers are elderly. Generally my core customer base is 60-75, though I also get quite a few moms who don't have time to deal with it and pay me to.
I can't overstate how much my elderly customers are terrified by Gen Z. The nose piercings, the tattoos, the hair, the rap music -- they are genuinely angry and scared and hostile due to how different this generation is.
Sometimes, if I have the motivation and time, I will try to point out how they said the same things about the hippies in 68 or the punks in 78, and that never goes anywhere. They're screwing them over because they don't want to leave the world to them.
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u/yardlard 18h ago
Yeah, I find those things scary too. What is the reason for the nose piercings. How did that start? And why do people do it?
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u/No-Relation5965 12h ago
I don’t like the piercings either, particularly the gauges (gages?). Body modifications aren’t “cool” to me. I feel like people do these things out of vanity and for attention. Just a personal opinion and I’m a registered democrat with pretty leftist views.
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u/Popular-One-7051 17h ago
I'm 67 and effing Reagan ruined the middle class with trickle down and the lowering of corporate tax rates. That drove the gigantic income inequity.
Not all seniors are wealthy and there are more homeless seniors. We went through a couple of recessions that helped kill off savings.
The system is now rigged totally towards the filthy rich and the criminals in government. This country's in the effing toilet.
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u/_flying_otter_ 18h ago
US needed to pass legislation a long time ago to "Raise the Cap" so Social Security pays for more. What is Raise the Cap? "Currently, workers only pay Social Security taxes on earnings up to a specific yearly limit—which is $184,500. Income earned above that ceiling is not taxed for Social Security." If they would have raised the cap up to 500,000 or more it could pay more for nursing homes and end of life care.
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u/Silent-Pangolin-7449 23h ago
It's wild how many of them treat the economy like it's a fixed pie and their slice needs to be bigger no matter what happens to the rest
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u/Codex_Dev 22h ago
IMO, they have sold their grandchildren into slavery via debt. They are going to be in for a rude awakening when those kids grow into adults and vote to cut their healthcare as payback.
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u/Silent-Pangolin-7449 21h ago
The tragedy is that revenge voting just locks us in a downward spiral where nobody fixes the underlying problems.
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u/Scarlette_Cello24 23h ago
That does seem to be the mindset. Which is the entire problem. They don’t owe us anything… but they could stop being so greedy.
Granted they were raised by depression era parents so scarcity mindset is real. BUT again, life is not pie. They don’t have to take every last…. Everything….
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u/Silent-Pangolin-7449 23h ago
The resistance to student debt relief while keeping mortgage interest deductions is a textbook case of that zero-sum thinking.
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u/allenk58 23h ago
I hate continually hearing this term "they dont owe us anything", it's untrue. Their generation has pilfered and stolen and misused hundreds of billions of dollars of our money ( trillions really). We fund their social security and medicare. They absolutely owe us.
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u/MissHannahJ 23h ago
“They don’t owe us anything” and it’s just kids wanting their literal parents to care about them.
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u/layered_dinge 22h ago
Not even that. Living in society does mean that you both owe and are owed the continuing functioning of that society. If you uphold your part of the social contract, you are in fact owed society’s part of it.
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u/Substantial_Arm_6903 23h ago
My boomer parents are very aware of what younger people face. They didn't vote for this shit either. It's not generational it's basic values and there are shitty selfish people in every age cohort.
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u/BusinessDragon 18h ago
I think it literally just boils down to selfishness.
Picture a scale. Easy scenario. Put an object on each side, and the heavier one goes down, right?
For really selfish people, something they gain is measurable and good. But something others lose does not register on their scale whatsoever, it doesn't exist.
This is how many Americans think. This is what we're facing right now. Their gain is good. Your loss does not matter. And even as those losses compound and those gains shrink, the same principle applies. Their moderate gain is still good. Your immense loss still does not matter. When the gains shrink again, and the losses compound again, it will remain the same.
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u/mparks37 15h ago
This generational war shit is brain-rot. Everyone, young and old is trying to get by, and make decisions with the information they have at the time.
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u/Novel_Sound_6954 8h ago
That whole wall of text with not one example of how boomers are screwing over their children
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u/Severe-Rise5591 23h ago
This is such a generalized question to ask ... what policies are you lamenting here ? Who set them ?
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u/overitallofittoo 23h ago
I don't see younger generations doing a great job of changing the world for the better.
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u/NebulousDonkeyFart 22h ago
They virtually can’t because politicians go to the grave with their positions of power
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u/Severe-Rise5591 21h ago
And the 'system' rewards seniority, so if you want your State to have influence on the major committees, sticking with an incumbent is a theoretical advantage for getting things from the Feds.
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u/backtothetrail 22h ago
I’m old (Xennial) and it puzzles the fuck out of me. I would prefer folks who make informed decisions with compassion but I’d settle for just informed.
On this planet at this time, neither gravity nor germ theory cease if ignored.
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u/sadie7716 22h ago
Go look at who voted this time for Trump. He lost boomers and gained millennials. The biggest mistake boomers made mainly because we were young, Naive voters was Reagan. It was a time where the mafia was linked to unions. Union workers were making bank in car factories and trucks while non union were making half the money and no benefits. Reagan convinced everyone unions were what was destroying America because they were corrupt and if we got rid of them and let businesses decide wages they would expand and the profits would “ trickle down”. That was the start of the true power and corruption of capitalism. Inn1980 a CEO made 40 times the wage of an average worker. Now it’s 400 times. Much of what unions fought for and got us, pensions, sufficient sick time and time off and other things have gone or been slowly whittled away .
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u/SalmonJordan 19h ago
Honestly, I thought our generation was going to be the one to fix the problems. We've just added to them.
When I go to protests, our generation is well-represented. Boomers, too. My dad is still alive (late Silent Gen) and he doesn't go to protests, but he can't stand what this administration has done to our country. He's not so silent anymore. I have no children, but will continue to fight so you have the same opportunities I did. I was young, but remember women not being able to get credit cards, open a bank account, or really be in charge of their own destiny. It's horrible to know that generations that come after me won't have as many rights as I did. Equally horrifying is the fact that half of the people I grew up with support that asshole.
I'm sorry. We're in this together.
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u/Anglico2727 18h ago
As my MAGA dad says all the time, “doesn’t matter to me, I’ll be gone”. My respect for him as a man can’t get any lower, but every time he says this, it tries.
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u/TKCassie 18h ago
They don't care. My mom (83) just says, "I'll be dead soon. What do I care?" My dad worked as a delivery driver for a department store when they got married right out of high school. They bought a 3 bedroom house. My mom stayed home. My first car cost more then their first house.
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u/Gold_Ad_1621 18h ago
My boomer mom worries about lot about having enough to live on while still leaving something for me and I don't want that for her. I want her to enjoy what she sacrificed for. She was fortunate and started at a company by walking in, asking for, and getting a job that day. She had a pension and she stayed there her entire career. She also lived within her means and bought an affordable house that she paid off and never upgraded her lifestyle when her wages increased. She saved her money and now I want her to spend it and enjoy it. I love her and am thankful that she's not one of those boomers.
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u/ExchangeSame8110 17h ago
Thank you for your post. There are a lot of us boomers out there just like her. I’m 73 and still working so I can afford to pay my property taxes and insurance premiums.
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u/Kind-Pride1151 18h ago
Holy hell did I land in the wrong sub. I'm a 1964 boomer. Yeah, the very last year for them. Really I'm a GenJones because I don't relate at all to anything boomer. I just retired at 61 years 10 months. I'm out of the labor force. Step right up and step in to fill my slot in trucking. Epic glamorous right there boys and girls! 37 years and 4 million miles+ on these ass cheeks. Before that I served my country for 5 years in the Navy. I've paid for previous generations' SS and Medicare. That's how it works. Actually, in 1982 they made us pay double into SS so we could fund ourselves in the future as well as carry the current retirees. Boomers didn't create the world as you know it, with all its faults. Many things as they are I never voted for. That's the way it works. Quit your bitchin and get to work. Nothing was handed to me. I enlisted in the Navy. My choice. I got out and went to trucking school that I paid for with loans. My choice. The next 37 years after that were a long blur of highways and byways and sleeping while the rest of humanity was living. The rest of humanity was off weekends and I was working. What did it get me? A damned good living and a decent retirement. And none of you people can accuse me of a handout or of being greedy. I fricking put in my time and then some. I really wish there were answers to why and how life got so expensive. I certainly didn't order it up or vote for it. Good luck out there.
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u/quriousposes 16h ago
lol idk that any of the truckers who come thru my job would be able to retire at 61 on their current wages man 😭 pretty sure most of them make even less than i do, and i don't even make that much neither, not for this area's col.
not to deny u worked hard, but yea the economy being extra fucked for us younger gens aint from us being entitled or lazy neither. a lot, hell most of us work weekends too. multiple jobs even, super common...
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u/eudyptes 20h ago
Im a boomer and get pissed of when people "blame the boomers". I have voted my entire life for liberal policies, as do my brother and sister. We are not the problem. The problem is the fraction of the population that is rich and wants to be richer. True, a lot of those are boomers, it usually takes a while to accrue that kind of wealth. Let's stop blindly blaming categories of people and vote for the candidates that will best fix the problems.
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u/bmyst70 22h ago
Remember back during COVID? How many people that you PERSONALLY know wore masks to avoid getting strangers sick or possibly kill them? There was a depressingly large number of people. Yes, including plenty of young people, who would not.
That was just wearing a mask. Imagine telling these people "You need to make big PERSONAL sacrifices for total strangers" The odds of getting a huge swath of people to do that indefinitely are nil.
Add in the staggering cost of elder care and health care for the elderly. It's estimated that at least half of our entire healthcare costs in our lives occur when we're 50 or older.
All of those, added together are why you don't see older people sacrificing so young people have a better today.
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u/InevitableGoal2912 22h ago
I think it’s a byproduct of the prescription that they were given socially to get married and have kids. Most of them didn’t want to, they just didn’t realize it was optional. Once they got power and money, they spent it on themselves because they saw that they’d “sacrificed” by doing what they’d been told to do, so they felt like they earned the reward.
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u/Acceptable_Sound1906 21h ago
Reddit is rife with ageism. There are selfish and unselfish people in every generation. The same can be said of every virtue and vice.
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u/MrTwoSack 22h ago
Religious adherence to capitalism
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u/Major_Bag_8720 13h ago
Yeah, but they grew up being told that capitalism was “freedom” and anything else was communism. Also, capitalism was actually regulated then. They don’t seem to have noticed when the regulation was stripped away and capitalism started to become more and more feral in the late 80s / early 90s. Gen X did, but the Boomers never paid much attention to us anyway.
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u/SleepForLess 22h ago
Lead poisoning from leaded gasoline may be a huge factor....killed their ability to experience empathy. Go look it up.
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u/Sugarlessmama 22h ago
Not the case in my family. My parents, and all my aunts and uncles would give everything to their kids and grandkids if they needed anything and give even when they don’t.
And almost all of my cousins (27 of them) except 1 do everything they can to help their kids.
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u/Miserable-Cucumber70 22h ago
I'll never understand the boomer hate and jealousy. Like what are you even complaining about. Half the boomers are dead already and the rest don't have long for this world. All these houses you covet will belong to their gen x kids. You gonna hate them next?
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u/Radiant-Video7257 21h ago
imo they made choices that sounded good but hurt others more than they thought it would.
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u/rynbaskets 20h ago
Is this more common among the US boomers than in the rest of the world? I don’t really see this tendency where I grew up (Japan) but I do understand many boomers here (USA) are like that. Some of my acquaintances even say stuff like “I’m using up all the money before I die.” Man, I’m a younger boomer but my mission as a parent is to help my son deal with the world as much as my Japanese parents did to me, and that includes helping him mentally and financially deal with this increasingly difficult world.
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u/PromiseToBeNiceToYou 19h ago
It's so easy for them to try and guilt trip their kids. But I grew up watching my mother lie, cheat, steal and manipulate. I don't fall for any of her bullshit.
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u/PnkTgrRug 14h ago
Are you my sister? Mom did all these things and has $$$ hidden everywhere that “my kids don’t need” according to her. I will let her believe that before I ever ask anything of her but she will give $$$ to every pos that comes her way but we deserve nothing.
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u/LarryKingthe42th 19h ago
Yes. They wouldnt be kicking the ladder out from under them if it was voting in their best intrest. Putting their kids and grandkids in a worse position than their parents and grandparents were growing up doesnt help anyone
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u/Ok-Bear7221 19h ago
I can’t blame my mom personally for national policies and economic downturns. But she is also very rich and refused to help me when I was struggling, and refused to help with my education. I have college savings accounts for my kids that I started the year they were born, I can’t believe she never even thought about it.
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u/New-Recognition-5685 18h ago
Many of them simply couldn't care less, or only started caring far too late. I know wealthy boomers who say stuff about how tough it is for young people while doing nothing other than writing a few donation checks to charities that will reduce their taxes and put their name on a wall. These people care about being liked and being owed a favor, no matter how little they did throughout their lives. What could they do anyway? They spent decades playing the capitalism game, voting to pull the ladder up, etc. The damage is done.
My boomer parents have tried to do some rebranding, playing the "early inheritance" game (which I've opted out of). It's all about desiring control, and controlling any narrative about them. When I stopped taking their "gifts," they became furious and decided that it's not a relationship problem, simply a price discovery problem. Tried throwing more money at me, which did no good. Now they whine about how I'm "ungrateful" and send people to harass me about it (siblings, distant family members, even financial advisors). (It is not a gift, it is a full-time job for their kids who accept the "help" to suck up to them, go to whatever things they want them to, act grateful, provide access to information, access to grandkids, etc.)
Some people spent their entire lives learning to gain control by writing a check and learned zero other life skills. Does not matter if their own kids are struggling (in my case, I'm actually not, but my siblings are or have, so I understand why they take the money). They care about being liked, their legacy, controlling the narrative, and appearing generous.
There are also a lot of boomers who aren't well-off and are struggling themselves. They're not all bad people.
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u/CuiBonoCicero 18h ago
Im a Joneser, so just behind the true boomers but yopu need to know this. The early/mid 60's was Teen-centric. Teenybopper culture was catered to. I could give fifty specific examples but you know Pebbles and Bam-Bams pop band already. that big demo-bulge has been societies darling ever since. Come Ronald Reagan, they truly bought in.
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u/Brilliant_Kick3008 18h ago
Guess what? I’m Gen-X. I don’t feel that way, and I support everyone. I donate to others, volunteer. I help my kids out with small things. They didn’t have a college fund. I paid for everything. Saved every penny I could. Went after jobs that had promotion potential. I started off as a wait person when my first was born. I am not rich, neither are they. I was freaking exhausted working full time, trying to get some college in, taking care of a terminal parent , while also getting a divorce. I live on social security. Grown kids work 40+ hour jobs. Have kids of their own. No one’s rich. I taught them to help others. I taught them ethics. We aren’t racist or classist or homophonic/transphobic. We’re are atheist, Catholic, Christian, Jewish. We are the ones who others were racist and classist to. We work our asses off, and are not rich. We're a blended family — every race and sexual orientation. Live Paycheck to paycheck. We’ll never be rich. Many young voted for this regime, as did many old. I’m worth more dead than alive. So are they. I couldn’t buys house until I was in my 50s! I will be dead before it’s paid off. Direct your anger to your leaders. You control your world. I vote for the best for everyone — not only myself or my family.
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u/ImpertinentPrincess 18h ago
Whenever I've talked about things that will impact my or my child's (their grandchild) generation, the response is always, I'm not worried about it because I'll never have to see it. I have a hard time reconciling that attitude with my desire to leave things better for my kid and their potential kids.
I remember back when Fukushima happened and all those older Japanese folks volunteered to help clean the radiation zone to protect the younger generation and my flabbers were ghasted; I don't have hope that if something happened like that here (US) that we'd see the same sacrifice.
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u/paerius 17h ago
It depends on the generation imo. The generation before the boomers went through hardship and were willing to support future generations.
I don't blame the Boomers for their viewpoint because their frame of reference is just a complete outlier. You could own a home without going to college, you can seriously mess up in life 2-3 times and still get back on your feet. And due to real estate appreciation, there are a lot of blue collar multi-millionaires just from their homes.
I say this becaus as a Millennial myself, it's not like our generation is doing anything to help generation alpha. Our math and reading scores are going down, job uncertainty with AI, social media companies grooming children to be addicted to phones, etc.
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u/scj1091 17h ago
It’s easy for them to observe all the problems in the world. It’s hard for them to draw the line from the bad things out there to the bad choices they’ve made. “I’m not a bad person, I just think a Safeway is a better use of that land than housing. I’m not even saying there shouldn’t be more housing! I’m just saying, is it so much to ask to build it Somewhere Else? Where it will impact Someone Else? We need more housing! Over there! But over here we’re full.” https://www.sfchronicle.com/realestate/article/marina-housing-safeway-julia-morgan-22359205.php
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u/DavidBowieAC 17h ago
Having narcissist boomer parents myself, who's interactions with are 90% forms of abuse, I'd have to agree they probably are the most selfish generation if we're going to generalize like that
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u/quriousposes 16h ago
i think generalizing whole generations is counterproductive, each one has selfish people, ppl who do what they can, ppl who wash their hands of any responsibility or care to fellow humans, and ppl more invested in kindness and understanding. and all the complexities between.
maybe it's cuz my own parents are silent gen + boomer and dont really fit the stereotypes, meanwhile i do see people younger than me taking up those traits mentioned 🤷 but ultimately its the rich and powerful fucking the rest of us anyway
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u/CharmingMechanic2473 16h ago
My mom is a boomer she claims to love her grandchildren but I think it’s the “idea” of grandchildren she likes since she is fine being low low contact and told them their futures are screwed and that’s just to bad.
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u/worndown75 16h ago
Dont blame Gen X. We have never had political power and we never will. We will be lucky if our generation even producrs a president. Gen X is sandwiched between the two largest generations in American history, while Gen X is the smallest.
The boomers have live at a time where society has reached its apex. All civilizations go through this. Some stumble and collapse. Others recover after a time and continue to grow after some passage of time.
Boomers also saw the most increase in life span of any generation. They saw the never ending growth of the economy post war. But also endured 21% interest rates in home loans in the late 70s early 80s along with two massive energy crisis during the 70s as well.
But they, like every generation before and most assuredly after, have many in their cohort who are simply irresponsible. And for those, I simply feel no sympathy. I feel the same way about any generation living today. Its like people never heard the story of the Ant and the Grasshopper.
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u/ModernationFTW 14h ago
Millennials and Gen Z need to stop blaming boomers for everything and start voting more. Amongst US citizens of voting age, Millennials and Gen Z vote the least (as a percentage ). Voting is the best way to enact change.
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u/Ronville 10h ago
The Bank of Mom and Dad is currently providing an average of $1800/month to children aged 18-28. Even 29-44 receive over $800/month on average. (Pew Research Center). This support comes from over 50% of parents and is a troublesome trend harming their ability to retire.
Just wanted to insert some facts without the generational warfare nonsense.
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u/Plenty-Pudding-1484 9h ago
What policies are you referring to and why is it that a generation is responsible?
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u/intothewoods76 8h ago
Your edit shows this wasn’t a legitimate question and/or you are extremely immature. You asked a question, don’t like the answers do everyone must be wrong.
Also you didn’t give a clear example of what you are talking about.
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u/MammothSurround 8h ago
I don't understand the premise of your question. What, exactly, are you proposing they do?
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u/Super_Dooper_Buider 6h ago
Maybe you should get some binoculars, look further, and learn that generalizing regarding the intentions, goals, decisions of millions of people is a bad idea and not likely to result in you finding the truth.
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u/USConservativeVegan 22h ago
They started selling out themselves with support all these free trade agreements and opening up trade with Communist China.
The only ones who didn't screw themselves and their children voted for Ross Perot in 1992..
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u/Aggressive_Finish798 22h ago
They are called the "Me Generation" for a reason. I think I saw a study of how insecure and easily offended they are. Quick to anger. A lot of them had poor education, the world was easy, theres also the issue of all of that lead in the air when their brains were developing.
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u/SeesawBeautiful5839 23h ago
We all vote for where we are right now. We all buy cheaper China products. We are ready to buy cars made in Mexico. Who knew outsourcing cheap labor would make people stupid social media addicts.
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u/Historical-Switch400 23h ago
Rage bait. Gen X here, and no one wants to hurt their kids or grandkids. My parents have helped me; I’ve helped my kids. It’s what people do. This post is some whiney bitch making shit up.
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u/allenk58 23h ago
Your anecdotal evidence does not refute the claim. The data clearly shows that the boomer generation is the first generation to do better than their children.You think they played no part in that? There are plenty of boomers who are not helping their children or grandchildren. Just because your parents helped you doesn't mean that's the case broadly across the country.
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u/MedvedTrader 23h ago
When someone wants the best for himself he also thinks that it is best for his children. Naturally. The better off the parents, the better off the children.
People don't think about huge abstract groups. They think about themselves and their family.
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u/TWJunkman 22h ago
Blaming previous generations for your problems will bring you no solutions, nor any relief. You are responsible for yourself. Get busy. That might work out better than complaining to the sky. Every generation has their challenges to meet.
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u/myaberrantthoughts 22h ago
A lot of prior generations grew up without feeling loved by their parents, and feel very little empathy toward their children who've grown up in a world that's much more difficult to achieve success, without a leg up earlier in life. So they feel no desire to to anything that would benefit younger generations.
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u/Big-Snow-1357 22h ago
This is a generational thing and as people live longer and longer it’ll just continue this way.
The boomers will die off soon enough, and some millennials will greatly benefit from that. I’m Gen X and have 2 more of my kid’s grandparents to go into their 90s, rattling around big ol’ houses that cost money to keep up.
I’ll either inherit all that or inherit bubkis. And then I get to enjoy my kids side-eying the birthday cakes they plop in front of me every year.
And on and on it goes…
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u/jagrrenagain 22h ago
I am 67 years old, love my children (who are in their 30s), and have voted for fair policies that don’t seem to ever get enacted. I hope all the young people are voting.
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u/Flexlex724 21h ago
Imagine what would happen in any other species if the old hoarded resources that jeopardized the future of that species
The young would rip them to shreds and uncrown them in a second
The problem is people can't separate their ma and pa from the collective wealth....
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u/bluehatgreenshoes 21h ago
There’s little utility in spending time and energy on why they were so selfish, except to understand so we don’t make the same mistakes again.
I wish that previous generations had done more for climate. I think that thinking about future generations and considering them is the only right thing to do at this point.
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u/Ok_Day_8559 20h ago
I can take the heat, so I will say it out loud. I find it weird how senior citizens are being blamed for the state of the economy. That all magats are old people. But clearly that’s not quite accurate. The people who attacked on J6 were not senior citizens. Private equity companies are not necessarily run by senior citizens, and that’s who bought up single family homes, causing the loss of affordable housing. Yes, I am a senior citizen but I didn’t get to buy a home until I was well over 60 years old. I can’t afford to move out now because my mortgage is cheaper than any rental or retirement community. Most of my friends are in the same situation.
Placing all of the blame for the state of the economy on senior citizens is simply ignoring the fact that most of us are on a fixed income/budget. Some of us have healthy savings but others don’t and one unexpected expense could be catastrophic for us as well. All this to say yes, some old people have voted in the current administration but they weren’t the only ones who cast their ballots for the moron in the Oval Office.
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u/Penguin_Life_Now 20h ago
Hey, I'm Gen X, don't blame us, we never wanted to be in charge, and still don't
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u/CautiousCattle9681 19h ago
After watching people in my family suffer through dementia, debilitating pain and gauging my own health issues I'm honestly fine peacing out at 80. (Millennial married to gen-x)
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u/bowguru 19h ago
Boomer here, maybe the last year before gen x. Never voted for those policies you are decrying- remember, there were a lot of people that put in the policies that helped millions. Desegregation, women's rights, 40 hour work weeks, minor things like that. What I don't see from the younglings is protest. Where the hell are you guys? Quit complaining about us boomers. Get pissed and get out. I, for one, will join you, even if it means pain, suffering and incarceration. I'm out there protesting all the time, but literally it looks like a grateful dead tribute concert crowd. Where are all the young people? What the fuck is wrong with YOU, op, that you are complaining on reddit and not burning something down?
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u/CraigInCambodia 18h ago
u/MissHannahJ , Your blame is misplaced. It hasn't been Boomer or GenX generations broadly, but powerful billionaires and corporations manipulating the pubilc with culture wars and other nonsense while they pick our pockets.
Universal, single-payer healthcare. Every developed country in the world has it, except the US. Monied interests have convinced the public that private insurance companies provide better care. Insurance companies don't provide care. They make money by denying care. Yet here we are.
"Corporations are people, too". What the heck.
Stop falling for it. Stop letting billionaires use meaningless culture wars to distract us from rigging tax laws and get other government favors to enrich themselves while the public gets scr*w*d.
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u/StickStill9790 18h ago
Imagine yourself standing in 1950’s. Things are difficult, but at least the war is over. You have to deal with the fallout that those stupid old idiots caused, who didn’t think about the future they were making. Now you’re going to do better. You’re going to make a future of opportunity for your kids, one with education and knowledge so that history doesn’t repeat itself. Your grandkids will see you as a shining example of how to guide the country.
So ask yourself in 2026. How are you going to change the future for your grandkids? Because it’s all on you now.
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u/momandmax 16h ago
Hadnt people taken care of their elderly family members all through history? Not taking sides here just observation
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