Generational shifts

[Darkimbolc]

On another thread, I posted a bit of a paragraph about the fact that Obama represents a shift in the paradigm of the world - specifically in the realm of the Generation in control.

It'll be nice to finally have a president that is not a Boomer. We finally have an executive who will not always be haunted by the ghosts of Vietnam and WW2, both of which are, to today's generations, ancient history holding the same esteem and page lengths within the history textbooks as the battle of Thermopile - all important moments now gone. Gone as well is the specter of the Cold War with it's clandestine operations of pragmatism, 'an enemy of my enemy is my friend' philosophies and the innumerable frankenstein-ish American-funded dictators who have all to often come back to haunt us. While Russia is by no means an ally, it is not the demonized horror of yesteryear, simply a country going through the same cultural shifts, of which we too are at the threshold. The world has changed before our eyes and we must change, evolve and adapt. The new vistas which stand before us require a new vision to see clearly. We now have a chance for a fresh start - a leader no longer bound by old traditions, outdated ideas of the world and shadows of the past, but someone who can look at the world with fresh eyes and new ideas. Like it or not, it is a fact that the old world and structures, those of the Greatest Generation and the Baby-Boomers, are crumbling into dust (look no further than the financial system for an example). In that there will be much pain in the transition, but also many an opportunity. We now have an executive who can break us out of the mold we have been beholden to for entirely too long. The paradigms are shifting and one need look no further than the oval office for evidence of that.

I'm curious of what other people here think of the implications and effects this may have.

[LizB]

Thought crossed my head that with the defeat of McCain the WW2 generation is out of the picture, and instantly corrected myself surprised at my error. Wrong war. Why does McCain seem so WW2 to me?

But Vietnam is far from gone, most people who fought in that war are in their 50s. The early Boomers are in their early 60s. We can easily have a Boomer/Vietnam war president after Obama.

And Obama's generation is not in control in any sense of no more Boomers, a lot of the advisers he has recruited are Boomers. I hope there is some effect in not dwelling on the Vietnam war social divisiveness, but it won't be a sudden wholesale change.

[dharma]

It'll be nice to finally have a president that is not a Boomer.

Perhaps so—when it happens. Birthdates for the Baby Boom generation spanned 1946-1964. Barack was born in 1961.

We finally have an executive who will not always be haunted by the ghosts of Vietnam and WW2, both of which are, to today's generations, ancient history holding the same esteem and page lengths within the history textbooks as the battle of Thermopile

This I doubt, though I was myself unaware there was a battle over an electronic subcomponent. The Battle of Thermopylae, on the other hand, is a good deal more remote and less currently relevant than the other two, not that one would expect an ill-educated and intellectually incurious Gen Xer like the author of this piece to know their significance, or the difference.

While Russia is by no means an ally, it is not the demonized horror of yesteryear, simply a country going through the same cultural shifts, of which we too are at the threshold.

Wow—and here I thought the “battle of Thermopile” exhibited some pretty hard-core ignorance. Tell me, please, what “cultural shifts” in the US have even the faintest similarity to those in that benighted totalitarian dystopia? Bizarre.

The new vistas which stand before us require a new vision to see clearly.

*laughing* The most baby-boomerish thing I’ve heard in months, though the boomers were saying it forty years ago.

Hint: there’s nothing new under the sun. For extra credit, oh student of a new reality, who said that, and when?

Like it or not, it is a fact that the old world and structures, those of the Greatest Generation and the Baby-Boomers, are crumbling into dust

Most of them look awfully damn solid to me, though I admit I’m not looking at them with “new vision”. Maybe a generation that is still frequently living with its parents has more time to examine them closely.

The paradigms are shifting and one need look no further than the oval office for evidence of that.

Yes, shifting back to 1932. How very modern. But that was a long time ago, so of course it’s ancient history, and we don’t care much for history, do we?

[usda]

Darkimbolc...I appericate your thoughts...being born in 1944, I am something of the old guard and not quiet the boomer generation which for one reason or another I have never identified with.
An old friend died recently at 89. He was a German solider captured in No Africa and later came to live in America...I could well identify with him, his trials and tribulations...his son my age...I couldn't relate to him at all. Maybe it is in the mind set or tenor of soul.
At any rate...we certainly are in a new time...and I am glad of it and look forward to it's challenges whether I can live up to them or not.

[A.T. Hagan]

It's Thermopylae.

Obama is no more a Boomer than I am, no matter how they try to define it. So far as the practical realities of it are concerned the Boomer generation ended in 1960.

But the Boomers are by no means out of power. Not by any means. Most of the upper echelons of the Obama adminstration will be boomers as will most of Congress and the Supreme Court is all Boomers or the previous generation to that one.

.....Alan.

[Darkimbolc]

It's Thermopylae.

I used the Anglicized version of the name, rather than the Greek. Sue me. :P

Obama is no more a Boomer than I am, no matter how they try to define it. So far as the practical realities of it are concerned the Boomer generation ended in 1960.

Agreed. I think most - save for those with their own axes to grind - can agree that being part of a generation is more than just when you were born - it is a meme, a quality, a way of thinking.

But the Boomers are by no means out of power. Not by any means. Most of the upper echelons of the Obama adminstration will be boomers as will most of Congress and the Supreme Court is all Boomers or the previous generation to that one.

My suggestion was never that the generation shift was completed. It was simply that the shift has begun (and in a rather grand fashion, as these things are want to do).

[sandyd]

When the moon is in the Seventh House
And Jupiter aligns with Mars
Then peace will guide the planets
And love will steer the stars

This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius
The Age of Aquarius
Aquarius! Aquarius!

Harmony and understanding
Sympathy and trust abounding
No more falsehoods or derisions
Golden living dreams of visions
Mystic crystal revelation
And the mind's true liberation
Aquarius! Aquarius!

When the moon is in the Seventh House
And Jupiter aligns with Mars
Then peace will guide the planets
And love will steer the stars

This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius
The Age of Aquarius
Aquarius! Aquarius!

Harmony and understanding
Sympathy and trust abounding
No more falsehoods or derisions
Golden living dreams of visions
Mystic crystal revelation
And the mind's true liberation
Aquarius! Aquarius!

[Fartacus]

I heard some talking head on election night fascinating himself over the thought that the Vietnam Vets were passed over for the presidency. 3 Vietnam vets have run in the last 3 elections and all 3 were defeated.


I tested my memory and I don't recall any Korean War vets as presidents, either.

[Curious]

Originally Posted by Fartacus

I heard some talking head on election night fascinating himself over the thought that the Vietnam Vets were passed over for the presidency. 3 Vietnam vets have run in the last 3 elections and all 3 were defeated.

I tested my memory and I don't recall any Korean War vets as presidents, either.

Umm... I never thought about it that way, but it is true. Those who actually served IN Vietnam never made it to the Presidency. Ditto Korea.

Maybe it has something to do with the mixed feelings that people have about a military conflict that does not result in a clear win and that taint ends up on the body of those who physically served. If that is the case then nobody who has served in Iraq II or Afghanistan will be President either.

Curious

[Sysiphus]

It does not matter to me which generation the President is from. More important is the President's sense of history and our place within it, and the ability to learn from history. Also, not just the ability to appoint the right people as advisors, but the judgment to know which ones to listen to, which ones to ignore, and when to ignore all of them. Finally, resilience and the ability to learn from mistakes.

Those who actually served IN Vietnam never made it to the Presidency. Ditto Korea.

That is odd I agree. Carter served during the Korean War, although I am not sure he was technically in the war.

[usda]

This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius

Actually the age of Aquarius is easy to figure...that is when the spring equinox will be in the Water Bearer...ie Aquarius...since the cosmic plane moves retrograde, that means the spring equinox will be in February about 2430 AD, whereas now it is March 22ned I believe.

Rudolph Steiner, the Austrian Clairvoyant and educator said the 'rays from the cosmic center (the solar system is constantly moving in the Milky Way) will be most positive for mankind then.

I guess we have been swinging through (as a solar system) some back alleys of late. But arriving at Aquarius will be a true home coming for human souls on earth then...

[dyrt]

I have been thinking a lot about this in the last two days. I am in the very center of the boomer bell curve and at the peak of the birthdays.

Seems to me that Obama's election is a triumph of the left leaning boomers. A lot of the big money for his campaign came from boomers. Obama's mentors, preacher and neighborhood pals are boomers. Obama may be of another generation but his politics as revealed during the campaign are very familiar. Maybe he will govern differently in the next two years and we can then claim a generational change but not yet. Right now, it is easy for me to imagine Obama barefoot in an afro and tie-dye.

The liberal revolutionary explosion of the 60's was a reaction to the conservative era after WWII. The excesses of the 60's and 70's lead to a conservative revolution of Reagan and Gingrich. The Clinton's stole a lot of the conservative politics but it was boy Bush that really got the liberal counter reaction on a roll while pretending to be a conservative. And now we are back to the early 70's again.

[Renegade]

Originally Posted by dyrt

And now we are back to the early 70's again.

I don't think I could handle them at this age....they were hard enough on the ole bod back then....

[dyrt]

You know the saying:

Old men start the wars, young men fight them. In this case we are talking political shifts. The old men mentor and fund the revolution. Or:

Another metaphor might be that of the father that failed in his dream to be a football star so pushes his kid to finish the job.

[BirdGuano]

Originally Posted by Renegade

I don't think I could handle them at this age....they were hard enough on the ole bod back then....

But now we have IV fluids and Cialis.