The Generation

“The generation that sat in lines for gasoline at the pump in their 20s and 30s was the same that produced and consumed SUVs and pickup trucks as consumer vehicles to be used in daily commutes.

The generation that was drafted into a ludicrous war in Vietnam that exemplified everything that was wrong with American military policy was the same that dropped our men and women into Iraq, continuing a ham-fisted policy of military might over diplomatic finesse.

The generation that watched the Savings and Loans scandals unfold was the same that produced the economic atmosphere that let our banks produce an unhealthy economy, a housing bubble, and this current recession. The generation that saw McCain’s connections to Charles Keating during those scandals was the same that nominated him for President in 2008, and nearly did so in 2000.

They call us “lazy”, but they are the first generation in a long time to essentially live it up while they drank greedily from their children’s futures. Our generation is the first in over 100 years to have a standard of living lower than that of our parents. The first to earn less on average in inflation-adjusted dollars than our parents.

So yeah. I love my Baby Boomer parents, but as a generation, they’ve definitely not done so well by America. In the “generational cock-measuring contest,” they win. They’ve definitely dicked up America more than any other.”

- Explosion via Mefi (via claytoncubitt)