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Quote of the Day: G.K. Chesterton on Generations
“I believe what really happens in history is this: the old man is always wrong; and the young people are always wrong about what is wrong with him. The practical form it takes is this: that, while the old man may stand by some stupid custom, the young man always attacks it with some theory that turns out to be equally stupid.”
– G.K. Chesterton, Illustrated London News, June 3, 1922
A constant in electoral politics is pitting the generations against each other. Many Boomers thought the Greatest Generation was too staid and traditional. Gen Xers found Boomers self-indulgent and profligate. Since Generation X is famously a forgotten generation, Millennials content themselves with bashing the Boomers as well.
The cohort that endured the Great Depression and won the Second World War understandably focused on duty, resolve, and all those other outdated notions of right and wrong. Boomers reacted with untrammeled idealism which worked in some respects (racial equality) and failed miserably in many others (drugs, lack of bathing).
Being a member of Gen X, I must say we’ve done nothing wrong, at least not on the big stage, since we haven’t yet had the chance to lead. (Okay, sorry about the grunge era.) As for Millennials, they’re still finding their way and likely to skip us middle-agers on their road to the White House.
But to correct the excesses of the past, one has to focus on all the good they did, then tweak around the edges. To declare the present Year Zero and toss out everything that came before is far more disastrous than anything an older generation came up with.
One more relevant quote from the great man:
Published in General“Men invent new ideals because they dare not attempt old ideals. They look forward with enthusiasm, because they are afraid to look back.”
– G.K. Chesterton, What’s Wrong With The World
The greatest error of the Boomers was that they failed to instill the lessons of their parents on their children. Freedom is not free. Prosperity takes a lot of work and sacrifice. Capitalism is the source of prosperity and they should be thankful every day for their God-given blessings. The USA is the greatest idea for a country that was ever conceived and everyone must defend and promote the ideals of liberty and equal justice for all.
“Since Generation X is famously a forgotten generation…”
No one blames us for anything, because no one remembers we were ever here.
Yay?
While true on the surface, members of the previous “Greatest Generation” and their 1900’s Progressive parents set forth the seeds of destruction. In the 1930’s, Washington DC was was run by Communists and Leftist sympathizers, and the Elites followed along. As previously discussed, many Baby Boomers were raised by their parents following the book Baby and Child Care (1946) by Dr. Benjamin Spock:
For us Boomers who were not raised by following Dr. Spock, we received the correct lessons.
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The “Greatest Generation” is by far the most responsible for today’s problems. They both created the government programs that are now threatening to ruin us financially and failed to properly raise their SOB children known as Boomers. They get high praise for fighting the Nazis, but half of them were Nazis. You don’t get credit for cleaning up the mess you made. Now conveniently they are dying off to further avoid responsibility for their mess.
What G. K. Chesterton fails to acknowledge is that the real problem is people. People are what is wrong with the world and it has ever been thus (name one problem that people aren’t responsible for). We need to get rid of people, and replace them with cold, logical, machines.
I believe Chesterton also coined the phrase “chronological snobbery.” It’s always been around (Chesterton was writing in the late 19th, early 20th century), but it really gained steam when the Boomers declared “never trust anyone over 30.” If it makes the younger age cohorts feel any better, now that Boomers are the disrespected elders, we’re reaping that whirlwind.
I just wanna live inside sometimes
Don’t wanna have to beg you to subscribe
Are you a man before your father dies?
“But what’s a man these days?” I hear you cry
And are we raising up our children right?
Is my career gonna reignite?
See all the virtue signalers tonight
I want that bandwagon to pass me by
Well, I’ve been scratching around in the dirt
Looking for meaning in the cold, cold earth
To gather in what’s left of your self-worth
Cause only love is what survives of us
Cause I hold onto you
And you hold onto me
A tiny victory in the Age of Anxiety
~Jamie Cullum
Well… maybe not that machine thing, Mr. Spock. Let’s not get hasty.
I’ve often wondered if the best of us died in World War II. It would explain a lot of what transpired afterward.
When I was in 8th grade a friend sold me a poster with a picture of Dr. Spock slapping a kid.
Now wait. I yelled at my kids and they all turned out as normal as their dad. Oops…
Um. Didn’t we have the Speaker of the House?
I realize President Obama would be on the edge of either the tail end of the boomers or the leading edge of Gen X.
So I might dispute “nothing”. (But I’m just an aging Gen Xer so get off of my lawn.)
Oh and I think that whatever the generation that comes after the Millennials will also rail against the Boomers. The Boomers will not be gone until people stop listening to Frank Sinatra at Christmas. A Pyrrhic victory, I fear.