The Shadow of the Boom...

Originally from 03/30/09


The Shadow of the Boom.

We are still living in the shadow of the Baby Boom, and the generation of Boomers.  Rapidly approaching 30, I hover somewhere on the cusp between Generation X, and Gen Y.  At one point we were called the MTV generation; back when it was actually relevant because MTV played music, and it was the soundtrack of our shared youth.  We call ourselves ‘young’, partly because we are facing (and trying to deny) the inevitable progression of years, and partly because we will always be perceived as ‘young’uns’  by the Boomers who still are the largest segment of the population.  But part of it is also because our situation will not let us grow into full adulthood.  By the time they had reached our age, the baby boomers had already created a revolution (of sorts), settled into careers, started families and homes, and were working on building the ‘American Dream’.  (Which during the Regan era meant becoming as upwardly mobile as possible.)  And here we are, having been raised on this ideal, having grown up being told ‘Chase your dreams – anything is possible’; to finding that it is taking everything we have just to keep pace on the treadmill our society has become.   Many of us are still dependant on our parents, not because we wish to be, but because the cost of living has become much higher than our earning potential.  When we find work, (or if we find it,) the 30-40k a year we are offered is hopefully enough to pay for food, rent, and utilities, and if we are lucky, it will cover either the Student Loan payment or the Credit Card bill, but never both.  Many of us were told in our youth ‘Go to University, it is the doorway to a brighter future’; only to find that now we have become servants of the debt we used to pay tuition – and the well paying jobs that a degree was meant to guarantee have never materialized.   It has become a vicious cycle of debt, even without considering the possible calamities of being out of work, getting sick and subsequent medical expenses, getting into an accident, or creating offspring of our own. Most of us cannot even dream of owning our own homes at this point, short of winning the lottery, becoming a TV star, developing the next energy drink, or something equally as far fetched.  Oh, sure, we can get a loan for a house if we spiral deeper into the debt vortex, becoming indentured servants for the rest of our lives; but that is not what we were promised, nor is it something we should tolerate.

We want to work for our own future, the future of this country, and the future of the planet. 

The children of what was the ‘richest nation on the planet’ have now become reduced to the level of Serfs…. Having to give up any ideals and creativity of their own to spend all of their efforts in simply trying to maintain food and shelter…ever fearful that the ‘creditors’ of their servitude will take away what little they have.

The Boomers created the ‘use now, pay later’ mentality and built a society upon it.  They never stopped to think how things could be paid back once all of the resources were used.    

Is it any wonder many feel that their parents are the only place they can turn when the going gets tough?

I studied hard to earn a Master’s degree; hoping that I could use it to benefit society.  Now, I have a low-level management job in an unrelated field, but still a ‘good job’ by the standards of today’s economy.  Even living as frugally as possible, it is not quite enough to cover rent, food, and utilities for my wife and I – I certainly cannot afford medical insurance for her, nor any expenses for children should they come along.  Yet the idea of waiting to start a family until we are in our 40’s is very disheartening.   This society has reached a place where most of its members with the potential to create are struggling just to prevent themselves from falling deeper into a hole.  The thought of actually building something for the future has become no more than a pipe dream in our generation’s eyes.  Not because they do not want to build and give back to this country, but because we are given no choice.

The News Today...

originally from 03/06/09

The news today changed. The MSM has begun to attack the man that the built as a beacon of Hope - Barak Obama. He earned my respect today - he is being attacked for the very reasons that progressives backed his campaign in the first place - he is trying to introduce change that will alter the way many aspects of this society work.  This goes against the majority opinion - the defense mechanism of the human mind is to resist change. Conservatives live solely in this defense mechanism; but change is as inevitable as time itself. There are two approaches to take in regards to change: Fight it, or shape it. the collective media (and many on the 'blue side' of the issues) professed themselves in favor of some degree of proactive change - but real change on a fundamental scale truly upsets their psyche.

Mr. Obama is only suggesting a level of reform that is at the very least necessary (and perhaps not radical enough) to make a system as flawed as the current one at least operable for the foreseeable future.
I support Barack now more than ever, because I see him standing up for principles even when it is no longer possible to please the majority.  What the vast majority of politicians, pundits, social commentators, and Americans in general must realize is that the rules of the game have changed.  If we continue to operate in this fashion, the monetary exchange system will collapse completely, as we are only now beginning to see the edges of it crumble. It is not of the benefit of anyone to continue 'business as usual', because at this rate there will soon be no economy to conduct business in. What those w ho are rich must realize is that to be of privilege is meaningless if culture collapses. History does not judge societies by how wealthy its most affluent members are. Rather, it passes judgment on how it treats its people; how many are allowed to starve; if the sick are treated well or left to die in the street.... the level of education of its citizen, and the growth of scientific knowledge.... the ability to pursue the arts, and develop a rich culture.  These are what improve the quality of living in a society for all of its inhabitants.  Egalitarianism is the basis of the documents the Framers founded this country on.  That all should have the opportunities for education; that none who are willing to work should go without basic necessities, or treatment for their illnesses.  But to eliminate the obstacle to a truly fair society, we must get rid of the indentured servitude we call a debt-based economy (which proponents call a 'credit-based' economy); which forces people to constantly owe for  what they are using.  All property at that point is property of the banks, and no one is truly free to do with their things as they see fit.  We are constantly working to pay off what we are already using, rather than building value on what we own.  In fact, Mr. Obama realizes that all of the money that is going to be used in these programs is debt; which doesn't have any real value being no longer backed by Gold, or any other resource, and as such we can pull as much out of the air as we wish, if it will solve some of the major problems and inequities in the United States.   Every dollar printed in the US does not belong to the American Government, but is rather a notice of debt to the Federal Reserve, a private bank.... If Barack is as smart as some think he is; he will use this imaginary money to pay off the problems that the Regan-era economic strategies have created, before calling the debt void, and nationalizing the currency.
                  People are now starting to blame him for the economy, even though he has been in office less than two months, and we are watching the collapse of decades worth of corruption.  Most people when they start a new job don't even know where the coffee machine is for the first two months; and the pundits are expecting him to have fixed a system that has been destroying itself for over 20 years.
                 Give the guy a break... it took us a while to get into this mess, and it will take a while to get out.  Do what you can for yourself to generate value; and let the man get on with his work.  Don't nit pick unless you have better ideas as to how to fix the country... Which Rush does not... he just wishes for a return to the bigoted America of the 30s (complete with depression - more people for him to look down on); but change is inevitable... and the harder you fight it, the more it will slap you around.