| The Lost Generation Gap
Once upon a time, there was a generation gap. Let’s see now. What did it consist of? There was a war problem, us beating up on a small country. American children took to the streets in protest while American parents sat patriotically in front of their TVs. Remember non-violence? Pacifism? There was even once a universally recognized peace symbol. And there was a drug problem. American children smoked and ingested various chemicals. American parents harumphed and stuck to booze, nicotine, and caffeine. Then there was sex. "Free" vs. non-free, more or less. The plastic Hollywood of the 50s was abandoned for a SouCal version of the gritty, thoughtful realism in the movies of Italy, France, and Sweden. And of course the environment. Hippies et al. went back to nature. Mom and Pop continued to cruise in their Buick Roadmasters and monster station wagons. You see where I’m going with this: The generation gap has disappeared. The boomers have betrayed their youthful ideals with an unexamined abandon equal to that of any earlier generation and have embraced millennial versions of their parents' behavior. Consider: How many wars and warlets have our (mostly) Republican leaders led us into in the last two decades? One loses count. Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, Somalia, Iraq… and the biggie, Kuwait. And how many times have the streets been filled with protesters? On the drug and chemical front, we now have a smoke-free America, almost. The level of social intolerance of nicotine now approaches that of the 60s toward marijuana. (In a tiny bit of progress, marijuana possession is mostly a misdemeanor.) Involvement with any other mind-altering chemical at almost any level from production to consumption can land you in jail for a good long time. And of course booze continues to reign as the supreme behavioral drug of choice. Caffeine now comes in pricey colors and flavors. Daddy’s Roadmaster is long gone, replaced—and then some—by hordes of SUV’s and pickups. Not only are they gas-guzzlers, they are subject to much less stringent safety and environmental laws than are cars. Because they are trucks, and as trucks they are important for the economic functioning of the society. And the beetle re-appears in an (expensive) cartoon riff on the original, with non-optional flower-power dashboard vase. A few assassinations, some violent deaths, and a lot of demonstrations did lead to basic changes in civil rights laws a long time ago. Enough is enough, say the soccer moms and dads now, so it’s away with affirmative action. And the less said in public of what gays and lesbians do in private, the better. Aging hippies send their children to movies that glorify violence. Star Wars. Dirty Harry. Etc. The same children come home from the movies and play Quake until the wee hours with their like-minded fellows on the net around the world. Some fail to get the oh-so-subtle irony of Quake and change "Columbine" from a beautiful flower to an ugly word. Yuppie spawn: Thy name is intolerance. Thy behavior is hypocrisy. From the terrible seeds you have sowed in your children, you will reap the wind. |
