2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: A not-that-political friend's take on Bernie Sanders [View all]beerandjesus
(1,301 posts)Last edited Sat Oct 17, 2015, 12:34 PM - Edit history (1)
...there's some context around that from previous conversations we've had. I left out as much "context" as I could because I thought the "essay" as it were stood on its own. And this is my record collecting buddy from when I lived out there, so for what it's worth (which is basically nothing), I can attest to the fact that probably 70% of his record collection was cut by Boomers.
That said, I can defend my friend, but I can't (without lying) defend myself. The Boomer snark in that message was written for me, because I have gone on many tirades with him directed at the Boomers, more specifically, the Boomers in the Democratic party who, for my entire adult life, have been telling me and my generation (I was born in 1972) to sit down and shut up, because NOTHING is more important than defending the (admittedly good and important) accomplishments of the Boomers during the 1960s and early 70s. Since I've been old enough to vote, what I've been hearing is, let NAFTA slide, because we need a SCOTUS that will uphold Roe v. Wade. Let telecomm deregulation and Glass-Steagall repeal slide, because we need to make sure soldiers don't get kicked out of the military just for being gay. Your generation took down LBJ, who did far more for America than we could ever dream of Hillary doing, over Vietnam, but my generation is supposed to forget about the vote on the Iraq War--MY generation's Vietnam--because it's now uncomfortable for the Democrats who voted for it (who, in fact, are mostly Boomers who should have known better). The Boomer bashing in the OP--and in any posts of mine you may come across, although I swear I try not to go there--isn't directed at Boomers per se, it's directed at the collective sanctimony of a generation that is once again asking my generation and the Millennials to put our own aspirations aside, because they really want to see a woman president, no matter how lousy a Democrat she may be.
So that's where that bit of the essay comes from; and please believe me when I say that if all Boomers were like you, that bit never would have been in there! I am VERY happy to have you on our side.... and I, for one, still say Right On, haha!
Thanks for taking the time to read all this--and if you resent my stance a bit, I can't say I blame you, but I hope you'll understand. I think if you didn't at least already have an inkling, you wouldn't be supporting Bernie!