The Baby Boomers ruined America. That sounds like a hyperbolic claim, but it’s one way to state what I found as I tried to solve a riddle. American society is going through a strange set of shifts: Even as cultural values are in rapid flux, political institutions seem frozen in time. The average U.S. state constitution is more than 100 years old. We are in the third-longest period without a constitutional amendment in American history: The longest such period ended in the Civil War. So what’s to blame for this institutional aging?
One possibility is simply that Americans got older. The average American was 32 years old in 2000, and 37 in 2018. The retiree share of the population is booming, while birth rates are plummeting. When a society gets older, its politics change. Older voters have different interests than younger voters: Cuts to retiree-focused benefits are scarier, while long-term problems such as excessive student debt, climate change, and low birth rates are more easily ignored.
But it’s not just aging. In a variety of different areas, the Baby Boom generation created, advanced, or preserved policies that made American institutions less dynamic. In a recent report for the American Enterprise Institute, I looked at issues including housing, work rules, higher education, law enforcement, and public budgeting, and found a consistent pattern: The political ascendancy of the Boomers brought with it tightening control and stricter regulation, making it harder to succeed in America. This lack of dynamism largely hasn’t hurt Boomers, but the mistakes of the past are fast becoming a crisis for younger Americans.


Gaia on Mon, 24th Jun 2019 5:28 pm
America has only one enemy- itself.
makati1 on Mon, 24th Jun 2019 5:35 pm
It’s ALL about $$$. Blame whom you want, but you are part of the problem if you live in the Western world of “for profit” Capitalism. Greed is the religion. Plundering is the national pastime. “Blame Others!” is the state motto.
What is happening now in Western countries, especially the US, is only blow-back from past decisions and a greedy lifestyle. It is only going to get worse. No one, not even the Trumpet can change that. So be it. Well deserved!
BTW: That hopey/feely bullshit at the end is a waste of words. Nothing will change until change is forced by the collapse of everything supporting BAU. By then it will be too late. Move down the consumption ladder now. Ease the fall.
makati1 on Mon, 24th Jun 2019 5:41 pm
Correct Gaia. It is committing suicide one day/tweet at a time. Trump is isolating it from the rest of the world. Not a good thing for a country that cannot produce its needs without foreign resources. It is so in debt that it will never recover. It is a police state with a corporate dictatorship. Everything is disintegrating: government, education, morals, etc. Nothing positive about America these days.
Davy on Mon, 24th Jun 2019 6:19 pm
Boomers could have saved the world but didn’t is a better discussion. We had a chance in the 70’s and especially the late 80’s when the USSR was unraveling. There was a peace dividend that could have been capitalized on. Boomers were in their prime then instead they chose greed over need, right makato!
makati1 on Mon, 24th Jun 2019 6:30 pm
Right Davy, except, I was pre-Boomer. Boomers were fed the “American Dream” by the capitalists. So maybe capitalism should be blamed? After all, it is the invention of the West to make it possible to live well on other’s sweat. Think Wall Street.
Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 9:38 am
I’m a Boomer makato, and what I should have said is us Boomers could have saved America, but we chose greed over need. Sorry for the confusion.
Sissyfuss on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 9:58 am
The Greatest Generation begat the Boomers who were born into a nation that was truly great but not for long. The material wealth at the time was of such abundance never seen before in the ascent of Man. Boomers are conditioned to expect a life of luxury and plenty. They are not coping with the descent of Man successfully and cannot. Their brains are wired to expect growth and plenitude everlastingly. I do believe that many of the difficulties promulgated in the last 50 years are do to the Boomers greed and entitlement. But if the Boomers ruined America then the Greatest Generation ruined the Boomers with an easy, material surfeit upbringing.
Duncan Idaho on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 10:15 am
We have 7.7 billion people on a planet with a collapsing ecosystem.
No amount of shallow analysis is going to get anyone out of this mess.
It was a interesting 200,000 years.
jedrider on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 10:19 am
It’s ironic that the one voice that would help the newer generations vs the older generation is Bernie Sanders.
Shortend on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 10:29 am
Can’t group boomers as one….sorry… there was a segment that lived a much saner life and the other segment just took over from the BAU folks. Regardless, blame as you want…as they say blame is for little children and God.
joe on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 10:39 am
Oh, I get it, Blacks can’t blame whites directly anymore, since there WAS a black potus and he did sweet f-all to change a thing for blacks, so liberals will blame the generation that came before for a man shooting another man or forcing a kid to sell/take drugs because it’s harder to and more socially awkward to live by your sweat or sell coffee. There is merit in the idea that licences are a barrier to entry into the workforce, then simply the answer is to get a licence, go sit that course and think ahead, if you choose to commit that felony, then that might have consequences for your life. Thats not whites fault, its not a boomers fault. Poor people lives are made more miserable by other poor people, Warren Buffett doesn’t roam the streets looking for poor people to rob from, its other poor people. When one person looks at another person and sees a target rather than a brother in the struggle then that is not the fault of boomers. If you choose to extort, steal, rob, deal and/or kill then that is ur problem, not societys. Socialists will never learn that because the type of person to write the above article sees that those who have more are the enemies of those who have less and wish to be the champions of the poor. Blacks have allowed liberals to lead them since MLK was shot. How far has it gotten them?
Cloggie on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 11:01 am
“Boomers Ruined America”
The predictable verdict from a scribe by the name of Lyman Stone.
The truth is that America was ruined by HIS tribe:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321318694_Jewish_Involvement_in_Shaping_US_Immigration_Policy
jedrider on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 11:27 am
I’m sorry. You guys are looking for BLAME. I prefer to see SOLUTIONS.
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 11:53 am
“Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 9:38 am I’m a Boomer makato, and what I should have said is us Boomers could have saved America, but we chose greed over need. Sorry for the confusion.”
Juanpee, makato’s age group could have save the world at least from a quicker collapse but that is not the case with our generation. BTW, I am not considered a boomer.
Cloggie on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 12:47 pm
Not only America is ruined…
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7176953/UK-split-apart-Boris-Johnson-Prime-Minister-warns-GORDON-BROWN.html
“UK could split apart if Boris Johnson becomes Prime Minister, warns GORDON BROWN”
Note that Gordon Brown, hands down the least inspiring UK PM in a century, is a Scott himself , just like the Bliar (the latter who knows to hide that very well).
Note that Scotland is still an amazing 98% white.
Who is running that country anyway, Alistair MacHitler?!
Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 1:00 pm
Not only America is ruined…
“The Slow Return Of Eurosclerosis”
https://tinyurl.com/y2l6xqu4 camelot portfolios
“According to the OICA, automobile production in Germany fell 9.3% in 2018, year-over-year. In our view, the prospects for Europe’s leading economy are ominous given that the auto industry is linked to almost 8%% of German GDP…Optimists could point to low unemployment in Germany, which hovers near 5%, according to the OECD. But low unemployment data could be misleading because German companies can be reluctant to lay off workers…The sluggish GDP data in Europe is supported by poor industrial production, which has been declining in Italy, the UK, France and Germany since late 2017. In sum, the four leading European economies appear to be simultaneously entering a state of economic distress.”
“We believe that the current downcycle in Europe is a harbinger of something much bigger: a secular economic decline in Europe driven by lackluster performance by Germany due to a series of poor policy decisions and even outright policy failures…Estimated annual subsidies of nearly 15 to 40 billion Euros, according to Clean Energy Wire, may be required to implement this policy failure. While industrial users of electricity have their consumption subsidized, it may not be enough to fully offset the pincreases wrought by the replacement of nuclear power by more expensive alternatives, renewables in particular…The unreliability of renewables has meant that an equal capacity of conventional coal and gas power plants had to be built, effectively doubling the amount of capital needed to produce a given amount of electricity and boosting electricity costs…The variability of energy production by renewables poses serious challenges to the operators of the electricity grid. Widespread blackouts can be avoided only by shutting off electricity to power users such as aluminum furnaces or glass manufacturers. 78 such mini-blackouts occurred last year.”
“Since Merkel’s accession to power in 2005, tax revenue has increased by 78%, yet many core government activities suffer from acute underfunding. The army’s desolate condition has been well documented elsewhere…Spending categories with the largest increases are personnel and material costs. So ever more bureaucrats need ever more offices…she wholeheartedly allowed Social Democratic ministers to implement numerous expensive programs, the costs of which have saddled taxpayers with enormous unfunded liabilities.”
“After a decade of ultra-low interest rates, the German economy that helped to keep Europe going is not only slowing but may be in a much more precarious position than before the financial crisis. Therefore, the real risk today is not just a cyclical recession, but a prolonged downturn. Overcoming a decade of significant policy errors is not going to be achieved during the normal duration of a recession, much less so if you also need to overcome a decade of misinvestment due to low interest rates and onerous tax policies.”
“As a consequence, we believe that Europe will return to a state of Eurosclerosis in the decade of 2020, triggered by the inability of Germany to continue to act as the growth engine for the continent. Continued problems in the European periphery from Italy to Greece are likely to add to the downward economic pressure.”
george on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 1:22 pm
Another limo liberal selling communist horse manure with his keyboard.
Anonymouse on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 1:31 pm
Your a booming nutcase excetionalturd, and ‘you’, along with your fellow wetards, have indeed ruined the world with your wars, your greed and your unbelievable arrogance. Just you like ‘you’ have ruined this discussion area. See how that works?
Now why dont you go and cut and paste some nonsense from, I dont know, say , ZeroIQ, or maybe CNN or something like that? And Dont forget to those tinyUrls, dumbass.
Cloggie on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 1:33 pm
“The Slow Return Of Eurosclerosis”
Typical American 1-% attitude to equate the ruining of a country with an economic downturn, rather than the almost irreversible demographic shift, that truly ruins a country.
The dollar ueber alles!
Anonymouse on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 1:34 pm
‘george’ that is no way to talk about Delusional Davy. He deals almost exclusively with goat manure. Horses are not really this thing.
Anonymouse on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 2:04 pm
Foroget to mention, In case it wasnt obvious, ‘george’ > CloggJude.
More Davy Identity theft on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 2:11 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 11:53 am
Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 2:19 pm
Oops, sorry everyone. Wrong link again.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-24/slow-return-eurosclerosis
Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 2:40 pm
“BTW, I am not considered a boomer.”
I am so a boomer ‘JuanP’.
“The Baby Boom generation is most often defined as those individuals born between 1946 and 1964.”
https://tinyurl.com/ok6x4a9
LIAR!!
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 6:44 pm
“Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 2:40 pm
“BTW, I am not considered a boomer.” I am so a boomer ‘JuanP’. “The Baby Boom generation is most often defined as those individuals born between 1946 and 1964.”
https://tinyurl.com/ok6x4a9 LIAR!!
JuanP, do you have documentation for my age? If not go fuck yourself liar and stalker.
makati1 on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 6:52 pm
It’s exciting, watching the Trumpet isolate the US one arrogant tweet at a time. Trump is the typical extreme narcissist. It is ALWAYS about Trump, not the US. He is isolating the US from the rest of the world, except maybe, psycho Canada which has its head so far up the US ass that it cannot ever get free.
Just reading the headlines today proves that the collapse of America is continuing. Eventually, Trump is going to do something stupid and start a real war. Russia, China and Iran are preparing. Russian military ships are back in Cuba. Russian military planes are back in Venezuela. Iran is on alert. China is arming the islands. So many fuses waiting for the spark. I hope you are prepared. This one will not be confined to the ME. It will come home to America.
I’m glad to be thousands of miles from the ME and the US, in the cheap seats, watching the show.
Duncan Idaho on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 7:27 pm
Trump is going to do something stupid and start a real war.
The Fat Boy will blunder under his stupidity, but the generals fully know they will get their ass kicked if they proceed.
More Davy Identity Theft on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 7:28 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 6:44 pm
Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 7:31 pm
Oops, sorry for losing my shit again everyone.
I’ve got real emotionally insecure temper problems. I can’t help myself.
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:03 pm
“Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 7:31 pm Oops, sorry for losing my shit again everyone. I’ve got real emotionally insecure temper problems. I can’t help myself.”
Juanpee, can’t you deliver some material more exciting. Your “oops” shit is old and boring. You are running out of steam. It is nice to know you have spent a year making a fool of yourself with nothing to show for it but ridicule.
More Davy Identity Theft on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:06 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:03 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:19 pm
More Davy Identity Theft on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:06 pm JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:03 pm
Boring and stupid juanpee
makati1 on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:25 pm
Duncan, but will those generals, who want to get a cushy job in the MIC after they retire, refuse to fire the first missile? I doubt it. Game on!
Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:27 pm
Every single JuanP post over the past four months has been me, but I’m too stupid to be able to figure that out.
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:29 pm
“Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:27 pm
Every single JuanP post over the past four months has been me, but I’m too stupid to be able to figure that out.”
prove it stupid.
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:51 pm
I love me my goats.
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:54 pm
They push back real hard like.
More dumbass Davy Identity Theft on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:56 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:29 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:51 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 8:54 pm
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 9:46 pm
Let’s keep it simple. Americans ruined America, and the whole world, too!
JuanP on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 9:51 pm
For the record. I am the real JuanP and I haven’t posted a single comment here since before Valentine’s Day. I’ve moved on to greener pastures. I would recommend you all do the same. Reading the comments here or posting something is a complete waste of your lives. This website is fucked beyond redemption.
Davy on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 10:42 pm
Welcome back Juan, old friend. How was your sailing adventure?
DerHundistLos on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 11:02 pm
With compliments to our resident sage, Siss:
“I do believe that many of the difficulties promulgated in the last 50 years are do to the Boomers greed and entitlement. But if the Boomers ruined America then the Greatest Generation ruined the Boomers with an easy, material surfeit upbringing.”
Anonymouse on Tue, 25th Jun 2019 11:04 pm
Well, the resident goatfu, err, goatherd may have had something to do with this place going to complete and utter shit. Not that he hasn’t had some help with that, but, you know….
Davy on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 2:16 pm
For the record. I am the REAL DAVY, and I haven’t made a real post in the last five years or longer. I have moved onto greener pasture’s and now steal food from neighbors land. It is real green compared to mine. I wish mine looked 1/100 as good. Reading my comments here I cut and paste from zerohedge, or anything else I post is a complete waste of your lives. Ive fucked this website beyond redemption. Dumbasses.
JuanP on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 2:28 pm
“Davy on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 2:16 pm For the record. I am the REAL DAVY,”
Sure thing juanpee, you would know, numb nut
“and I haven’t made a real post in the last five years or longer. I have moved onto greener pasture’s and now steal food from neighbors land.”
Juanpee, you really are running out of energy for your stalking and pricking. Doesn’t get boring to make up stupid shit daily?
“It is real green compared to mine. I wish mine looked 1/100 as good. Reading my comments here I cut and paste from zerohedge, or anything else I post is a complete waste of your lives. Ive fucked this website beyond redemption. Dumbasses.”
Juanpee, I think most people here could give a shit wht you post or think otherwise you would get some responses. You really are the waste of time. BTW, I consider it a victory over a mentally ill extremist who wants to censor me. I am as strong as ever. No change to my message in fact it has gotten stronger with all my REAL Green ideas coming together.
JuanP on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 3:36 pm
Delusional Davy “I am as strong as ever.”
I think you are confusing insanity with strength, Exceptionalist! ROFLMFAO!
Dredd on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 5:06 pm
“Everybody has got to serve somebody” (Why Sea Level Rise May Be The Greatest Threat To Civilization – 7).
Davy on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 5:10 pm
Wow, juanpee speaks. JuanPee you are a mentally ill idiot is all. If you call obsessively stalking and pricking with mindless comments over a 1 year period strength then you are ate up. LMFAO.
makati1 on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 5:59 pm
US Sinophobe Propaganda: “George Orwell’s Dystopian Nightmare In China”
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-25/george-orwells-dystopian-nightmare-china (The American Conservative – Another hypocritical org.)
Why cannot Americans look in the mirror when they want to point the finger at others? HYPOCRACY is rampant in the American Police State. DENIAL is the motto. GREED is the religion. The US is no better than China. Worse in many ways. The Chinese are moving out of poverty. Americans are moving into poverty.
The US has over 60,000 laws! And that is called FREEDOM? LMAO!
What China does inside its borders is NOT important to Americans, but they like to think it is. Arrogance is rampant in “exceptional” America.
Who is killing thousands every year in countries they have no business being in? America!
Who is starting wars of choice with every country that will not kiss the US’ ass? America!
Who is trying to start a new world war? America!
As I said, hypocrites all. The coming pain is very well deserved. Very well deserved.
JuanP on Wed, 26th Jun 2019 6:31 pm
US Sinophobe Propaganda: “George Orwell’s Dystopian Nightmare In China”
Oops, sorry everyone. Wrong link again.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-25/george-orwells-dystopian-nightmare-china