We came in with protest, angered at the wrongs committed by
those in power and determined to make our nation and the world a better
place to live in. We tuned in, turned on and raised our voices and the
conscience of our nation. But now the boomers have busted.
If the polling figures are to be believed, and who really can trust our Dewey beats Truman pollsters today, Donald Trump can thank his almost contemporaries for his most improbable ascension. How did we go from a generation trying to make America great again to embracing this charlatan?
When did our better selves die and why? When did the world turn into such a dark place? In our youth it was us against them, the small minded, the heartless. Now we are them, and we are responsible for what we as a nation have become.
The boomers have lost their way. They have found redeeming value in a man who has not spent one day, one hour, one second in seven decades in pursuit of a common good. Today I am saddened to be part of the boomer generation.
Today there is a funeral being held and a period of mourning to follow. Today we bury the best of what being a boomer was all about. And the eulogy is being given by the President-elect.
2 comments:
When we boomers were on campus our protests were anti-Vietnam war and anti-censorship. We've spawned children and grandchildren who can't handle rejection of their ideas, or hearing ones that cause the slightest discomfort, lest they undergo trauma. Today's university students find any serious criticism, debate or unfamiliar idea an unacceptable challenge to their personas. It's impossible to refute an allegation of micro aggression so it's become the ultimate weaponization of offense-taking. In a world where anything can be triggering, people will be triggered by anything. As the Chancellor of UCLA Berkeley put it: "We can only exercise our right to free speech insofar as we feel safe and respected." Really? So by ranking liberty on par with or subordinate to other values the commandment "Do Not Offend" transforms First Amendment liberties into liberties contingent on other people's sensibilities. Thus freedom of expression becomes a negotiable commodity that is bargained away. Academic freedom is not an academic matter. This generation of litigious college graduates, seeking protection from new ideas and afraid to take any risks, is an ominous glimpse into the future of our public life. We won the battle against censorship on campuses and in society. Our children and grandchildren want to give it away. They will, I pray, lose that battle. I loathe our new president-elect, but he's merely a symptom, not a cause of our dysfunction.
William Roper: So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law!
Sir Thomas More: Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?
William Roper: Yes, I'd cut down every law in England to do that!
Sir Thomas More: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned 'round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man's laws, not God's! And if you cut them down, and you're just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!
When the thought police turn round on you, where are you going to hide?
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