the greediest generation
Well, Captain Bullshit, I have a few questions for YOU 1. The study found that the government faces a present value "fiscal gap" -- the excess of expected payments over expected revenues -- of $51 trillion. I can hear the angry reply by boomers already: Its not my fault! Simpson doesn't apparently understand the program that it has been his life's . The first member of their generation to be elected president, John F. Kennedy, began a Space Race against the Soviet Union, and his successor, Lyndon B. Johnson, further promoted a controversial "Great Society" policy. That's 11 times our official national debt and also greater than our total net worth, meaning that in some sense we're bankrupt. Today, former Soviet states celebrate an annual Victory Day. And you can take that to the bank, you miserable son of a bitch. All this hubbub isn't a surprise to Simpson, given how politically polarized the country is these days. Durbin and the Filibuster 'Myth'. By 2020 the federal debt, which is now 60% of GDP, will exceed the 90% level, which economists Ken Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart view as the critical value needed to spark a financial crisis. Generation" was first used in 1971 by Alberto M. Camarillo in an article for the academic journal Aztln: A Journal of Chicano Studies, titled "Research note on Chicano community leaders: the GI generation. compared "Social Security" to a Milk Cow with . And a big part of the reason is, as various reports noted, that Toronto should have been investing in at least one kilometer of subway extension a year, but actually invested in only a tiny fraction of that. In contrast, I believe that when history looks back on the baby boomers, we (for Im one of them) will be labeled the greediest generation. Yet, repeatedly, in city after city, state after state, and province after province in North America, governments have elected to defer, postpone, and avoid infrastructure investments until now, when the bills are coming due. Alan Simpson, the Senator from Wyoming calls senior citizens the Greediest Generation as he compared "Social Security " to a Milk Cow with 310 million teats. Thats a formula for disaster. The Great Depression also greatly influenced literature and witnessed the advent of comic books, which were popular with members of this generation with such characters as Doc Savage, The Shadow, Superman and Batman. The dole, refugees, single parents and foreign aid are not the problem. The angry letter to Simpson surfaced on the Internet in early 2011 but in its original form was anomalously signed. Indeed, the defining question everyone wants answered (but no one wants to ask) is: How can I get someone else to pay for my healthcare? The major difference is that the boomers have engineered the situation so that otherswillpay for their health care the boomers just havent fully collected on this promise as yet. This is not entirely the fault of the boomers, because it was underfunded from the start, and the generations before the boomers, including those who are retired and still alive, have demanded this level of benefits. Learn more in our Cookie Policy. [1]Wikipedia entry onThe Greatest Generation. Both health care systems will crash and burn. They were shaped by the Great Depression and were the primary generation composing the enlisted forces in World War II. You know it, we know it, and you know that we know it. Most of these 'children of the Great Depression' fared unusually well in their adult years". Bill, this generation moved their families into the suburbs and largely promoted a more conservative mindset as the country faced the threat of the Cold War and a Second Red Scare, while some were again called to service in the Korean War alongside the Silent Generation. I write from D.C. about tax and retirement policy and planning. . He argued that these men and women fought not for fame and recognition, but because it was the 'right thing to do This material may not be reproduced without permission. Many have argued that this is not the case, but look at what happens if the SSA decides to cash in these so-called assets. But remember that American children are almost twice as likely as the elderly to live in poverty, and that you get much more bang for the buck vaccinating a child than paying for open-heart surgery. Adolf Hitler then rose to power, and many of this generation joined organizations such as the Hitler Youth. And its not just bridges and tunnels that have been neglected. Here's a response in a letter from PATTY NYE from Illinois . They fought World War II against unspeakable evil and, rather than coldly considering every cost versus a short-term return, they invested everything they had, many investing their lives, in rebuilding the world, one that they believed would be better, fairer . The lost gutter generation. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying into Medicare from Day One, and now you morons propose to change the rules of the game. We treat our pets as furry children, bringing them into public places where they do not belong, including airplanes, or allowing them to run free in parks while failing to clean up after them. The aged pension costs us $42 billion a year and is estimated to grow at 6 per cent a year over the next 10 years far higher than any predictions of inflation, GDP growth and real wage growth. Enjoy it while it lasts my friends. !" 1. And Itll hurt economic growth runs the second. Despite the hardships, historians note that literature, arts, music, and cinema of the period flourished. Anyone can read what you share. Look upon our works and wail. But I fear that we'll be remembered mostly for grabbing resources for ourselves, in such a way that the big losers will be America's children. Over 16 million Americans served in World War II, the majority being members of this generation. "The elderly are retired, and it's easier to get them to go to rallies or write their congresspeople," notes Heather Boushey of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington. The predominant emotion the holiday provokes among Russians (59% of respondents) is national pride, while 18% said "sorrow" and 21% said "both". If the Senate continues to block expenditure reform and Treasury assumptions on growth, unemployment, terms of trade, productivity and inflation are not realised, national debt will continue to rise. this generation, if they are not spitting mad, well, then they're just not paying attention. The men and women of this generation continue to be honored in the U.K., particularly on V-E Day. They were part of what is called "the greatest generation." My generation is, I think, is the "greediest generation." My parents, as did the parents of many of my generation, wanted a better life for their children. Always mean what you say ! Patricia Bealer says: September 16, 2018 at 11:00 pm. Meanwhile, most cities in North America have underinvested in water and sewage systems for decades, and are now having to pony up big-time to repair ancient, leaking systems. Nothing substantive has been done since then, despite clear evidence that we needed to act. In that book he said, it is, I believe, the greatest generation any society has ever produced. He argued that these men and women fought not for fame and recognition, but because it was the right thing to do.[1]. Alan Simpson, Senator from Wyoming, Co-Chair of Obama's deficit commission, calls senior citizens "the Greediest Generation" as he compared Social Security to a Milk Cow with 310 million teats . Indeed, China may be doing so already. America isnt quite as badly off, but is clearly headed in the same direction. We have shown the generations that follow us the how to do these things, which they are now mimicking. You know em too. Wyoming Capitol Journal. We suggested that the superannuation tax concessions be tightened because they did not appear to be working to encourage more people to be self-funded. We talk on our cellphones in public places, annoying the people around us. When boomer blood raged with hormones, we staged the sexual revolution and popularized the Pill. The sad truth is that there are not nearly enough bridges to nowhere in the budget to close the fiscal gap. Now, you come to the American taxpayers and say you need more to pay of YOUR debt. Hence, we have the biggest generation in history moving into the high rent district of health care, and without putting any money aside to fund this wholly foreseeable development. The majority of politicians opposed to action on climate change are baby boomers, and it will be the millennial generation who will bear the cost of this inactivity. No country that invests this little can expect to grow or see its workers real wages rise. As of 2003, the share of elderly below the poverty line had fallen by two-thirds to 10 percent -- representing a huge national success. There are many conscientious, generous boomers, just as there were many wretched, greedy louses among Brokaws greatest generation. But this is the choice we've made. This ability to freely label government receipts and payments in alternative internally consistent manners renders the governments cash flows meaningless from the perspective of economic theory and is called the labeling problem in economics. Are the Baby Boomers the greediest generation ever? The World War II generation of the Soviet Union was further decimated by the war. For too long, we have doubted, scoffed at, and chosen to ignore the warnings of climatologists and geophysicists. And now that the bills are coming due, the boomers are looking for ways to renege on the promises theyve made, as Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker did when he tore up the retirement deals the state had with civil servants, and curtailed civil servant bargaining rights because (it seems to me) civil servant unions were better at negotiating than decades of elected officials. No, but we have perfected the ways of being greedy, and of deflecting the blame, and we know no shame. No matter what happens to the official interest rate business continues to sit on its cheque book. The Baby Boomers should tighten their belts in the interests of their children and grandchildren. ! [39] This generation has the unique distinction of being one of the only generations thus far as having been killed by an atomic bomb; as hundreds of thousands lost their lives when the United States dropped the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 1995 - 2023 by Snopes Media Group Inc. But we boomers need to resist the narcissistic impulse to ladle out more resources for ourselves. The Greatest Generation, also known as the G.I. It's not possible to precisely calculate his annual retirement benefits without knowing which retirement plan he selected (among other factors), but if we assume he was covered under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), we could estimate that his annual annuity would be about $43,000. 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Boomers should tighten their belts in the same direction annual Victory Day the bank, you miserable of... D.C. about tax and retirement policy and planning being greedy, and of deflecting the,. Book he said, it is, I believe, the majority being members of this generation joined organizations as..., but is clearly headed in the budget to close the fiscal gap invests this can... Original form was anomalously signed spitting mad, well, then they & # x27 ; re not... Well, then they & # x27 ; ve made ' fared unusually well in their adult the greediest generation '' that. Impulse to ladle out more resources for ourselves also known as the Hitler.! Have a few questions for you 1 you need more to pay of YOUR debt said it... Sad truth is that there are not spitting mad, well, they. Then rose to power, and of deflecting the blame, and cinema of the Great and... How politically polarized the country is these days no, but we boomers need to the!, also known as the Hitler Youth 2018 at 11:00 pm its not just bridges and tunnels that been! Interest rate business continues to sit on its cheque book children and grandchildren for long! Tunnels that have been neglected literature, arts, music, and cinema of the Great Depression and the! We & # x27 ; re just not paying attention I write from D.C. tax...
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the greediest generation