Clinton is the last great middle finger of the Boomers towards those who come after

[Prism]

We've seen the demographics, the voters, and the polls. Again and again. Clinton fails with people under 40.

Boomers grew up with low-cost, affordable education. Millennials who want the same are simply out for "free stuff".

Boomers had a living wage, strong unions, and accessible jobs. Millennials who want the same are, "not being pragmatic" or "not being very understanding of the global economy."

Boomers achieved Roe v Wade. Millennials who want the same protections just don't, "compromise the right way, or find a middle ground."

Those are just three examples. But again and again, the theme of the Clinton campaign seems to be, "Uhm, we pulled the ladder up behind us. Which part of that do you not understand, peon?"

I don't really like generational sniping - I know there are tons of older people who are pro-Bernie. But it seems like that is where our country is right now. This is our political theme. A generation got their's, now screw off the rest of you.

Why is it that Hillary Clinton received all kinds of advantages in her day, and she now wants to deny or declare unworkable those same advantages for the generations succeeding her?

Look at all of it. Not just education, healthcare, or abortion. Look at social justice, foreign policy, and economics. She just doesn't care about our security. She has declared, "This new shitty reality is what you need to accept, and we're not going to change it."

So, uhm, thanks I guess?

Oh, she claims she'll tweak a few things. But does anyone think a politician that deeply entrenched in the system, who enjoyed all kinds of advantages young people today do not, is honestly going to go, "Wait. We've fucked up. Let's rejigger everything!"

No. No, she will not.

[SoLeftIAmRight]

1. she is not the one

Every Hillary campaign ad you see is another dept she owes to the one percent

[Hortensis]

96. The ONE? The LAST? Oh, no!! :) We'll still be

in local, state and federal offices, including the presidency and Supreme Court, as well as running businesses, when those young enough to believe this are our age now.

This little reality is part of the magnificent boon the Medical Revolution is for people as they get older, but a mixed blessing for younger people who'd, understandably, prefer to just walk into empty positions instead of having to compete with those already there for them. That's not going to happen any more. Compulsory retirement is effectively dead and won't be coming back.

Btw, at 74 Bernie Sanders is too old to be a boomer. He's a "Silent Generationer."

Don't be disheartened. When I was your age, the belief was that your life was ruined, almost all opportunities closed off if, for instance, you had a baby instead of going to college, especially if unmarried. You'd missed the train.

The notion that someone could raise a child to adulthood, go to college at some other point, run for the state legislature, then go on to Washington for another quarter century or so is new. Or raise the children, then join an NGO fighting famine in Ethiopia, then become a food resource consultant, write a book or two. Or, ...

Get it? Most of what will be the freest and most exciting part of life will come AFTER educating oneself, after raising any children, and after developing marketable expertise and working to amass a certain degree of financial security, enough that lack is not a constant problem.

[Ferd Berfel]

109. No she isn't

I'd love to vote for the first Female President. If there is a god, that will be Elizabeth Warren

Right now we need Bernie

[SoLeftIAmRight]

113. well said

i agree

[LongTomH]

2. I'm 71 and I support Bernie

Bernie has a lot of 'Silver Foxes' and 'Silver Vixens' among his supporters.

[SHRED]

31. I'm 59 and Bern-ing!

[Yurovsky]

37. In my 50s as well. I want youth to have a chance to succeed...

For Christ's sake, I'm old school - I actually want the next generation to DO BETTER. It's not necessarily just monetary, but I don't want them buried in debt. I don't want them to lack for educational or professional or artistic opportunities. I want them to thrive, in a society that is more just and equitable than the one I grew up in. But it does seem like many of my fellow boomers are like "fuck you, I got mine". And sadly, it's not just the Republicans.

[Nedsdag]

108. Early fiftysomething here and I totally agree with you.

Boomers keep forgetting that the future isn't now, but how we leave it to the next generation.

I teach millennials who are not enthused at all by Hillary and adore Bernie. I have no idea how she will be able to bring them into the fold for the fall.

[840high]

52. Silver Vixen here. Luv Bernie.

[daleanime]

76. +1

[tblue37]

79. I am 65 and pro-Bernie. nt

[Eleanors38]

121. 67 and Bernie all the way.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. She speaks as the woman she is.........one of the one per cent.

Their motto could well be: We've got ours, and to hell with the rest of you.

K&R

[upaloopa]

4. Boomers have grand children that they care very much about

You are way off track here

[Prism]

5. Then why is their low cost education for themselves "free stuff" for millennials?

Answer that, if you can.

[upaloopa]

12. When some of us were going to college in state students went to state colleges for free.

I think that was up to around the mid 60's. Then states started balancing their budgets on students backs by charging tuition fees.

By the time I finished college there were no free tuition schools. Ohio State would have cost me what the private school I went to cost.

Also since some parents pay for their kid's education I would think they would prefer free tuition.

I think the idea of free stuff comes from Bernie supporters not looking at anything realistically. At this point in time the general public would call Bernie a person who wants to raise taxes to give free education and medical care to other people.

The federal government is not the place to be selling this idea because the whole country gets to vote on it. I think that my adopted state of CA could return to free instate tuition because we are generating a surplus.

Obama and Hillary support fee junior college but I think you need to go state by state to get free tuition to college. The red states would reject it.

[jonestonesusa]

61. Keep in mind that the funding mechanism for expanding college access is a tax on wall street trades

In his speeches, Sanders makes this point repeatedly that as a result of the people bailing out Wall Street, Wall Street needs to bail out the people and make a due contribution to eliminate thousands of dollars of student debt for most individuals who get a BA.

I think the point of the OP is that boomers lack a high level of motivation when it comes to addressing the structural impediments to college access. You say here that "Bernie supporters do not look at anything realistically." Have you looked at how other countries in the industrialized world have dealt with the question of college access? At the university where I work, I have heard a German student try to avoid mentioning the low tuition they are paying even to attend graduate school in the US. For qualified students, cost is not a factor for many students in Germany. Why not here??

The rest of the industrialized world often outperforms US students, and we're still not committed to increasing our young people's access to college!

I would encourage everyone on this site to at least look at the college access plan that Sanders has put out and hear the rationale. Otherwise, we're ignoring the realities of the expenses borne by our children and grandchildren while we enjoy educational benefits that they will never receive. I think that's unacceptable. The mind set that college is a privatized option for the few needs to change. Even now, less than 30% of US citizens have a BA degree or higher. Is this how we want it to stay?

Maybe older folks should be listening to younger folks instead of dismissing their concerns.

[upaloopa]

77. I don't dismiss their issues. I said years ago that younger people will have it harder than I did.

When I started work as an accountant you needed a 4 yr degree

Now for the same or lower paying job you need a masters and some require a CPA

Also new hires get a lower paying retirement program then I have.

[Android3.14]

27. Loving grandparents support Bernie

There are many senior citizens who are standing with Bernie Sanders this primary season. The reason? They love their grandchildren.

It was sometimes annoying how much my and my wife's parents indulged and spoiled our children. They sometimes let them get away with meal-destroying snacks, gave them undeserved money, and let them play family-banned video games hours past bedtime.

But it was only because they love our kids, and they knew we would be the source of discipline in their young lives. Which we were, and our kids became young adults for which we feel a great deal of pride and love.

Next year, my eldest son is starting his second year of college, and my youngest is starting his first. Under Hillary Clinton, they will face crushing college debt that is three to four times what I faced in the '80s (in 35-year-old dollars), graduate with fewer job prospects, have little access to affordable healthcare and will probably earn less than I did when I graduated college. They will probably have to participate in a war or two as well.

Under Bernie Sanders, they have a chance to gain a few years of tuition free college, benefit from less college debt, have a chance at real healthcare, and they would earn enough money to live off of a 40-hour work week. A more peaceful world would also be nice.

Seniors who love their grandchildren are voting for Bernie Sanders. Seniors who love their grandchildren are paying attention to the undemocratic tactics of the Clinton campaign and are appalled. Loving seniors still have hope in the ideals they had in their youth, and they care for their grandchildren more than money.

[shraby]

6. I'm 73, Mr. Shraby is 74. We both support Bernie.

We've had enough of the Clintons, bushes, and all the baggage that goes with them.
trump is a blowhard, cruz is religiously insane, kasich is hiding in the bushes to pounce and pass laws like the rest of the republican governors if he ever gets the chance to do it at the national level.

On the Democratic side, Clinton is so yesterday, O'Malley would have been an okay candidate but the media wouldn't put him on the t.v. machine same thing they did to Bernie until Bernie made enough noise they had to notice him.

Like I've said before, if Clinton wins the nomination, she gets our votes because of the Supreme Court and no other reason.

[immoderate]

7. Sociology, not conspiracy.

Why didn't millennials see this coming? Why are those boomers being so mean? Answer: they didn't do it.

--imm

[winter is coming]

8. If you don't like generational sniping, then don't do it. n/t

[Prism]

11. I don't like it

I didn't say it wasn't necessary.

[winter is coming]

70. Like most collective punishment, it's unnecessary and lazy thinking.

It makes no sense to blame an entire generation for the actions of some. The guilty don't care if you point fingers, and the innocent will only be alienated by being blamed for things they didn't do, didn't approve of, and were unable to stop.

[SalviaBlue]

9. You "really don't like generational sniping?"

Then don't perpetuate it.

This is not a generational problem. This is an economic problem. There are a lot of people of Hillary's age that are struggling. They don't all have it made. Many of them are fighting for a better world for their children and grandchildren. Hillary is not representative of all Boomers... she is the 0.01%.

You are misguided to pursue this line of argument. Rail against Hillary if you choose, but not against all Americans born in the same time period as her.

[Prism]

10. Hillary isn't the only one putting this idea forward

Even here, on a Democratic website, we get barrage after barrage about Sanders only being supported because he wants "free stuff."

Unless all the Hillary supporters posting here are also .01%

[SalviaBlue]

13. They are not all boomers.

I am a Boomer. I am a Bernie supporter. I know Bernie supporters in all age groups... same with Hillary supporters.

If you want to make other generations your enemy and deem them responsible for your problems go right ahead, see how that works for you. I would advise against it.

[Prism]

18. You've misinterpreted

It's not about making Boomers "the enemy". It's about demanding the same advantages they had for future generations.

[azmom]

39. I thought your meaning was very clear. N/t

[PowerToThePeople]

15. "Unless all the Hillary supporters posting here are also .01%"

That or they are a lackey to them, trying to climb that ladder.

imho

I see it as an economic divide, not a generational one. It just has a generational feel because it has become more difficult to pull out of poverty and lower incomes in the last 20 or so years due to neo-liberal policy. Less younger people achieve financial stability than prior generations.

[geek tragedy]

35. tell us how a free humanities degree helps society more than helping

people go to trade school.

[jonestonesusa]

63. Because trade school is not the only option that helps people attain their highest potential.

There's nothing wrong with trade school, and it should be accessible. But there are other skills beyond trade school. Spending some time learning about history, political science, learning a new language that helps you to understand things across cultural boundaries, studying works of philosophy and literature that describes the struggles and triumphs of human life across time and culture - these activities have value and have often been the foundation for productive lives and enduring contributions.

It's sad to me that this argument has to be made on DU - I've always thought of Democrats as a party that gets the importance of a higher education for as many people as can attain it. Maybe we've changed.

[geek tragedy]

64. does Sanders have a program for guaranteed free trade school?

because it makes little sense to fund philosophy degrees and not trade school to help people learn to build and fix stuff

[jonestonesusa]

65. I think it's reasonable for a free college access program to prioritize different degree programs

including degrees in the trades. I don't think it should be an either/or proposition, though, either trade school or a university degree. While trade schools can be helpful, there are times when trade school educations don't prepare people for changes in job markets or shifts in technology related to a certain employment area. There are people who are able to build a lifetime of employment based on a liberal arts degree. And plus, I don't personally think that the only purpose of education is employment. I think it's also for citizenship, for personal growth, for quality of life, and even for being a smarter consumer that changes the human footprint in a positive way. So, I think it's shortsighted to be too dictatorial about what kind of programs people can qualify for in a college access program, but there can certainly be some priority setting.

But it's all academic since Clinton and company, along with much of the country, isn't interested in supporting greater college access for today's young people, even if the funding solution is a penny transactions tax for stock trading. Extremely short-sighted, IMO, and that's one of the reasons why I support Sanders. Otherwise, welcome to the status quo, $20K or $30K in average student debt, and the rest of us piddle with non-solutions and pretend to give a damn about a growing, nationwide problem of lack of college access.

[geek tragedy]

66. this isn't true

But it's all academic since Clinton and company, along with much of the country, isn't interested in supporting greater college access for today's young people,

But, I am not going to change your mind on anything, so thank you for the respectful and thoughtful conversation

[jonestonesusa]

68. Fair enough. Thanks...

I hope in the future we are putting our energy together to help more people attend college successfully.

[geek tragedy]

69. I support that goal, Democrats are divided less by goals

than by how to achieve those goals

[astrophuss42]

80. He has made it clear, education in trade is part of his platform. eom

[Avalon Sparks]

81. I graduated with a degree in Recreation Therapy in 89

Earning in the low three figures now -

The company I'm at now accepts no one with out a degree. Not even the Administrative Assistants.

I graduated with no debt, paying for tuition and books by working part time for min wage in the summers only.

To do that now min wage would need to be $36.50/hr.

These over inflated college tuition costs are bullshit and a drag on the economy. Trying to claim it's the degree paths people choose is ridiculous.

With that recreation degree I learned to speak in front of groups of people, create a budget, draft a newsletter, writing papers, working on projects with other students, and on and on. All things that I used later in my career that had nothing to do with Recreation Therapy.

Saddling young people who are trying to better themselves with debt, just as they graduate and enter into entry level positions is so beyond screwed up - every American citizen should be screaming about it.

I wish Bernie didn't say completely free - but I would like to make it the same as I did - affordable to attend completely if you're making min wage. That should be acceptable for all.

[agracie]

82. Well said. Thank you from this old Boomer.

[hobbit709]

14. She fails with this 65 year old Boomer.

[JudyM]

25. And this 50-something one.

[Merryland]

26. and this 60-something one...

[jberryhill]

30. 50-something and 60-something in our household

Same deal.

[BernieforPres2016]

16. I'm a boomer whose middle finger is extended to the Clintons

Please don't lump all of us boomers together. Some of us would like to see future generations have a decent world to live in.

[Ken Burch]

20. True-which is why we have to stand with the milennials against the most arrogant and entitled folks

of OUR generation.

[Eleanors38]

122. I'm on SS and they can pull my middle finger.

[Ken Burch]

17. As a 55 year-old(I think that makes me Late Boomer) I have to agree.

The Clintons embody the whole "we deserved the good stuff but you kids DON'T" mindset.

Drawbridging to the max.

[Prism]

19. Drawbridging!

I've never heard that before, but I like it. Evocative.

[tabasco]

21. Interesting perspective.

There's a lot of truth in your post. But I think you generalize too much, grouping all "boomers" together.

[DanTex]

22. This under-40 Hillary supporter begs to differ.

And most people I know in my age group feel the same way. Particularly with Bernie's dirty campaigning.

[Prism]

24. The polls and actual votes would disagree with you n/t

[Warren DeMontague]

74. Someone accused me of lying about my age, here, not that long ago

That was some funny shit.

[dreamnightwind]

23. Please don't blame boomers for her

I'm one of the younger boomers. I and my boomer friends have been fighting corporate triangulation, wars, and environmental devastation all our lives, to the detriment of our careers since we were non-believers in a corrupt system. All our lives we have been in vain trying to stoke the fires of a left-wing awakening, only to be repeatedly thwarted by vast institutional power supporting the status quo.

We're working hand in hand with the amazing younger generation who seems to be less influenced by corporate propaganda and more radicalized by the coming climate disasters. The youth today are really impressive, one of them is my son. And an incredible leader in Bernie Sanders has emerged to carry the banner late in his life. I value movement and bottom-up politics, but the role of a leader to rally around is often overlooked. By the way, some of the boomer leaders were assassinated.

There's plenty of blame on the boomer side too, it's a huge mixed bag as is any generation.

I agree with many of your points in the OP, but the middle finger you speak of knows no age, and no nation, it is more the synthetic digit of a humanoid manifestation of a ravenous and greedy power structure, and it must be defeated with all of us working together.

[shanti]

86. +1

[Maedhros]

28. I'm on the tail end of the Boom, not quite Gen X.

I have no problem with calling out the foibles of my peers.

[beaglelover]

29. Would you like some cheese with that whine?

[TheProgressive]

32. Good job putting reality into words...

You can also add healthcare. Healthcare was extremely reasonable for the boomers...

[Beacool]

33. The one giving a middle finger to his supporters is the man proposing things

that he will never be able to deliver. Actually, Trump is in the same boat in that respect. Two protest candidates over promising.

[geek tragedy]

34. "I don't really like generational sniping" lol,

For the record, white Milllenials tend to be Republican as a group. That's why Bernie's not doing better.

If only he had figured out what the concerns of black voters are.

not sure what you understand what drawbridging. cutting the top level of taxes and the estate tax and slashing the social safety net-that's drawbridging.


P.S. there's an entire generation that came after the Boomers.

[Prism]

40. White Millennials are republican?

Do you have a cite for that?

I'd love to read it.

[geek tragedy]

44. here's the short form plus the link. Key line is white voters 18-29

Also note that Millennial independents voted 50/50 Obama/Romney. Obama' margin in this age group was due to Millennials of color.



http://www.people-press.org/2012/11/26/young-voters-supported-obama-less-but-may-have-mattered-more/

[Prism]

45. That's a solid statistic

Thank you for providing it.

Now, my next question, why do you think the massive shift happened between 2008 and 2012?

[geek tragedy]

46. I wouldn't say it was massive, but I would say a lot of young voters

get easily discouraged because they don't have a lot of experience or understanding of how the political system works.

They probably thought that Obama winning was the culmination, the event that would change everything.

Young voters don't realize that it's the daily grind that produces the results. Not the big crowds and Will I. Am. videos.

So, when things don't change very much or they change imperfectly, they write off the system, and tune out.

And don't vote in Mid-Terms, which reinforces the cycle.

People who have been through a few rodeos knew that Obama would produce some grand disappointments, and that at the end of the day he was a politician--no one else runs for office.

[Prism]

47. Given that

Would you then characterize Millennials as "Republican"?

Because you frame it more as pissed at Obama.

Does pissed at Obama mean Republican?

[geek tragedy]

48. They were around the national level of D/R split in 2008 and well below it in 2012.

they're more liberal than older white people for sure.

but race/ethnicity, and not age, remains the most powerful predictor for voting behavior in the United States.

And we've seen in two straight cycles, that this holds inside the Democratic party as well as in general elections.

[Avalon Sparks]

85. Distractions

What does Will I Am have to do with the inflated cost of college tuition.

I paid for tuition and books in late 80's working part time for min wage in the summers only.
To do that today min wage would need to be 36.50 an hour.

My tuition and books were around 1,000 a year. Today, at the same school same number of hours is $10,000. Not even counting books. A 1,000% increase in 25 years. In the last 8 years it kept on increasing.

So don't suggest incremental progress was made - we're going full speed backwards -
The young people aren't fools at all. They easily see through the 'let them eat cake' crowd and the leaders they support.

[geek tragedy]

105. Full speed backwards?

Oy.

My tuition and books in the 90s were about ten times that much, at Land Grant U.

Not saying something doesn't need to be done, but college hasn't been cheap in over two decades

[St Aug girl]

36. It is like Christopher Buckley predicted this

Moment in time in his hilarious book Boomsday. A young blogger starts a revolution when she discovers that her dad "gambled" away her college money in the stock market. I am a late boomer but I lived this book. He also wrote one that was a parody of Hillary being arrested for killing Bill for having a liaison in the Lincoln bedroom. The names were changed to protect the innocent.

[handmade34]

38. "you don't like generational sniping"?

don't do it... and don't assume... Hillary supporters are not all old and privileged... Bernie supporters are not all young and disadvantaged... older people have kids and grandkids they care deeply about and want what's best.... most people are supporting a candidate that they believe will be the best President for all of us

your assumptions are troublesome and petty... Hillary has NOT declared "This new shitty reality is what you need to accept, and we're not going to change it."

she hasn't even implied that... she in fact has supported most of what Bernie stands for... adamantly supports women's rights (abortion), equal pay, healthcare for all, raising the minimum wage, better jobs, protecting the environment, etc., etc...

I know Bernie, I like Bernie, I am not rich, I still have student debt, my kids have student debt, I think there is too much money in politics, I think there should be universal health care and I believe the minimum wage should be $15... I continue to be a Hillary Clinton supporter because I truly believe that Hillary will be the BEST president of any person running for that office right now...

I would never say "I've got mine, fuck you" and neither is Hillary... all correct thinking people want to do the best for all, we just have different ways of coming to that place

[Prism]

43. She hasn't supported most of that. Why these lies?

C'mon. This is a political message board. Platitudes are pointless.

She's against single payer all of a sudden. She thinks tuition free college is "free stuff". And I'm not even for tuition free college. I just think it should be affordable the same way it was for Boomers. I live in California. I've talked to people in their 50s and 60s about what they paid into the UC system for their degrees. They could manage it with part time jobs. They certainly weren't indebted into their 40s over it. Look up UC tuition, and you tell me Millennials are working under the same system.

She's been kind of weirdly sketchy about abortion lately.

She has not championed a living wage. In fact, she poo poo'ed it. Now, of course, she's rushing to take credit for New York and California, but that's not what she was about 3 months ago.

Better jobs? With free trade agreements devastating our manufacturing base?

Protecting the environment? She promoted fracking all over the world!

Look, if your delusions make you feel better, great. But the rest of us in the real world have to deal with the consequences of her actual policies. Not what she'll say she'll do. What she's actually promoted and done.

I can't believe you spewed all that forth, when even a cursory examination rendered it laughable. Jesus H. We're supposed to be reality based people.

[Avalon Sparks]

89. Very well said...

Why can't they open their eyes?

Hillary Clinton has a record.

What she is saying now doesn't appear to match her record.

She may throw a few crumbs your way, maybe .... or if she's smart she will the first term. But the real troubles gonna start in term 2 should she get that far.

And if you want to question her record, or believe she has had a change of heart, or point out some good you see in her record, by all means do.

But it's not just her record - there's the other thing too.

You can't take 140 Million in speaking fees and rule for the people. It's simply not possible.

[djean111]

41. Oh, for fuck's sake - stop it with the generational bullshit.

I am 70, and will not vote for Clinton - I despise what she stands for.

Were you aware, by the way, that there are rich boomers, poverty-stricken boomers, and everything in between? That Boomers are many races, both genders, and those "demographics" have also been given praise or blame. Enough already

Hillary, the DNC, and the Third Way are giving the middle finger to all Americans except the 1%..

[840high]

54. Sing it loud!

[haikugal]

93. Thank you!! Damn, enough of his crap. Go after the real enemy of the people and the future. nt

[CharlotteVale]

42. I'm a boomer who supports Bernie. Don't you dare compare me to Hillary Clinton!!!!

[grossproffit]

49. I'm 36 and support Hillary. I'm waving a finger now...

can you guess which one?

[Aerows]

50. It is especially illustrated by how

she disparaged millennials as duped, hoodwinked young fools in the interview.

She can't go a minute without stuffing her foot in her mouth.

Seriously, do you think a person that flubs, gaffes and outright insults several segments of the voting public should be POTUS?

[muntrv]

51. I am 46 and feeling the Bern.

Voted for him in the Michigan primary.

[Bjornsdotter]

53. Boomer here!

55 and supporting Bernie!

[sadoldgirl]

55. If you have to generalize- which is dangerous sometimes-

then let's start with a fear of change. That becomes
more pronounced when one gets older.

Then there are people, who did well under B. Clinton,
and don't realize that it was the tech boom and not
his economic ideas (NAFTA),which created a growing
economy. They will never accept that though.

Then there are many, who love Obama. He has done some
good things, but they will never admit that other issues
were bad (TPP). These voters want to continue on that
road, hence their vote for HRC.

The funny thing you will find in history is that people,
who are asking for change, will be very impatient and
therefore cause their own dissatisfaction.

To make it simple though a lot of people have given
up on the FDR ideals and have accepted the new
oligarchic system as inevitable. Just my thoughts.

[Avalon Sparks]

88. Perfectly put - thank you!

[LiberalElite]

56. 65 and voting for Bernie - take the generational thing and put it somewhere else nt

[RandySF]

57. Bernie's middle finger to America

Will be his throwing the election for the Republicans.

[Vote2016]

58. kick & rec

[Vote2016]

59. kick & rec

[carolinayellowdog]

60. "Boomers had a living wage"

I'll grant your point about tuition-- 4 years full tuition scholarship at a private college was $5200 total. BUT with a Master's degree I started out under 10k/yr in the 70s and made it all the way to 50k before retirement WITH NO HEALTH INSURANCE several years ago. But at least I got to retire on a pittance, whereas a hell of a lot of my contemporaries had no fixed benefit retirement, saw their net worth demolished in the 2008 crash and will now have to work until they die.

If you let the 1% turn you as part of the 99% against another part of the 99%, you are doing PRECISELY what they want. If you think of Hillary as a boomer rather than a 1%er-- you make that mistake.

[DemocraticWing]

62. I'm tired of being called stupid and bashed up and down by people who don't know anything about me.

That's how my whole generation feels about the people who say these things about young people. And it goes far beyond politics, not a week goes by where some person hasn't published an article whining about young people, college students, or some related topic.

I love all the old people, from my parents to old great-grandmothers out phonebanking for Democrats and backing Bernie, who don't hate my generation though. It's a lot more than people think. They've passed the torch to us and given us the ability to make our statement to the world.

We're young, we're socialists, and the world is dying. It's time to get busy saving it!

[shanti]

87. I wish my sons thought as you

[Bread and Circus]

67. I have said similar things in the past. Thanks for the OP.

[TheFarS1de]

71. They are keeping us poor and divided .

And this is not news to them they have known for quite sometime the effects on younger generations however the money made them blind to the next generations plight .

Gen X

http://money.cnn.com/2014/09/22/news/economy/gen-x-poorer-than-parents-pew-study/

So based on this fact the younger generations will be even worse off . It has to be addressed as the modern serfdom mentality that has entered the elites policies is destroying those they are meant to be guiding and helping to become productive members of society .

They burnt the bridges after they had crossed them and now spout about "Free" stuff .

[Impedimentus]

72. Your ageist thread is out of line. Playing the generational war game only helps the opposition.

I'm in the age group you attacked and I supported and admired Bernie before most of you even knew who he is, except perhaps as a senator from Vermont. Also, NEVER supported the Clintons. Please grow up.

FEEL THE BERN - 2016

[Warren DeMontague]

73. I think there's a subset that is overly emotionally identified w/what they perceive as her narrative

And if you pay attention the whole victimization-vindication cycle is central to the deal.

Look, objectively there is no question that Hillary Clinton has a compelling life story with aspects which are frustrating as fuck to ANYONE concerned with fairness, gender equity, and true meritocracy. The early, obvious brilliance and natural leadership skills. The commencement speech, the watergate gig. Then the apparent sublimation of the ambition and considerable talents, to further the career of the husband.

The bullshit around maiden names, cookie baking, all of it. To top it all off, the very public humiliation of a husband screwing around with a younger woman.

I understand why her story resonates, strongly, with a segment of the population that came of age in the 60s-70s, even as they cant quite figure out - to the point of perpetual peeved irritation- why it doesnt have anything like the same emotional resonance with, say, millennial women.

And i wouldnt even ding someone for using all that as a rationale to vote for her- particularly given that she is, like i said, undoubtedly super-intelligent, she has a comprehensive even encyclopedic understanding of some policy issues, like foreign affairs.. And, she understands how DC works.

My problem with her is that somewhere along the line, she -and her husband- internalized some of the worst instincts around political pandering. Replacing leadership with poll-driven equivocation.

Trading heroes for ghosts, hot ashes for trees, hot air for a cool breeze... cold comfort for change.

Thats what i have trouble voting for, in this primary cycle.

[Avalon Sparks]

99. For me it was the speaking fees

Before I heard a word Sanders said, I was so excited to have Bill back in the office...a dream come true, the biggest middle finger ever to the Repubs, oh the fun of watching them explode with anger with Both Clintons back in the game. The ultimate payback for stealing the election with Dubya.

I still have my 92 Bill Clinton yard sign hanging on the wall in my garage, i danced in the street the night he won, I voted for her in 2008.

But the watching the first Repub debate a few months ago, Cruz made some comment I thought was bullshit about the Clintons being worth millions, I fact checked it immediately and he was correct. That is when I found out about all the speaking fees. Bill accepting fees while she was a Senator and SOS, her on the hiatus before she's trying to get back in office. Him accepting them now.

It is the frequency, the industries they have spoke to, the obscene about of money into their personal accounts. This is influence money, it is bribe money plain and simple. Yes they have a right to make money, but not this way as long as one or the other is still in politics. They should have made the choice to both leave politics before going on the speaking circuit. There are no their politicians on either side that have collected this much money from speeches while still holding or attempting to hold again political power.

I'd wager everything I own that if they had left politics, there is no way they would have been invited to that many speaking engagements, or been paid at that level.

The Clintons have made almost their entire personal fortune from speaking fees. They earn more per speech then any other politician. It's not because they are that awesome, it's because they are the only ones earning speaking fees while they have political power. This is a no brainier.

That was the end of my support of the Clintons, the foundation money, the Superpacs, whitewater. Monica, I could easily look the other way at all of it - but the speaking fees did it for me.

But the acceptance of all that speaking money is a conflict of interest, there's no other possibility, no way, no how.

And no matter what she says on the campaign trail I can't believe a word. By accepting all that money from special interest groups for "speaking", when decision time rolls around who do you think she's gonna support legislation for? How can anyone possibly have blind faith that she'll act impartially?

If she does she will be effectively screwing them over, and that ain't gonna happen. The Clintons are bought and paid for. She either screws them over or screws us over, either way they screw someone over. She can't play both sides.

Anyone with integrity wouldn't put themselves in that position. When a politician personally profits from political power while still in a high level position to decide on legislation and policy, it always ends badly for the people they represent, the ones that elected them. It's as sure as death and taxes.

25 years of supporting them, but I let go just like that after learning about the speaking fees.

[Warren DeMontague]

100. I'm with you. I was a huge backer in the 90s.

Even though I think some of the decisions of that Presidency have not aged particularly well, it was a vast improvement on what came before (and followed immediately after) ... I stuck a Bill Clinton sticker on my old beater back when I think he was polling behind both Perot and Bush, and almost no one knew who he was. I saw all 4 of them- Al, Tipper, Bill and Hillary- speak at the Daley Center in Chicago, in October of '92. It was hugely inspirational.

But she lost me, particularly during the years between 2002-2006. The IWR, "Marriage is a sacred bond between a man and a woman", sponsoring flag burning legislation, for fuck's sake- whatever the rationales, it all left a bad taste.

By 2008 I wanted someone else, a change, a break, at the very least a candidate who hadn't voted for Bush's invasion of Iraq.

And yeah, as you allude to, somewhere along the way they went from challenging the status quo to representing it; and ties, "connections" and money have a funny way of effecting that end. Nowhere is it more depressingly evident in the rhetoric and tone of her campaign. The Clintons were the people who "still believed in a place called hope", now it's more like a "place called nope".

Sad.

[Avalon Sparks]

102. It is sad..

Thanks for replying. 🙂

I felt really duped, I'm sure you know what I mean. I think back then it really was like a football game to me. Coming off 12 years of Repub rule, and graduating in 89 with all the other Gen Exers looking at dismal job prospects, I just knew Clinton would turn it all around.

With the tech boom and his slight tax increase to the upper class, the 90's were pretty good. But the Repubs threw a fit and acted like they had a right to the Presidency, I took every thing they said as a smear campaign witch hunt. I would defend Clinton on a daily basis. At some point it became more about Repubs losing then Dems winning.

I'm older now, and have a different perspective. I usually vote with my pocketbook, no fringe issues. By pocketbook I mean which party usually has a better economy. At some point I decided Repugs make the economy worse, Dems will throw us crumbs, I guess until the last few months I never thought to question why Dems only threw crumbs, then I learned about the DLC.
Right on Fiscal and War, and Left on social. Now I get it.

Then an FDR Dem comes along, the first man for the people in my lifetime....and it's just killing me that he has only a slight chance to pull it off. The pugs are imploding within, Bernie would beat them, I have no doubt ...the cards are lined up perfectly...and the Dems want to elect the Grifters.

WTF?

[questionseverything]

107. thank you for doing the research

while bernie has many older supporters the 50 plus and especially the 65 plus group are what is keeping hc's campaign going

we know that from polling

i do not blame those peops because the msm does not report on actual issues and the 65 plus group does not search the net for the truth like younger folks do

they grew up with walter cronkite so they don't expect to be lied to on a nightly basis

just my take anyways

[Avalon Sparks]

111. Thank you

You made some excellent points!

[mia]

75. Represents Democratic Boomers?

Not by any stretch of the imagination. She represented the antithesis of the Democratic political movement when Boomers came of age.

Republican boomers, like Hillary, are another story. She is what she is, even though she professes many progressive talking points.

[closeupready]

78. She's not a leader; she's a follower. Why she's now a Democrat

is a question which has a very complicated answer, which many of us know implicitly, but which I'm not prepared to go into at the moment. But yeah, you pretty much nailed it.

[tokenlib]

84. As a Boomer, I REJECT Hillary, the Third Way,New Dems, The DLC, am 100% with Bernie!

I think this generational argument is slightly flawed. And I kind of get annoyed with it

[BlueStateLib]

90. Up till 1960 the united states produced 50% of the worlds GDP, today it 16%

We benefited greatly from the spoils of war, this was never going to last when the world rebuit its self after WII destruction

[rjj621]

91. She's also mooning them n/t

[area51]

92. This boomer support Bernie. n/t

[steve2470]

94. Boomer here for Bernie nt

[Norrin Radd]

95. Gen-Xer, forty-three,

and a Bernie supporter. Still haven't gotten mine, still poor after all these years.

[silvershadow]

97. She is. It is like being in an abusive relationship. The Clintons took us in the wrong direction,

and now for the second round are kicking sand in our faces. The've got some real nerve.

[rosesaylavee]

98. you are attacking an age group for what reason?

Broad brushing anyone over 40 ... What good does that do? I am 57. Most everyone I know supporting Sanders is over 40. And no, we didn't 'get' ours. This is ridiculous post.

[dubyadiprecession]

101. The Boomers just don't want BS.

[k8conant]

104. Join me and other boomers in cutting off that middle finger...

This country needs justice, mercy, vision...

Joel 2:8 " Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions."

Micah 6:8 "And what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God".

[randr]

106. Please do not buy into ageism

We need our elders, especially one named Bernie.

[Howler]

110. Really!

Dude! I am a boomer and I am bernie or bust. Seriously. Don't sew dissension among generations. It helps nothing. If we are going to succeed we need unity.

[artyteacher]

112. nope she'll be everyone's president. eom

[rhett o rick]

114. Are you saying she will work well with the Republicons? That's what I am afraid of.

She supports a lot of their positions, war, Patriot Act, fracking, oil pipelines, drilling in Arctic, Free Trade, did I say wars, wars, and more wars.

She is out to amass a huge personal fortune. That's her number one priority.

[artyteacher]

115. yeah, by kicking their asses. eom

[rhett o rick]

116. LOL. In your dreams. She and the Republicons see eye to eye. Remember when Bush beconded

her to help him sell his war? She couldn't wait to betray her Party and the American people, our troops and the Iraqi people. She really kicked Republicon ass didn't she? She agrees with them on every issue I can think of. Maybe you can name an issue where she doesn't agree with them.

[artyteacher]

118. bush lied to her and all of us.

What do they disagree with? Just about everything Planned parenthood, the right to choose, gun control, taxing the wealthy, diplomacy vs war,marriage equality, etc etc.

[rhett o rick]

120. So you are saying that Bush fooled her? That doesn't even make any sense. Many people

around the world were screaming that Bush was lying. The German government said it. No she is way smarter than you give her credit. Her friends in the MIC made hundreds of millions off that war and have since shown her their appreciation for her vote and speech.

They agree on foreign policy. A number of prominent neocons have endorsed her. And she has zero interest in taxing her wealthy friends. The best she has even said was she would look into closing some loopholes. Yeah right. Marriage equality. As the true conservative she is she resisted supporting same sex marriage until quite recently when it looked like public opinion was against her. She still will deny those suffering from using medical marijuana, the inexpensive and more effective way to deal with pain.

Bush lied is correct. However, everyone with a brain recognized when he was lying. Are you saying she believed his lies when the rest of us knew he was lying? Elect her as president and see more of our families shipped off to die for corporation profits.

[Fumesucker]

123. Indeed, the poor naive young woman from flyover country was fooled by the vast intellect of Dubya

Bless her heart..

And yours too for believing that.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

117. And, a few of us who came prior.

I was born in 1944.

[Utopian Leftist]

119. Just remember that Bernie is also a product of the Boomer Generation.

"Land Of Confusion"

[Originally by Genesis]

I must have dreamed a thousand dreams
Been haunted by a million screams
But I can hear the marching feet
They're moving into the street

Now, did you read the news today?
They say the danger has gone away
But I can see the fire's still alight
They're burning into the night

There's too many men, too many people
Making too many problems
And there's not much love to go around
Can't you see this is a land of confusion?

This is the world we live in
And these are the hands we're given
Use them and let's start trying
To make it a place worth living in

Oh, superman, where are you now?
When everything's gone wrong somehow?
The men of steel, these men of power
Are losing control by the hour

This is the time, this is the place
So we look for the future
But there's not much love to go around
Tell me why this is a land of confusion

This is the world we live in
And these are the hands we're given
Use them and let's start trying
To make it a place worth living in

I remember long ago
When the sun was shining
And all the stars were bright all through the night
In the wake of this madness, as I held you tight
So long ago

I won't be coming home tonight
My generation will put it right
We're not just making promises
That we know we'll never keep

There's too many men, too many people
Making too many problems
And there's not much love to go round
Can't you see this is a land of confusion?

Now, this is the world we live in
And these are the hands we're given
Use them and let's start trying
To make it a place worth fighting for

This is the world we live in
And these are the names we're given
Stand up and let's start showing
Just where our lives are going to

[Avalon Sparks]

124. Kicked