04-18-2018, 05:52 PM
Hi all,
I am new to this site, though I first read the original Generations book when it was new and have discussed it and re-read it ever since. It has really shaped my view of the world since early adulthood.
It's a pretty interesting time to be alive in America right now. We can see the 4T really speeding along now. On the bright side, this turning does not seem to necessarily have to come with war and major bloodshed (maybe it will but that seems very avoidable at this point). What we are seeing is the rapid destruction of the institutions that have been the hallmarks of the cycle.
In government, we have a President elected by a minority of the voting public with the express goal of destroying the establishment (i.e. institutions and norms). The Executive is at war with itself, with the President attacking the FBI and CIA, while hollowing out the State Department and Justice Department - leaving positions unfilled and making direct attacks on leadership. Congress is an ocean of partisanship with all the old norms of bipartisanship fraying at the edges. Gerrymandering has effectively ended democracy in some states and the filibuster is being picked apart at the edges and its demise is probably just a matter of time. Even the Supreme Court is affected. A popularly elected President was denied his Constitutional duty to select a justice and the selection was made by a President who lost the popular vote and with the support of Senators representing 45% of the US population. What is the integrity of such institutions?
Outside the world of government technology is destroying the norms most of us have grown up with. Retail shopping has changed, financial investing has changed, job availability has changed, and while we have cool gadgets in our pockets, technology has even messed up music. The world is changing rapidly and we will all adapt or die. Many Gen Xers are choosing death (no surprise the opioid crisis is killing off middle aged white men). The jobs of tomorrow will not look like the jobs of yesterday and economic anxiety is crippling communities across the nation. All while the country is as rich as it has ever been - just in the hands of the few.
An interesting time to visit a site like this.
I am new to this site, though I first read the original Generations book when it was new and have discussed it and re-read it ever since. It has really shaped my view of the world since early adulthood.
It's a pretty interesting time to be alive in America right now. We can see the 4T really speeding along now. On the bright side, this turning does not seem to necessarily have to come with war and major bloodshed (maybe it will but that seems very avoidable at this point). What we are seeing is the rapid destruction of the institutions that have been the hallmarks of the cycle.
In government, we have a President elected by a minority of the voting public with the express goal of destroying the establishment (i.e. institutions and norms). The Executive is at war with itself, with the President attacking the FBI and CIA, while hollowing out the State Department and Justice Department - leaving positions unfilled and making direct attacks on leadership. Congress is an ocean of partisanship with all the old norms of bipartisanship fraying at the edges. Gerrymandering has effectively ended democracy in some states and the filibuster is being picked apart at the edges and its demise is probably just a matter of time. Even the Supreme Court is affected. A popularly elected President was denied his Constitutional duty to select a justice and the selection was made by a President who lost the popular vote and with the support of Senators representing 45% of the US population. What is the integrity of such institutions?
Outside the world of government technology is destroying the norms most of us have grown up with. Retail shopping has changed, financial investing has changed, job availability has changed, and while we have cool gadgets in our pockets, technology has even messed up music. The world is changing rapidly and we will all adapt or die. Many Gen Xers are choosing death (no surprise the opioid crisis is killing off middle aged white men). The jobs of tomorrow will not look like the jobs of yesterday and economic anxiety is crippling communities across the nation. All while the country is as rich as it has ever been - just in the hands of the few.
An interesting time to visit a site like this.