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‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

nytimes.com

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Re: ‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

#31

Post by xenophonf »

frankbreetz wrote: post #5

“Society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.” ― Anonymous Greek Proverb

That's not a Greek proverb. It was written in 1951 by Elton Trueblood, a Quaker, in his book The Life We Prize:

https://www.roger-pearse.com/weblog/2017/08/26/a-society-gro...

The book is available to loan from the Internet Archive:

https://archive.org/details/lifeweprize00true

Re: ‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

#33

Post by hmschreck »

lawlessone wrote: post #20

Really? i thought i ended when everyone was talking about how millennials are ruining companies by not buying affordable products. Or saying millennials are poor because they like avocados. Or saying millennials are entitled for demanding a living wage.

This is pretty much it. My generation has been called entitled, lazy, selfish, etc, for wanting the same things our parents were given, like a living wage, affordable college, or career stability. In what world is that friendly?

Re: ‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

#34

Post by skywhopper »

I often wonder if newspapers have a template for these sorts of articles that they can pull out every time one of the completely artificial and meaningless "generations" hits a certain milestone. For the last 5-10 years we've been in the cycle of articles where the current "generation" in their 20s and 30s are settling into career paths and shaking things up with their crazy new demands at work, or how they just aren't looking after their own futures like their elders did. And now that "Gen Z" has hit adulthood, it's time to write the articles where these crazy kids are pushing back on the complacency of their elders in a shockingly disrespectful way. In a few years we'll learn all about how new trends in advertising, fast food, and consumer marketing are all being shaken up by the 20-somethings who just aren't satisfied with the same-old patterns of doing business.

If you go back 20 years you'll find the same articles about millenials. Go back 20 more years and you'll find them about Gen X. Go back 20 more years and you'll find them about Baby Boomers. Go back to the 1920s and there are articles complaining about the Kids These Days, so lazy and disrespectful, taking all this newfangled technology for granted...

Re: ‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

#36

Post by swalsh »

lawlessone wrote: post #20

Really? i thought i ended when everyone was talking about how millennials are ruining companies by not buying affordable products. Or saying millennials are poor because they like avocados. Or saying millennials are entitled for demanding a living wage.

On a side note related to this idea, I wonder if Millenials overcompensated by going to the extreme on the opposite side of the triangle (quantity, price, quality). On Saturday I went to a beer/wine store that's in a predominately young professional/student neighborhood. When I lived in the area about 8 years ago there were maybe 20 craft beer brands. Beer came in 6-packs, and was priced at about $11-15.

Today, there's maybe 100 brands. Almost all come in 4-packs, and are priced between $15-$20.

Re: ‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

#37

Post by arkh »

> Ms. O’Connor is far from the only one cashing in. Hundreds of “ok boomer” products are for sale through on-demand shopping sites like Redbubble and Spreadshirt, where many young people are selling “ok boomer” phone cases, bedsheets, stickers, pins and more.

I like how one of the first reflexes when criticizing a generation of ecological catastrophes is to over-consume. Reminds my of the boomers' "Che Guevara" merchandises.

Re: ‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

#38

Post by bredren »

johnday wrote: post #15

This is silly. The only party here marking the end of "friendly generational relations" is the NY Times itself. Drawing lines through society is the cheapest and easiest way to look wise without making any meaningful comment.

Actually this phrase started around October 15th on TikTok. The phrase’s use in related videos grew rapidly and had not existed before. It’s real sentiment.

The fault with this article is that it focuses on merchandise.

Edit: here’s the first video I saw it trend in comments: http://vm.tiktok.com/553g7w/

Re: ‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations

#39

Post by djsumdog »

Generational names have always been created by authors to sell books. Adam "Ruins Everything" Conover did a talk at a marking conference where he pulled up old copies of Time magazine talking about the entitled baby boomers from decades ago; almost identical to the same articles about every other generation.

Generational titles were NEVER used to lift anyone up. They were used to sell books, sell newspapers/magazines, blame everything on the youth who knew nothing of hardship or some other fake-rage bullshit. The age ranges are arbitrary and the names that stick are pure chance and/or marketing.

Why is NYT referencing a moronic TikTok video anyway? Is NYT now trying to compete with Buzzfeed?

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