Can somebody tell me who is considered "Gen X"? I thought I was, as a kid, but I believe I might even be too young. Kurt Cobain was in Generation X, right? I was 11 when he died. Where does that put me? What about my 5 year old? The whole idea of distinct "generations" seems wacky to me, but it sure does appeal to journalists.
'Generation' overgeneralizing is a cousin to decade overgeneralizing, a handy way to generate trend stories and social pseudo-science out of vague impressions. (The categories and qualities remain fluid enough that, like Astrology, anyone who wants to believe can find some support.)
I find it interesting that the 00's have been less subject to such generalization and nostalgia, and I think it's for no other reason than it's harder to say, with no one clear winning decade moniker, compared to the Nineties, Eighties, Seventies, Sixties, etc.
(The Teens may be a little easier to refer to in casual overgeneralizations, and then the Twenties will come a roarin' back with decade-o-centric thinking.)