Is Gen X now the new 'forgotten generation"? No really you hear all the time about 'Boomers and Millennials but...

[Estil | 1,265]

Am I the only one here who noticed that you hear all the time all this talk about Baby Boomers vs Millennials?  The thing is though, there's a whole 'nother generation in between!  I mean not too long ago Gen X (born mid 60s-late 70s) was just as much iconic/talked about as the Boomers were.  But I guess now they're just chopped liver?  I guess now Gen X is the new "forgotten generation"?

 

[RH | 4,958]

Eh... It's because they are now all late-40s/early-50 year olds becoming empty nesters and on the home stretch to retirement.

They are to old to be "relavant" but to young to be "detached" from a modern way of thinking.

[Estil | 1,265]

7 minutes ago, RH said:

Eh... It's because they are now all late-40s/early-50 year olds becoming empty nesters and on the home stretch to retirement.

They are to old to be "relavant" but to young to be "detached" from a modern way of thinking.

Why would they not be "relevant"?

[Tulpa | 3,530]

Gen X is a smaller generation than either the baby boomers or millennials, so there isn't quite as many of us. We got flack back in the 90s for being tuned-out grunge-listening flannel-wearing slackers, but since then it's been crickets.

I do like some of the memes that came out of all this.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,572]

 

[RH | 4,958]

8 hours ago, Estil said:

Why would they not be "relevant"?

In regards to the discussion of who gets attention, "boomers" are viewed to be older and distant in their values.  They represent a kind of schism in thinking between the old and new.  The younger generation, especially the young adults, are old enough to get their new perspectives out there and get attention. Gen-X is in the middle. No, the Gen-Xer (as in the individual) isn't irrelevant.  However, if they act to "old" they are lumped in with the boomers.  Act to young/lazy/progressive/add-any-other-stereotype, they will be lumped in as an "old" Millennial.

 

[zeppelin03 | 314]

3 minutes ago, ChickenTendas4PokeyEater said:

How would Gen Z stack up to this? We seem to get forgotten pretty often, like in that meme. Contrary to popular belief, my generation unfortunately created "OK Boomer." We also as a whole tend to think anyone older than us is a boomer. One time a friend told me about this "Boomer Karen" at the store. Apparently she was in her 30s or 40s. Ouch.

Gen Z will become relevant in another 10-15 years.  Generations seem to get talked about when they are of an age to have spending power and influence politics etc. 

[Tulpa | 3,530]

Don't be in too much of a rush. All the named generations had to endure some flack when they became adults.

Millennials are portrayed as entitled, inexperienced children.

Gen X was portrayed as grunge-obsessed drop-out-of-society slackers.

Boomers were portrayed as drugged out draft dodging hippies.

The Silent Generation (too young to fight in WWII, but born before the baby boom) was portrayed as mindless worker drones who never spoke up.

Only the Greatest Generation seem to have escaped criticism, but they had to deal with the Great Depression and fighting Hitler.

Everyone in the Lost Generation is dead.

 

[Hammerfestus | 3,880]

I think the last few years have made a fertile bed for millennials to assert their place in society.  But I think as a generation we need to learn to reject some of our more authoritarian tendencies and become comfortable in our own skin and we need to actually become involved and vote.  There’s a lot of keyboard warriorism but actual voter turnout amongst millennials is depressingly low.  We need to break out of our tendency toward social media as some sort of replacement for actual civic interaction.  I’m not sure that especially after covid we are not past the point of no return though.

[zeppelin03 | 314]

35 minutes ago, ChickenTendas4PokeyEater said:

10-15 years? I can vote in the next election (2024). My gen spans from 1997-2012, so some of us are already out of college.

Yep.  I trained interns in your generation.  We all consider you kids currently.  Like Tulpa said don't rush it.  One day you will wake up realize you are old and wonder what happened. 

As someone in the millennial group I look forward to a new generation coming up. Take the focus off what I'm doing.

[zeppelin03 | 314]

1 hour ago, Hammerfestus said:

I think the last few years have made a fertile bed for millennials to assert their place in society.  But I think as a generation we need to learn to reject some of our more authoritarian tendencies and become comfortable in our own skin and we need to actually become involved and vote.  There’s a lot of keyboard warriorism but actual voter turnout amongst millennials is depressingly low.  We need to break out of our tendency toward social media as some sort of replacement for actual civic interaction.  I’m not sure that especially after covid we are not past the point of no return though.

I can't argue with this.  It is one of the reasons I keep my Twitter to video game talk.  I know I could improve my civic engagement and knowledge on current events.  My opinion doesn't need to be broadcast if I'm not willing to put in the work to truly understand an issue.  Hopefully I can get up to speed on local government.  That's what is going to impact my day to day.

[Estil | 1,265]

Let's see millenials are what, early 80s-mid 90s?  I was born in 1980 and seeing as how I finished HS in 1999 and UK (the university, not the country!!) in 2003, I came of age right about on the new millenium nose, which I was quite proud of actually.  So I identify as an early millennial.  Where as I suppose later ones were in middle school or say, upper elementary in 2000?

Hard to believe we already have people born in the 21st century that are legal age.  Have we in fact settled on Gen Z (which means what exactly) for the generation after the millenials or is the jury still out on that one?

And for the record I have no use for ageism at all.  The number of candles on your last birthday cake in of itself do not make you any more or less of person.  PERIOD.  And to stereotype/discriminate against people because of their age (young or old) is just as wrong as any other kind of discrimination, even if it's mostly still legal (discrimination against younger people I mean) and in fact often openly supported and encouraged!

Edited June 7, 2020 by Estil

[Tulpa | 3,530]

22 minutes ago, Estil said:

Hard to believe we already have people born in the 21st century that are legal age.  Have we in fact settled on Gen Z (which means what exactly) for the generation after the millenials or is the jury still out on that one?

 

So far it seems to be the popular one. Other names have been iGeneration, Homeland Generation (was more relevant back in the early 2000s), and a few dafter names like Plurals and Zoomers. I always advocated Candy Crushers.

Millennials went through a few names, too. Gen Y, Echo Boomers (because their cohort was almost as big as the Baby Boomers), and the Internet/Net Generation.

I don't recall Gen X having a big naming discussion. I was probably too caught up in listening to Superunknown to care.

Generation Alpha is the one beyond, for those born 2010ish or later.

[CMR | 522]

Weren't gen x always considered the forgotten generation?

[NZCollector | 107]

On 6/7/2020 at 5:45 AM, zeppelin03 said:

Gen Z will become relevant in another 10-15 years.  Generations seem to get talked about when they are of an age to have spending power and influence politics etc. 

I find Gen Z is appealed to just as much as Millennials. I'm Gen Z, going to be in my 20s in three months (which is nothing short of terrifying), and will be voting in the NZ election in September. I'm definitely on the older side of Gen Z, but am Gen Z nonetheless. 

Edited June 20, 2020 by NZCollector

[Estil | 1,265]

3 hours ago, NZCollector said:

I find Gen Z is appealed to just as much as Millennials. I'm Gen Z, going to be in my 20s in three months (which is nothing short of terrifying), and will be voting in the NZ election in September. I'm definitely on the older side of Gen Z, but am Gen Z nonetheless. 

How is that terrifying exactly?  In the US the age of 21 has always been considered a very big deal but I'm not sure if hardly any other countries the age of 21 really means much of anything.

[arch_8ngel | 1,597]

13 hours ago, NZCollector said:

I find Gen Z is appealed to just as much as Millennials. I'm Gen Z, going to be in my 20s in three months (which is nothing short of terrifying), and will be voting in the NZ election in September. I'm definitely on the older side of Gen Z, but am Gen Z nonetheless. 

For better or worse, there seems to be a growing error of how the topic is discussed in news media where as "Gen Z" denizens become of age and political relevance they get gradually lumped into being talked about as Millennials 

The whole generational discussion tends to irritate the shit out of me though, because they are arbitrary spans of time with no REAL relevance outside of noting the beginning of the baby boom following WW2.  (though YOUNG "boomers" have almost nothing in common with the formative experiences of their older counterparts -- so even in that generation it breaks down in a big way -- the technology that forms the world just moves too fast)

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

I prefer to identify as D-Generation X since I'm the same age as these guys and if you're not down with that, I got two words for ya...

Edited June 20, 2020 by Bearcat-Doug

[LostLevel83 | 86]

I’m significantly older than my wife, but she grew up with a “Boomer“ parent and we understand the same references.

Who cares what your age is. It’s about what you like and love. Screw off to those who have an agism problem. People are people.

[Estil | 1,265]

3 hours ago, LostLevel83 said:

I’m significantly older than my wife, but she grew up with a “Boomer“ parent and we understand the same references.

Who cares what your age is. It’s about what you like and love. Screw off to those who have an agism problem. People are people.

I'm just the opposite...my wife is right in the middle of the Boomer gen (1956) and I'm a very early millennial (1980; I finished HS in 1999 and started UK in 1999-2000 school year so yeah HS-->UK right on the 2000 nose) and we just celebrated 15 years.  My little boy was born in 2012 and my dearly departed little girl was born in 2005...would she be a millennial and he would be Gen Z?  

PS: I should probably mention the little boy/girl in question are of the meow meow variety  

[Kguillemette | 1,547]

I do know that the coming baby boom from couples in lockdown will be known as Coronials.

[Tulpa | 3,530]

9 minutes ago, Kguillemette said:

I do know that the coming baby boom from couples in lockdown will be known as Coronials.

Baby Boomers

Gen X

Millennials

Candy Crushers

Coronials

 

I like.

[Estil | 1,265]

There is no chance on the last two.  I don't know if it'd make sense for the gen after millennials being called Gen Z if there's no Gen Y in between (that was one of the "finalists" for the name of the millenial gen)...but so far Gen Z seems to be the top contender.  I know!  They can be called Gen Z as short for Gen Zero; the ones who were born mostly in the zeros (00s)!  

[fcgamer | 4,746]

55 minutes ago, Estil said:

There is no chance on the last two.  I don't know if it'd make sense for the gen after millennials being called Gen Z if there's no Gen Y in between (that was one of the "finalists" for the name of the millenial gen)...but so far Gen Z seems to be the top contender.  I know!  They can be called Gen Z as short for Gen Zero; the ones who were born mostly in the zeros (00s)!  

If we end up using generation z, we should reinstate generation y, which would apply to those who were actually aware of this name, before millenials ever became a thing

[NZCollector | 107]

20 hours ago, Estil said:

How is that terrifying exactly?  In the US the age of 21 has always been considered a very big deal but I'm not sure if hardly any other countries the age of 21 really means much of anything.

Just meant it in the sense that it doesn't feel long ago I registered to NA and I was 15 then. Feels like only two years but it was four and a half, but it makes sense considering I was just out of middle school when joining NA and now I'm halfway through my Bachelor's Degree. 18 is the age where you're technically an adult here. 

Edited June 21, 2020 by NZCollector