Baby boomers?

[vetran]

Not sure you can blame the 'Baby Boomers' for the state of the nation.

That the Government failed to plan beyond the next election or invest for the long term is not their fault.

[mrdonuts]

if BOB would just get of the phone and do some work it would be great

[zoco]

John Major was really the only PM we've had who could be said to come from the baby boomer generation (though a quick Wikipedia check shows he was born in 1943); Blair and Brown were born in the 50s and Thatcher much earlier before the war. Before Thatcher the country was run by old men, and post Major by young trendy New Labourites. So who ruined the country?

Hang on a second.

I thought the definition of baby boomers was those born between 1945 and 1965? That's certainly what I have in my mind - can't remember where I've read it and I can't be bothered to look - but one thing s for sure & that's that baby boomers were born AFTER the war so you are wrong in your assertion. Major wasn't a baby boomer but all that have followed up to Cameron are.

[MicrosoftBob]

Not sure you can blame the 'Baby Boomers' for the state of the nation.

That the Government failed to plan beyond the next election or invest for the long term is not their fault.

Failing to plan, is planning to fail

It's entirely their fault

[SussexSeagull]

Problem is successive generations of politicians did nothing to reform pensions until the current incumbents had no choice.

There is a certain element of Baby Boomers who look down at the generations who came afterwards not appreciating that their paid for degree, job security, house got at a knock down price and final salary will never be emulated but to accuse them all of it is untrue.

[PurpleGorilla]

Baby boomers?

There is a certain element of Baby Boomers who look down at the generations who came afterwards not appreciating that their paid for degree, job security, house got at a knock down price and final salary will never be emulated.

Now we're starting to get somewhere...

but to accuse them all of it is untrue.

That is fair, I concede I was over harsh and generalising.

FWIIW it is the silver surfer off to golf on Monday morning retires I am really bothered about.

Respect to everyone on this forum, apologies to any I may have unintentionally offended.

Off to get a crapachino and free wi-fi.


Laterz

[Zero Liability]

Not sure you can blame the 'Baby Boomers' for the state of the nation.

That the Government failed to plan beyond the next election or invest for the long term is not their fault.

You can blame people for not holding the government accountable, for voting in stupid policies that aren't properly digested, yet "sound" or "feel" good, for ignoring sound economics, for basically not caring who pays the price for the policies they vote for as long as they get theirs, for ignoring the motives and incentives that face the political class, for overestimating or taking at face value the pretence to knowledge of the technocratic elite etc etc.

The government can only get away with what it does when the populace is tacitly or actively supportive of it. Not that everyone is to blame, far from it, as in any given democracy (and especially the British system) there's always a large minority that didn't vote on particular policies and such. I think one of the worst habits in this country is voting along tribal lines.

[vetran]

You can blame people for not holding the government accountable, for voting in stupid policies that aren't properly digested, yet "sound" or "feel" good, for ignoring sound economics, for basically not caring who pays the price for the policies they vote for as long as they get theirs, for ignoring the motives and incentives that face the political class, for overestimating or taking at face value the pretence to knowledge of the technocratic elite etc etc.

The government can only get away with what it does when the populace is tacitly or actively supportive of it. Not that everyone is to blame, far from it, as in any given democracy (and especially the British system) there's always a large minority that didn't vote on particular policies and such. I think one of the worst habits in this country is voting along tribal lines.

In which case us youngsters should be put to the sword, we allowed B'liar to ship in jihadists and cheap labour, mortgage us to the hilt and raid the pensions.

The Baby Boomers got free degree education (on the grounds they would pay more tax), they took the pension they were given instead of demanding lower pensions to pay for government excess.

[Zero Liability]

Well I agree that you can't pin this solely on the baby boomers. It's not like the younger generation is much keener on tightening the belt. I think the issue arises in that we're not going to have it as easy as the baby boomers, which understandably causes some measure of envy.

[xoggoth]

Quite z. And mortgages at 11% plus.

Every generation blames the one before. Probably rightly, because mankind always cocks things up and never learns. In 40 years somebody will be blaming this generation for returning the UK to a tribal society, barely room to stand up and rule by a dictator in Luxembourg.

Cue for a song:

Mike & The Mechanics - The living Years - YouTube