Gen X, Gen Z, And The Crisis Of The Soul

“And then we’ll all have a Christening for Rosemary’s baby.” – Last Action Hero

They call me “The Exorcist” at the liquor store.  After I leave, all the spirits are gone.

The kids today have a lot of challenges.  Generation Z and Generation Alpha have had a very significantly different childhood than most people reading this post.

For me growing up as a Gen X kid, we were very, very free.  I regularly came home to an empty house when I was in kindergarten.  The first time I let myself into my house with my own key, I was in third grade.  The first time I stayed overnight by myself (in winter, no less) I was in fourth or fifth grade.  By the time I was in high school I didn’t even see a parent three or four nights a week most weeks since I was going to school in an apartment about fifty miles from Wilder Mountain.

I certainly didn’t raise myself, but Gen X was pretty free range.  We left the house when we got up, and got home, dirty, muddy, and sunburned when the photodetector turned the yard light on because that was Ma Wilder’s definition of ‘dark’ in the ‘be home by dark’ direction.

Life is like a warranty – it runs out at the worst time possible.

I certainly used several of my free hours to do things that were things my warning label said not to do, and certainly would have voided my manufacturer’s warranty had I goofed up.

We were also pretty awful to each other, at least in middle school.  I have long maintained that kids in middle school are the worst people on the planet:  they have learned how to bully people by digging at their deepest insecurities, but they haven’t learned enough empathy to not do that.  See?  Absolute worst people on the planet.  I know, I was one of them.

I won’t dwell much on my specifics for this post – this isn’t about me, but about a generation that was given great independence from the start.  Many, many generations had it far worse than Gen X, since at no point when I was 8 did Pa Wilder seriously mention selling me off to the mines to move explosives so that valuable miners wouldn’t be injured.  Again, he may have mentioned it, but not seriously.

You’d think that being the first generation born after the pill was invented and abortion was entered into the sacraments of the Left, that Gen X would have been the most wanted generation in history.

No, not really.

What’s Gump’s password?  1Forest1.

Many parents that were often more interested in themselves during the “Me” decade of the 1970s.  In fact, Gen X was born at the intersection on a great societal upheaval of Woman’s Lib convincing women they didn’t want to be mothers.  Or wives.  That was also the beginning of the cult of the no-fault divorce as well.

Society’s feelings are often transmitted in the media, and let’s look at the roster of Gen X villains:

  • The baby from Rosemary’s Baby was a Gen X baby.
  • So was Damien from The Omen
  • So was Regan The Exorcist.
  • Although Michael Myers from Halloween was technically a Boomer, when he first appears he’s a kid, the same age as Gen X at the time. Same with Jason Voorhees.
  • Who opens the door in Poltergeist? Gen X.
  • The vampires in The Lost Boys? Gen X.
  • Everybody in Scream.
  • Oh, and when we grew up? The Faculty.
  • I think the shark from Jaws was a Boomer, so we’re off the hook on that one.

I started downloading Jaws the other day, but my computer keeps dying after one megabyte.

I don’t know what it was about Gen X that made people think of Satan when they thought about us.  I’m pretty sure that other kids weren’t quite as bad as I was.  Except Damien.

I can’t speak for other generations, but I’m not going to complain about my experience being a part of Gen X.  Yes, I was bullied, but I got tougher.  Yes, my parents gave me a lot of freedom, but Pa Wilder missed very few wrestling matches and rarely missed a varsity football game, even when a three-hour drive was involved.  I knew I was loved.

Coming out of high school, I felt (and still feel) that the limiting factor to my life is . . . me.  I feel the ball is in my hands.

From observation, kids today (on average) don’t have near the opportunity to be free range that we as Gen X did.  And, at least around Modern Mayberry, they aren’t bullied.  People are nice.  The kids are nice.

Maybe . . . too nice?

The best thing about taking money by bullying kids is you can buy yourself something nice.

We have created a fundamentally different generation with Gen Z and Gen Alpha.  Heck, what’s the best way to ground a member of Gen Alpha?  To make him go outside and hang with his friends in real life, away from his electronics.

I sense (and I could be wrong) that a lot of Gen Z and Gen Alpha has never had to face real adversity.  Instead, they’ve lived their lives with a sense of impending dread and massive confusion amidst the greatest material and information wealth the world has ever seen.  Starvation in the United States, and, for the first time ever, in the world, is virtually unknown.

World hunger?

It’s a solved problem.  There is more than enough food for everyone in the world right now, and the only starvation that occurs happens in war zones or is politically motivated.

Yet the GloboLeftElite has put into the minds of the kids today that the world is doomed.  They’re feeling higher levels of depression than kids from the Great Depression.  Suicide is their second highest cause of death.

Gen X had “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’”, while Gen Z and Gen Alpha have “All Good Girls Go To Hell”.

Yet, my generation had Mutually Assured Destruction while Gen Z and Gen Alpha have Climate Change.  At least the Soviets were the bad guys in MAD, but in Climate Change?  Every human is the villain, oh, and we’re deeply in debt, robots and immigrants are going to take their jobs.

Gen X is so old our Social Security number is in Roman numerals.

Gen Z and Gen Alpha have been taught to hate themselves and humanity, and it’s so bad that they don’t want to have kids.

More than anything, this is a crisis of the spirit.  My generation was vilified as the Anti-Christ incarnate, and we responded by getting married and having children and getting by in life.

Did we make it?  Yes, I think we did.  Will they make it?  I think so, though, for many, their road is tougher than ours.  Weak men make hard times, and I think that’s where we’re at.

But, hey, think of all the great memes they’ll make!

Author: John

Nobel-Prize Winning, MacArthur Genius Grant Near Recipient writing to you regularly about Fitness, Wealth, and Wisdom - How to be happy and how to be healthy. Oh, and rich.

38 thoughts on “Gen X, Gen Z, And The Crisis Of The Soul”

  1. I wanted to be the first to find a typo so I didn’t wait to read the whole thing:

    For me growing up as a Gen Z kid, we were very, very free.

    Freedom was for us Gen X, whatchoo talking’ but Willis?

  2. I have to assume a lot of bad stuff was going on when I was a kid in the 70s and 80s (Class of 1990) but we just didn’t hear about it as much. There was an innocence in your childhood because we were not inundated with stories of child abduction, teachers molesting students, priests molesting everyone, and all of the other crappy news that we get in real time today. You can understand some of the overprotective tendencies of modern parents, if you spend time on the internet it certainly seems like the world is a far more dangerous place than it was in the 80s.

    1. Class of 86 checking in.

      There was an innocence in your childhood because we were not inundated with stories of child abduction, teachers molesting students, priests molesting everyone, and all of the other crappy news that we get in real time today.

      Not an insult but an observation- maybe you weren’t connected to media then?

      I was a paperboy from about 82 to 85 and would read the paper everyday before throwing them (sorry for the late delivery everyone). The McMartin preschool case had the World mesmerized and that was when the catholic abuses were commmg to light. Our parish had its own scandal, bout it was Filipino priests banging the rectory housekeeper ( I thought I just wasn’t a cute enough altar boy). The Day After had us convinced that we were all headed for a nuclear wasteland future.

      But what we didn’t have that I think is a hallmark of the later generations despair? Dystopian young adult fiction. I have been an avid reader all my life and cannot recall modern fiction as depressing as hunger games or other series whose name escapes me (revenant, covenant, eh?)

      I read Rosemary’s baby in. 6th grade and it scared the hell out of me but didn’t leave me worried about the future.

      Anyway, another good one John, but I think this is first I’ve heard of gen alpha. Is it just me or are the generations getting shorter? I mean everyone I knew growing up was a boomer or an x, and some GG in the mix.

      1. We had teen dystopian fiction. had it, it just had to compete with all the Problem novels. Gen-X was the first to have dedicated YA fiction too. In hindsight that was a mistake. It opened the door to a lot of pervy stuff. Remember Judy Bloom?

        The covers were lousy, though, and no-one made them into movies, so GenX teen dystopian fiction lacked reach.

        Andre Norton, The Day of the Drones, Z for Zachariah… Good times.

    2. Exactly. And the ever-present Child Protective Services threat. Don’t want your kid to be exposed to the LGBT propaganda?

  3. The newest generation is gaining my respect, since many are not lapping at the trough of public opinion and understanding how nasty humans will be. That, and a crappy economy is a stark reminder of reality when that first job shows how much the parasites of government suck from their ability to survive. I’m not seeing many that like it, have flickering moments of acuity, and are not so willing to help those that are not productive.

    Maybe I have false hope, but it’s better than the alternative thoughts. People usually like liberty, and there isn’t much to have these days. A younger, stronger population wanting freedom is what it will take to keep it all in place, and I’ll help them every chance I get. I have lots of good advice, and I can offer it without looking like a doddering, somewhat senile old man.

  4. My generation was vilified as the Anti-Christ incarnate, and we responded by getting married and having children and getting by in life.

    Who is vilifying Gen X in this way? The vast amount of intergenerational vitriol that I see is reserved solely for White Boomers, who are literally accused of starving their loser children out of the house by their mid-40s, actually demanding that they support themselves.

    Every generation thinks they had it worst, but I have no more sympathy for whiny Gen X latchkey kids than I do for self-absorbed Boomers. Gen X had the best music (holdover from late Boomerdom), the best movies in their youth, the best sports personalities to worship and dynasties to follow, and they got to witness the birth and explosive growth of digital entertainment. Gen X got to play Donkey Kong AND play stickball at the schoolyard, before pedophile abductions chased all the kids indoors. Did you really want to come home to June Cleaver in the kitchen, sitting your arse down to do your homework the moment you walked in the door?

    You lucky phuckers grew up in pre-pc glory times, watching the Simpsons and Beavis and Butthead, Ren and Stimpy and all the other cable shows that could not be made today on a dare. You still met potential dates in meatspace and didn’t become tethered to your cellphones until well into adult life. Boomer teens scrambled and fought to find employment, any employment, and Gen Y and beyond were not considered mature enough to be hired until their mid-20s. Gen X landed in the sweet spot – work if you want to, but with both mom and dad cube-slaving away to afford that uppity middle-class lifestyle, you weren’t expected to.

    Yeah, I get it. Too much freedom can be as dangerous as too little. And Hot Pockets and Lunchables are a crime against nature. But I’ll bet your mother never raced home from pilates to feed you liver and onions.

    1. Wow. Delusional.

      For ‘pretending’ to not be bitter, from the scenario you’ve built in your head, you are seriously bitter about the life of “Gen X”. I’d even ponder you’ve never met a “Boomer” much less a self absorbed one… If you weren’t a troll you’d easily realize that PCs came out long before the Simpsons were a bit on the Tracy Ulman show.

      You don’t appreciate the time you grew up in, you’re mad that other generations grew up in “another time” with what what?! Pre-PC, no. We grew up IN the PC times, you’re delusional. The freedom was great, bullying and being bullied created so many interesting times that sucked and built character, it helped you learn who you were and what you wanted or needed in life. Perhaps those were immediate and not long term, but ultimately those lessons taught you character. There’s a funny thing about face to face, or you may call F2F interactions, you actually get to see facial expressions, body stances, arms, legs… all those things that were part of “growing up” instead of “oh my God, microagressions, gibs me pills”.

      Freedom is NEVER dangerous. Freedom only threatens the people who want you to have none.

      Have you ever looked at the ingredients in Lunchables or Hot Pockets? Have you ever compared if other countries allow those ingredients in the products in their country? Have you ever wondered why gluten sensitivity has gone up so much, or type 2 diabetes, or name another malady? Have you pondered how food used to be? Have you ever considered who makes the ‘rules’ on what should be, from what seeds, grown, or what’s sprayed on them…. Have you ever considered that the people who run “Pharma” control doctors and never cure, just create long term subscribers… and how they just move back and forth from boards to boards of these entities making millions from the taxpayers.

      I’m old, I see what’s going on. I’m working locally to help my frens to get away from HFCS, seed oils, and the rest ((they)) are trying to push on us…. You can do the same.

      Stop sitting there and feeling sorry for yourself and blaming everyone else… you know the only person that can help you that will make you happy.

      It’s you.

      Good Luck and God Bless…

    2. Oh, no, I’m sorry if it came out that way. That “unwanted” part really gave us a lot of freedom that I relish. If I could pick a generation to be in, I’d pick Gen X. Everyone since has had it FAR worse. We were lucky.

  5. Our boy wasn’t allowed to roam outside the neighborhood without a machete. It came in handy when he and the local cougar came face to face in the brush.

    As for teachers “molesting” kids, two of my classmates married teachers two weeks after graduation. The real problem is that we define 16 year old young adults as “children”. And then we expect them to behave as both children and adults. The mixed expectations, the frustration at artificial restraints, drives them batty. Well, crazier than a 16 year old normally would be.

    1. Several of my classmates (guys) were banging the same student teacher. They didn’t seem to be upset.

  6. The most destructive policy of the last 40 years is the rise of “Family Services”, so-named apparently after seeing the TV episode “To Serve Man”. This agency, in every state, exists solely to threaten to take your kids away from you at the slightest pretext, and throw them into a foster care system worse than any Victorian orphanage.

    The second most destructive policy is “Zero tolerance” for bullying. This only exists to silence and punish the victims of bullying. Boys are taught to shut up and take it, because the authorities will always, ALWAYS side with the bullies against you, and help to make your life even more miserable.

    No-fault divorce comes in third in the trifecta of destroying children and families.

    1. My girls (15 and 18) both think the zero tolerance policy on fighting and bullying is the single worst thing for their generation. Very few kids in their age group have conflict resolution skills. Add in the psychotropic drugs and you have a recipe for disaster.

      I’ll add “play dates” and the very structured/organized activities the kids after Gen X (and maybe late Gen X) were brought up in also is a significant contributor to the dysfunction of Gen Z (don’t know about Gen Alpha on that one). The vast majority that I’ve dealt with really can’t deal with free form activity.

      1. How to host a kid’s birthday party:
        1) Invite your child’s friends over for a party.
        2) Let them play for two hours.
        3) Cake and presents!
        4) Clean them up.
        5) Leave them alone to play for an hour.
        6) Send them home.

        2. Your list of planning bullet points is pretty much EXACTLY how we do *grandkids* birthday parties.

          The kids love it because it is such a novel experience (compared to over-structured events, and often over-structured and over-scheduled daily lives)!

    2. Exactly. Get the state involved, and you become at the mercy of The System. Throw in a divorce and that System comes into play.

      Bullying is awesome. I encourage it.

  7. I think a big part of the generational difference is in the type and number of chores that we were expected to do as kids (and how that shaped our work ethic). How many kids do you see out mowing the lawn these days? I was on the front end of Gen X and had to mow the grass from I was 10 yrs old (and I had it easy compared to what my dad had to do when he was a kid). Many (but not all) of the neighbor kids were mowing although that number dwindled over my youth. These days I never see any kids mowing and I doubt most would even know how to start one up.

    One of my coworkers first noted this observation as he had opened a mowing business on the side and was making VERY good money doing so. He said he had no shortage of customers and was able to charge more simply because there were no kids driving down prices.

    1. heheheheh – Pugsley is getting ready to move out and I think he feels The Mrs. and I won’t be able to run the house without him.

    1. 10/10. Excellent. If she’s looking for an employed engineer, The Boy is still single. For now.

  10. The whole name the generation bs was created by the globohomos as another way to divide people.
    Saying when someone was born defines them is sheer stupidity. But its sure working.

    1. But it isn’t. The time in which you grow up determines a lot of the way that people view the world: Pa Wilder was a banker, but grew up in the Depression, so he would never, ever, lend money on a mortgage that the family couldn’t pay back. Contrast with 2000s.

  12. Great article (as always, John).

    I am squarely Gen X (having lived the bulk of my formative years in it) and my experience was similar to yours: roaming the neighborhood/woods all Summer, riding and/or walking the two miles or so to my grammar school daily from sixth grade, long Summers of “Get Out and Do Something”. Like you, I was not as conscious of the larger world and the undoubtedly bad things that were happening in it – but I think that was a) A conscious choice of my parents to not have that be a part of our lives and b) there no such thing as The InterWeb that channeled that directly into our lives.

    Did I raise my children completely that way? Not necessarily. Part of it was just the way the world was when that event occurred: we lived in the suburbs rather than a more rural setting, schools were much farther away than a walk, and (frankly) society allowed more risky characters greater freedoms than they had heretofore. We did manage the media thing until they found it themselves (at some point, you cannot prevent it).

    Am I hopeful about the future? It is a mixed bag. On the one hand, the social messaging is stronger than ever. On the other hand, they get to see in real time the outcome of those decisions. And perhaps in some way are able to “opt out” of them in a way we could not.

    (Also, we really did have the best of everything: best books, best movies, best music, best cheesy television series.)

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