Kudos to Tom Brokaw and his book titled “The Greatest Generation”. Likewise, a shout-out of appreciation to my dad and all my uncles who served in the military during WW2. In fact, I extend a giant thank-you to EVERYONE from my parents’ generation who played a role in fighting the fascist regimes of Germany, Italy and Japan during WW2.
As a boomer who describes himself as a “late bloomer”, I finally have time in retirement after working concurrently in 2 & 3 jobs for the last 40 years, to offer some sobering and melancholy observations and suggestions. At the risk of being a “Debbie downer boomer”, I admit that I have transitioned from optimism to skepticism to pessimism during this 70-year journey from 1955 to 2025.
Let’s start with the superficially positive 1950s:
USA was “top dog” in the world. War was won, economy was robust, GIs were going to college and buying homes (with exception of black & brown GI’s but more about that in the 1960’s). Funding public education was cool and government over-reach was a good thing in terms of sending U.S. marshals to make sure that public schools get integrated. Believe it or not, the tax rate on the rich was high and there was a sense that “all ships were rising” in an economic tide. The only cloud on the horizon was the surprising comment by president Eisenhower in his prescient farewell speech when he warned of the growing strength of the “military & industrial complex”.
And then came the storm clouds of doubt, disorder and deception of the 1960s and 1970s and beyond:
Times were still good for us Boomers during our formative years of the 1960s and 1970s. Christmas was still fun. There were still plenty of gifts. We generally retained a blind sense of pride in the present and optimism in the future.
I recall having a sense of pride in my Catholic grammar school and my uniform of navy-blue pants, white dress shirt and navy-blue clip-on tie (which kids would snatch from you during recess triggering a chase to reclaim it).
I recall cheering at high school and college games supporting Falcon and Cardinal mascots.
I recall carefree “cruising” the streets of my hometown with my high school buddies. Engaging in fraternity pranks and beer bashes in college oblivious to the gathering storm clouds portending the economic and political decline of the USA.
We were blissfully oblivious to the crumbling ground beneath our feet, the depth of the deception and the missed opportunities. The following is just a sample of the decline and polarization that has come home to roost in 2025:
JFK assassination and the single shooter theory
All the other assassinations (RFK, Malcom X, MLK). All wake up calls and an end to the age of innocence
The race riots of the 1960s which I have recently come to understand as uprisings. In grade school, I heard briefly about the Tulsa riot but have come to understand the more accurate term Tulsa massacre. Only on a visit to Georgia as an adult did I hear about and appreciate the meaning of the Trail of Tears suffering of Native Americans on a forced march from Georgia to Oklahoma
The Gulf of Tonkin incident off the coast of North Vietnam which justified the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution escalating the Vietnam War engagement when in reality it was a friendly fire incident that was covered up
Speaking of cover ups….Watergate (Nixon)….Iran Contra affair (Reagan)….Monica Lewinsky incident (Clinton…embarrassing but nobody died because of it)……Invasion of Iraq (Bush…never did find those alleged WMDs Weapons of Mass Destruction)
Traumatic international events and failed military adventures: Vietnam, Iran hostage crisis, Somalia (tragic Black Hawk down incident), Middle East mayhem (beheadings, terrorists, Syria, Libya, 911, Iraq, Afghanistan, and most recently Ukraine).
Promises broken and allies abandoned: Moong people in Vietnam, Kurds in middle east, Afghans, Ukranians, Palestinians who are NOT Hamas terrorists)
Nixon’s removal of the gold standard for our monetary system thereby untethering our currency enabling a fiat currency encouraging unfettered deficit spending ever since.
Enron scandal….Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme…Sackler family big pharma opioid epidemic…2008 housing/stock market crisis and the bail out of the big shots who were too big to fail
Last, but not least, the gas crisis of the 1970s and our dependence upon fossil fuels and dependence on foreign oil sources. Jimmy Carter encouraged energy independence, self-sufficiency and conservation of limited resources but nobody listened back then (or even now). I was cognizant of Ralph Nader and his Naders Raiders efforts to combat pollution and protect consumers but like the rest of us Boomers, we unfortunately never moved him from the sidelines of the American politics and society. I now have a more favorable view of Ross Perot who railed against astronomical national debt and made a strong run as a 3rd party candidate but fell short because just like Ralph Nader, he was perceived as a “spoiler” and everybody tacked back to safe, centrist politics.
So now I’m a Boomer who’s in the twilight years of my own life and what might be the twilight years of my country (unless we wake up from our sleepwalking off the approaching political and economic cliff)
On a personal level, I have lost my appetite and enthusiasm for…..
Mascots
Parades
Fireworks
College, pro-sports and the Olympics (though I still have favorite teams and appreciate athletic accomplishments)
Blind faith in…..
Higher education thanks to college debt
Housing market and the real estate-developer-financial complex thanks to the being infected by commodification and speculation
Medical-Health Insurance-Pharmaceutical complex given their unholy alliance to keep everything conveniently complex and costly
Corporations despite all their “green washing” and “feel good” public relations commercials
Traditional politicians who continue to be addicted to corporate funding and remaining oblivious to the crumbling status of the American economy, politics and society
The sun is setting and the long dark night of decline is approaching but there is still time during these twilight years to turn this ship around. That’s why I’m dedicated to fighting this slide to a political and economic abyss. I’m hoping that fellow Boomers and the rest of society get on board. There’s still time if we acknowledge the reality of the decline of our personal and national status. We need to make the most of every opportunity by focusing on innovation and bold thinking with an eye to the long-term arc of history rather than supporting the status quo or sticking our head in the sand or living in the misguided rear-view mirror.
As always, I seek any constructive, solution-based feedback. Check out additional blogs on my website www.dunnwriteswell.com. My perspectives and observations are also infused in my novel Mall Child.
Dunn Writes Well 