Why are the boomers considered a more liberal generation then the WW2 gen
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  Why are the boomers considered a more liberal generation then the WW2 gen
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Author Topic: Why are the boomers considered a more liberal generation then the WW2 gen  (Read 940 times)
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Computer89
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« on: June 14, 2017, 01:25:14 PM »

LIke I have heard that from so many people, and that is just un-true cause when the GI generation controlled politics from the late 1930s- early 1980s the Democrats dominated american politics at nearly every level , and as soon as the Boomers started to have a large influence the GOP and economic conservatism made a comeback.


I get that the 1960s were way more liberal then the 1950s , but the people who controlled American politics in the 1960s was the GI generation and not the boomers.
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Nyvin
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« Reply #1 on: June 14, 2017, 03:43:30 PM »

It was the Greatest Gen that was really liberal, the people that first elected FDR.   The Silent generation came of age around the 1940's and turned out to be much more conservative.   The Boomer gen probably is "more" liberal than the Silent gen, but that's not saying much.
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The Self
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« Reply #2 on: June 14, 2017, 04:33:34 PM »

Indeed, the primary reason that the 1960s were 'more liberal' than the 1950s is simply that the GI Generation was coming into power and displacing the 'Lost Generation' of Truman and Eisenhower, which was always fairly reactive collectively, if you put much stock in such things.
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Computer89
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« Reply #3 on: June 14, 2017, 04:58:04 PM »

Indeed, the primary reason that the 1960s were 'more liberal' than the 1950s is simply that the GI Generation was coming into power and displacing the 'Lost Generation' of Truman and Eisenhower, which was always fairly reactive collectively, if you put much stock in such things.


Voting power wise the GI generation was already dominant by the late 40s, and Truman was a pretty liberal president as well . The 1950s were conservative (except on economic issues ) because of Red Scare , other then that the 1950s weren't that conservative .


In fact the 1950s were more liberal then the 1980s ,2000s and in many ways the 1990s as well.
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Virginiá
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« Reply #4 on: June 14, 2017, 05:01:42 PM »

It's just a perception issue. I frequently see the 60s and all the protests/movements mentioned, but overall I think way too much importance is placed on that. If that is how even half the Boomer generation thought, I do not think we would have had the drug war, no?

The reality is, a majority of the Boomer generation has always leaned towards Republicans (overall)
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Beet
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« Reply #5 on: June 14, 2017, 05:12:15 PM »

Older Boomers were more liberal than younger boomers. People forget that half the generation was born after 1955.
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Computer89
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« Reply #6 on: June 14, 2017, 05:26:36 PM »

It's just a perception issue. I frequently see the 60s and all the protests/movements mentioned, but overall I think way too much importance is placed on that. If that is how even half the Boomer generation thought, I do not think we would have had the drug war, no?

The reality is, a majority of the Boomer generation has always leaned towards Republicans (overall)


And the boomer generation revived conservativism after it had been dead since the early 1930s.
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Technocracy Timmy
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« Reply #7 on: June 14, 2017, 05:38:25 PM »

I think there's another important difference between boomers and GIs.

The GIs grew up in a society that was ravaged by an economic depression and their calling in life was a collective effort to fight in WWII. This would be what shaped their attitudes for the rest of their lives. Their political attitudes were focused on creating and maintaining civic institutions. Outer-world driven activists were the norm and the collective effort of Americans was more important than individual acts.  Social issues were generally agreed upon and politicians seemed vaguely similar in their core beliefs. Society and our poltiics had a clear driven consensus and politicians argued about how best to achieve a society that strengthened our institutions.

Baby boomers grew up in a very stable civic society. This stability required conformity and this felt stifling to the boomer youth who didn't understand the need to be so rigid. As they came of age, boomers set out to break this conformity. They sought out spiritual endeavors and other inner driven activities which they believed would bring more culture and liveliness to society. The era of sex, drugs, and rock n roll. The consciousness revolution. In many ways the mid 60's-mid 80's could be thought of as another Great Awakening in American history. As a result, civic institutions were to be distrusted, and instead it was "values" which were to be debated. Republican baby boomers fueled the rise of the Religious Right in the 70's and 80's, and the smaller (but just as noisy) liberal baby boomer cohort fueled the rise of the New Left.

Ever since baby boomers began exerting more and more power over our political system starting from the 1990's, our politics has become more polarized, more values based, and more aggressive. This is because baby boomers have always been the generational aggressors. When they were young, everybody over 30 was the problem. Today, everybody under 30 is the problem. By the mid 90's, it was clear that our political discourse had changed. Gone were the days of Reagan and Tip O'Neill making deals and joking around. Now we had Clinton and Gingrich drawing battle lines in the sand and engaging in political fights back and forth. Two boomers had replaced two GIs; and the difference was noticeable.

By the 2000's, the transition was complete. The boomers had ushered in the red state-blue state divide. Politics since the 90's had become increasingly more focused on personal values and social issues. Wealthy socially liberal states like New Jersey and California were now solidly Democrat, while the poorer, more socially conservative regions of the country (Appalachia and the Deep South) were staunchly Republican. Contrast how these states had voted in the 1960's and before. Maintaining and rebuilding civic institutions had been long gone. Politics became more partisan, more aggressive, etc. President Donald Trump was ultimately a culmination of many of these trends.
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Cory
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« Reply #8 on: June 14, 2017, 06:27:40 PM »

^^

Perfect. Saved.
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All Along The Watchtower
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« Reply #9 on: June 14, 2017, 08:20:05 PM »

Because Boomers currently dominate America's institutions, and both liberal and conservative Boomers are very much interested in maintaining this narrative (the former for obvious reasons, the latter so that conservative whites of all ages continue to be politically motivated because they're outraged that the year isn't 1955, the Counter-Culture/Cultural Marxists are a thing, and Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, or Ronald Reagan isn't President).
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