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After all the heated arguments on everything from technology and social media to work and the economy, who could've predicted that baby boomers and the younger generations would find something in common?
But last month, X (formerly known as Twitter) user Girl Fieri (@realgirl_fieri) asked all the non-boomers on the platform to share their most boomer-esque complaints, and the replies immediately started pouring in.
Image credits: realgirl_fieri
So we decided that taking a look at the submissions would be a nice change of pace to the never-ending discourse on intergenerational differences. Or, in this case, similarities!
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#2
just a random panda 1 year ago
this is so true! I'm a teenager and I have a lot of these complaints
Usually, baby boomers are perceived in quite negative ways. Or as Lawrence R. Samuel, Ph.D, who is the founder of AmeriCulture, a consultancy dedicated to translating the emerging cultural landscape into business opportunities, said, they are often seen as dinner guests who’ve eaten and drank pretty much everything set out on the table, leaving only scraps for those who came later to the party.
"Generational hostility is nothing new," Samuel wrote. "There is in fact a long history in America of a younger generation differentiating and distancing itself from their parents’ generation. (It actually goes back to the 18th century.)"
"As a people, we are very much interested in making our own mark, blazing our own trail, and doing things our own way. From this respect, it was inevitable that Gen Xers would set themselves off from baby boomers as a cohort and attempt to carve out their collective identity. The same was and remains true for millennials and Gen Z," he explained.
#5
Little Wonder 1 year ago
That's usually a scam anyway, it means the company can donate to charity and get it deducted from taxes.
However, as we can see from these posts, common ground isn't that hard to find.
In fact, Bobby Duffy, Professor of Public Policy at King’s and formerly Head of Public Affairs at Ipsos, argued in his book 'Generations' that cohorts are not as important as most think and that the vast majority of issues and attitudes do not map neatly onto the definitions we have (which themselves are somewhat arbitrary, especially on a global scale).
He suggests that most of the polarizing issues facing the world today split the generations as well, and that the overarching societal shift towards more liberal attitudes on things like gay marriage, female employment, etc. are the result of opinions shifting across all generational groups over the last 30-40 years and are not the byproduct of a sudden influx of liberal youngsters into the voting booths.
#6
Little Wonder 1 year ago
A while ago I said something about sitting outside looking at the stars, and was called ableist (because some people can't get outside to do that). Like, i'm sorry about that and all, but we're at the point now where people really CAN'T say just ordinary mundane stuff without being called out.
#8
#9
David 1 year ago
I've never been to place with a QR menu that couldn't give you a paper menu if you asked. More places went to QR during covid and also to cheap copy paper menus. If they hand you the paper they toss it out if you leave it. If you use a QR menu there is no waste. I don't personally like looking at the menu on my phone screen but I get why many places implemented them.
The idea that the generations have way more in common than has been widely assumed is also supported by Ipsos Global Trustworthiness Monitor data.
Looking at how the different generations prioritize different criteria for judging whether sectors and brands are trustworthy, we can see a huge amount of common ground between the generations and little real division.
#10
Barry Meyer 1 year ago (edited)
Agreed. If you need headlights brighter than a cop then you don't need to be driving in the dark.
#11
Little Wonder 1 year ago
Local petrol station is pushing their app super hard. "Pay on the app! Get the app! You can pay on the app!". Yeah, or I can go inside and pay there, without giving you my details.
Yes, there is some variance in the strength of feeling that different generations have for different criteria; baby boomers, for example, are far more likely to prioritize reliability and openness/transparency than younger generations, while Gen Z and millennials rate more of the lesser priority issues more highly such as value sharing, intent and the importance of leadership.
#13
Michael Largey 1 year ago
I've been against electronics controlling the place I live since I heard the words "I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave."
But despite these differences and variations in the strength of feeling, all four generations regard the same four trust drivers; reliability, openness/transparency, responsibility, and value for the price, as the most important and in the same rank order.
#17
Judy Reynolds 1 year ago
Yes, I talk to everyone. I was a cashier for about 10 years, and the habit of making a bit of conversation with everyone has carried over into the rest of my life.
If we turn our attention to looking at how the different generations judge the trustworthiness of different industry sectors and institutions, again, we see that the usual narrative of younger generations being less trusting isn't the case at all.
The older generations trust most sectors less than millennials or Gen Z.
#23
Phillip Moderow 1 year ago
Yes, they have. And incredibly oblivious to what's going on around them. Does an elderly person need help opening a heavy door ? Oblivious. Did you notice that person looking for their car ? Could care less. Did it occur to you that someone might be behind you while walking through a door ? Eh, not my problem. People today SUCK !
Baby boomers and Gen X are less likely to trust financial services, energy, oil & gas, banking, social media companies, and consumer-packaged goods than those younger than them, with more significant differences between the elder and younger generations in each case.
#24
Glen Ellyn 1 year ago
I'm retired so I make all my appointments around midday so working folks can have the early morning or late afternoon spots.
#25
LonelyLittleLeafSheep 1 year ago
I'm starting to think turn signals are an optional accessory on new cars...or maybe the car maker just wants a paid subscription to use them.
#26
ginny weasley 1 year ago
Or kids playing video games with the volume all the way up cause that is the only way they can sit still and be quiet.
One could be forgiven for expecting that younger generations are less trusting of oil & gas, given the climate crisis facing their futures and the assumptions we often make about how they feel about the environment and sustainability. The same could be said of banking, with many growing up through the financial crash of 2008. But it's the older age groups yet again with the lowest level of trust in these sectors.
#28
#29
The Darkest Timeline 1 year ago
Not only do they stand side by side, they also walk with just enough space between them that you can’t squeeze between them but also not enough to get around them.
So, generational divides are not as large or as significant as many would assume.
If you too have boomer complaints (or are a boomer yourself and don't see the youth as morally bankrupt), don't worry. You might be even closer to them than you've been told.
#31
Zoey Rayne 1 year ago
That's partly because lots of them have parents who can't afford houses with backyards. Kids can't just "go play outside" when they live in an apartment and "outside" is a parking lot near a busy street. Screen addition is a problem for people of all ages these days, but let's not ignore that capitalism has made it difficult for many families to have the time and money to just relax in green spaces.
#32
Warrior Mama 1 year ago
Or live theater too? Every single performance I've seen the last few years has been interrupted by people arriving late and walking in front of me/needing me to stand up so they can squeeze through the otherwise full row of seats just as the show starts - pet peeve for sure!
#33
MadMonkey 1 year ago
My students used to talk to me before class. I adored my students and they used to flick me s*** about my college basketball preferences. They also used to call me Professor Chicken because when I got married, if I had hyphenated my name (I didn't), the hyphenated name would have sounded like a chicken clucking. They never got tired of that one. Splendid kids, the lot of 'em.
#34
Zoey Rayne 1 year ago
Yes. Also, I work at a tutoring center and the number of kids 10 and under who insist that they don't need to learn to read or do well in school because they're going to "be a YouTuber" when they grow up is disturbing. You can't pay rent trying to get random strangers to watch you play Fortnite with lame commentary.
#35
Mark Stewart 1 year ago
All well and good until you have the issue we did in Australia a few weeks ago when Optus had a mass outage for several hours putting electronic payment systems out of action, many businesses had trade impacted.
#37
Heather Evans 1 year ago
I still can't get over that my phone doesn't have a headphone jack. Whose terrible idea was this???
#38
Zoey Rayne 1 year ago
Yes! And stop leaving the carts in random parking spaces so cars don't have room!
#40
SkyDragonAerial (Aro/Ace, Cassgender) 1 year ago
Teen here, and yeah. We don't want to hear your music or whatever video you're watching. Wear. Headphones. Or. Earbuds. I SWEAR.
#41
Upstaged75 1 year ago (edited)
I choose the self checkout 100% of the time if it's available. I prefer packing things the way I want them. And it keeps me from feeling judged about what I'm buying. :) One time I had tampons, Advil, and chocolate (among other things) in my basket and when I checked out the cashier said really loud "I put all your period stuff in the same bag for you honey!". LOL!! I know she was just being nice, but it was mortifying.
#43
ginny weasley 1 year ago
Camera use in changing rooms where people are naked should be banned.
#44
Daniel Atkins 1 year ago
Yeah seems unsanitary to have one (not a service animal) in a grocery store or a restaurant.
#46
just a random panda 1 year ago
honestly, as a recent Girl Scout, we were taught both of those things
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What do you think ?
Mimi M 1 year ago
Without the divisiveness ('boomer') this just reads as common-sense complaints about stuff.
INGI 1 year ago
And that would be MY complaint!! Why do we have to label everyone as a certain generation, and use it as an insult????
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James016 1 year ago
Adverts on tv are louder than the program. Despite the stations denying it.
Jude Laskowski 1 year ago
I have to keep lowering the sound so it doesn't scare my upstairs neighbor, though I think she might be hearing impaired anyway.
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Data1001 1 year ago
Customer service call centers outsourcing to somewhere like the Philippines because it's way cheaper. This is not *always* an issue, but it is when you cannot understand what the rep is saying because their accent is so thick. The place I work (a very large corporation) has its help desk in the Philippines, and I dread every time I have to call them, because I end up having to tell the person to repeat themselves at least a half-dozen times, and even after that I'm still not totally sure what they said to me.
Shane S 1 year ago
Same. The last time I called IT, it was so annoying listening to the rooster crowing in the background.
Load More Replies... Mimi M 1 year ago
Without the divisiveness ('boomer') this just reads as common-sense complaints about stuff.
INGI 1 year ago
And that would be MY complaint!! Why do we have to label everyone as a certain generation, and use it as an insult????
Load More Replies... James016 1 year ago
Adverts on tv are louder than the program. Despite the stations denying it.
Jude Laskowski 1 year ago
I have to keep lowering the sound so it doesn't scare my upstairs neighbor, though I think she might be hearing impaired anyway.
Load More Replies... Data1001 1 year ago
Customer service call centers outsourcing to somewhere like the Philippines because it's way cheaper. This is not *always* an issue, but it is when you cannot understand what the rep is saying because their accent is so thick. The place I work (a very large corporation) has its help desk in the Philippines, and I dread every time I have to call them, because I end up having to tell the person to repeat themselves at least a half-dozen times, and even after that I'm still not totally sure what they said to me.
Shane S 1 year ago
Same. The last time I called IT, it was so annoying listening to the rooster crowing in the background.
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