The Revenge of Generation X with Kurt Cobain (Video)
We’re the middle children of history…. no purpose or place. We have no Great War, no Great Depression. Our great war is a spiritual war. Our great depression is our lives. ~From the movie Fight Club
In the midst of the endless cycling of Flock of Seagulls and Culture Club videos, featuring she-men fluttering in front of the camera in outlandish costumes, with whimsical hairdos, wistfully abusing synthesizers on MTV in the late eighties and early nineties, a pressure was building. My generation was coming of age and chomping at the bit to burst on the scene like a volcanic explosion. And then it happened.
The gate blew open, and flew off the hinges, when a three-piece band, from Seattle, grabbed the baby boomers, and the greatest generation by the ears and screamed, “Time to quit sucking.”
The Greatest Generation had given us nightmares populated with mushroom clouds on the horizon. The Baby Boomers gave us hippy-dippy, pie in the sky, unworkable ideations of peace and love, disco and then the unbounded greed of the free market and cheesy commercialism. We gave them Nirvana, and put them on notice that the rules were about to change, because theirs didn’t work.
Gen X was to be the generation of the authentic. Postmodern, multi-perspectival, pluralistic deconstructionism was the cleansing agent we offered to scrub all the bullshit away from America’s eyes so that the territory ahead could be better seen.
And then, one day, Kurt Cobain crawled into a bath tub with a shotgun and blew his head off. We graduated from college in the middle of a Republican, trickle-down fueled recession. The mosh pit lost its steam. Oh well, whatever, never mind.
We are close to, or in our forties now. Some of us have had kids. Some have gone to rehab. Some have done both. But if you have made it this far, Gen X, you know now that our strengths and talents are not in standing out front and leading the charge. There simply are not enough of us to make the loud, out-in-the-open demands and changes that the Boomers have made and Gen Y is poised to make.
Besides slipping in and out of each day, marinating in a cocktail of absurdity, what’s a Gen X’er to do? Boomers have a lock on the market they are constantly wrecking and, irony of ironies, are making it impossible for themselves to retire. Gen Y, raised on positive vibes and psychotropic drugs to cure their various insanities that didn’t exist when us Gen X’ers were kids, will take the reins from the Boomers.
Face it X. This world, outwardly at least, will always be about them, not us. We had our time, and it ended in a splatter of blood and brains on a bathroom wall in Seattle. Our place will always be behind the scenes, tinkering and tweaking, to do our best to keep it real, and to keep the world from completely sucking ass.
Most significantly, our place and purpose is to undertake what really is the only solution to all that ails us: to find our own personal paths to salvation, and let everything else roll out of its own, unfolding accord. Ours is an inner conquest and exploration, and that’s where we shine.
In the final analysis, there is no way up and out without going inward, and that’s what’s real. And that’s where we don’t slack.
I wasn’t the first baby boomer born, but definitely in the first 2 or 3 million and I have experienced a few of those moments when a generation speaks, and they all do.
I turned 40 this year. I grew up with the Brat Pack (still watch Pretty in Pink every now and then, Ducky was da bomb), Robert Downy Jr. pulling a flash-forward in Less Than Zero. My childhood was riddled with yoohoos and “The Day After” nuclear holocaust nightmares.
Funny enough, though, when Nirvana hit the scene, I liked Pearl Jam better. It’s only in the past 5 years or so that I really took a listen to Nirvana, and said “damn, yeah, that ’bout summed it up.”
Good post, Lawyer. And you’re right – there were never enough of us to influence policy – we pretty much take the leftovers now.
I watch Pretty in Pink for the Dad-Daughter talk at the end.
Oso, haha, I watch it for Duckie doing Otis Redding 🙂
Ha! There was a Pearl Jam vs. Nirvana thing. I had a chance to see this band that know one had really heard of playing for free on campus. They were called Pearl Jam. Good show.
Fantastic analysis! Of course being an X-er myself I’d have to side with you. We can’t advance in our jobs because the boomers won’t (and now most can’t) retire and make room. We’ve had to become proficient at many different careers to get by, constantly reinventing ourselves for the new moment. Through it all, we are at least genuine. We are the ones holding the spotlight on all the idiocy and if we can’t be a force of change, we can at least be a voice of conscience.
Lawyer, you have been doing some serious thinking when you are driving to the western part of the state. You nailed it!
I remember when Nirvana hit the scene. The music industry was stale, tired, and used up. Hair bands and Pop crap with lyrics that were disposable as Kleenex. Nirvana pushed all that opaque glop aside and turned the page to the next chapter.
Great post Lawyer!
Collin,
absolutely great post, as well as great analysis. Good objective analysis, from your generation across the generations.
I’m a Boomer too and we could easily be called the Entitled Generation. The Greatest’s looked out for us, hoping we’d have things better than them. Taken as a whole, we did have it far better than the previous generation and again as a whole, we felt it was our due. So much hoopla around us. As such, many of us missed that there WERE other generations coming up, so busy were we with trying to achieve our appointed destiny’s and finding the world had failed US!
I’m rambling and saying things which may only make sense to me,another Boomer trait!
Good job man.
I think the X’ers you are talking about here that wanted to change the world have, for the most part, instilled that in any offspring they had. We are more tolerant, thanks to you guys being willing to open up lines of communication that your ‘rental units may not have had with you. Not the whole, you are special because you are you talks, but open talks about anything and everything. Although, my daddy did tell me, I was special because I am me all the time :).
As a Y’er raised by ‘rental units that were boomers with a conscience, I will shout loud for all X’ers that don’t, won’t or are not able to. No worries, my generation is going to change the world, we are, really I mean it. Hmm, where have I heard that before? Anyway, knowing that people like me are the future, that should scare the mess out of anyone to jump into the fray. I think that no matter what generation you belong to, it sometimes ends up being them vs us anyway. Since this is such a really interesting topic, I sent the link to the old goats that are my aunts, see what they have to say.
=^..^=
I do think that some X’ers like us bloggers are X’ers of a different color or breed from the X’ers who are taking or going to take a backseat to the Y’s. We are the radical voices who are admittedly small in numbers but loud in our messages of resistance against injustice from the likes of Bush and Reagan…via our use (and abuse) of the “Internets” as Bush said. Keep it going, Lawyerman, fight the good fight, and let’s hope I don’t have to hire you for your professional services anytime in the future.
That reminds me. MMA really needs a lawyer for potential pro bono work. We are getting our very own phone number next Tuesday and we are going to start televising newscasts directly to the web magazine.
When the heck are you going to join our team Tee? You are a great writer just like the rest of the team and you need to be a part of the next great adventure that is MadMikesAmerica. Send me an email when you are ready. You know you want to….
I think Tee would be a great addition too. Just keep pestering him, Mike, he’ll give in eventually.
I don’t give up easily Bee 🙂
Pissing people off is irrelevant…trust me I know…;-)
That is one of the best blog posts I have seen in an age.
At 52 I am something of an older member of Gen X….
Jesus H Fucking Christ. That post hit the spot.
Thank you.
I have to agree that it is a great post, but then again all of MMA’s authors write great posts. I only recruit the best ya know, well with perhaps one exception :-).
Incidentally, and you will have no clue what this means but this is going to be in the top 10 posts of the day within 30 minutes. It is already climbing to the top.
Glad you stopped by old beaner.
Ah, I had a hunch 4D that you brandish the scarlet X. I think it was when you mentioned the cherry red Doc Martens in a previous post of yours. Solidarity!
You two need to get a room 🙂 🙂
I’m a boomer. I am convinced it is not about us but about them. It has always been that way. The reality is that each generation has its issues and its problems. Each generation deals with them as they see fit. It was and is no different for the Greatest Generation. Yes. We are getting long in the tooth but if there is one positive by-product of age it would be wisdom. So consider us, the Greatest Generation, wise, and remember, once you start collecting social security and your children start complaining about the old farts who are running the show, it is, after all, about you. Brilliant piece of writing counselor. Absolutely brilliant. You taxed my ancient brain to its limit. Not too shabby an accomplishment for such a young whipper-snapper. Great video by the way 🙂
Thank you. I was a little nervous about pissing off readers that might run across this, but hey, that’s the risk you run any time you type out loud.
Hey this is MadMikesAmerica. Risks ‘R’ Us 🙂