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Forget Boomers and Millennials, blame Gen X for world’s woes, says columnist

Jul 18, 2019

An Australian opinion writer has argued it’s time Generation X start shouldering some of the blame. Source: Getty

Baby Boomers and Millennials are often pitted against each other, however an Aussie columnist has now argued that “it’s time to start blaming Generation X for things”.

Writing in The Guardian, Nick Evershed said the generation – born between 1965 and 1979 – need to start taking responsibility for some of the world’s problems, pointing out that many of the world’s current political leaders actually fall into this age range.

“In the generational wars, people are sorted into two separate but equally important groups: millennials (AKA Gen Y) and baby boomers (AKA boomers),” he said. “For some reason everyone forgets about Generation X, and also whatever we’re calling the generation after millennials.”

He added: “They’ve been in positions of power for a while now, and terrible think-pieces that fan the flames of generational warfare should start to reflect this. The main thing to note is that there are a lot of Gen Xers there.”

Evershed then went on to say in Australia, Scott Morrison is our first Gen X prime minister, adding: “While the boomers have largely overseen the climate crisis, it’s a Gen X prime minister who now has no effective policies for meaningful cuts to Australia’s emissions.”

The author went on to name other Gen X leaders around the world, such as Justin Trudeau, who has been prime minister of Canada since 2015, and New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern, adding that the mother-of-one and her government have been widely praised for their response to the Christchurch massacre, which left 50 people dead and more critical in hospital.

Evershed concluded: “And if I understand basic physics, it’s almost certain that Gen X will only continue to become more prevalent in positions of power.”

It’s fair to say, the Baby Boomer and Millennials battle is nothing new. In fact, a recent report claimed the younger generation, who are reportedly largely to blame for food wastage, has a lot to learn from over-60s who are incredibly savvy when it comes to wastage.

Meanwhile, another study found those aged between 25 to 34 are much more generous than Baby Boomers, with most volunteering their time to worthy causes and digging into their pockets to provide financial support.