Strollerderby

Is this really the worst thing that could happen to our kids? I agree that I don't like the whole "traditional values" thing. But having a stable income, spending within means, not gambling on the lottery?

Nerds are underrated!

I read the article in the Times, I sent it to my sibs to ponder. There are 6 of us: We are in descending order of age; an artist, a writer/editor, an artist & art teacher, a musician & artist, a writer & teacher and an animator. Our mother was an artist & art teacher and our father is a very successful artist. In good times we wore designer duds and lived in Europe for a year and went to boarding school and our parents bought homes with all cash payments...in leaner times  we wore second hand clothes and  travel involved visiting grandma and Huck Finn summers at the cottage. The leaner times held as many (or more) wonderful memories for most of us. The value we placed on stuff was small. The value we placed on each other and our responsibilities to others and the world was paramount. How we respond to tighter times will affect our children's future confidence, how brave they will be in work choices and most importantly their value system.  It's important to emphasize the positives in these times.

Monica, your family sounds awesome.

Really bizarre article.  Is any generation people really "boring"?  Are people in general "boring"?  I suspect that if you find them so, the problem may be internal rather than external, ya know?

I think this is very interesting -- I see in my family the power of "depression era" thinking not only in my grandmother, who lived through it, but also may parents, who grew up powerfully influenced by those who lived through it. In a sense my siblings and I (late 30s and 40) are the youngest generation in our family NOT made more cautious by the depression. And frankly I think the "boring" characterization is not entirely off, though I love them dearly -- they clearly were more risk averse.

Having said all that, the reason that the depression was so powerful is that people were genuinely struggling to EAT and STAY WARM. These are core human needs that activate the core reptilian survivalist parts of our brains. Since the deprsssion this country has achieved a level of mass prosperity that is totally out of wack with hundreds of thousands of years of human history. For the first time pretty much ever, all of our core needs in this country are almost unthreatenable. The percentage of disposable income that is spent on food in this country went from something like 30% - 40% in the early 1900s to something like 5% today.

As painful as the recession may be in the coming years, food prices will not increase tenfold, and we wlll not all be forced to move out of our houses (luxurious by historical standards). We will just pay less rent for them, take fewer vacations and eat out less -- not exactly circumstances that scar generations.

Wow.  My children becoming responsible spenders who diligently pursue financial security and live within their means?  Doesn't sound so bad to me.  I'll tell you something else I've noticed.  My grandmother lives 'greener' than any twenty-something I know.  She's been regulating her thermostat, recycling, composting for YEARS.  She also has an extreme aversion to waste...she conserves water..she line dries laundry..she carpools..she eats her left-overs..and she doesn't brag about it on the internet - it's just how she lives.  

Another asset of this "boring" way of life?  Her house has been paid for for over 30 years.  She's held onto Gilette stock since her husband died (42 years).  She has a nice car (that's paid for).  And something she would tell you?  She's never been hungry.

Although I'm thankful my generation never had to consider what it would be like to be hungry - maybe we would have been a little smarter and responsible and grateful if we'd actually seen 'hungry' people like she did.  The Depression kids grew up to appreciate everything they had.  WE grew up w/ everything and are never satisfied.

You're so right, that girl.  It seems like the more we have, the more we want... I've long wondered if it's a form of addiction.

ChattyDaddy, your last paragraph there sounds wildly optimistic to me.  I think you're forgetting that for millions of Americans, taking vacations was ALREADY out of the question, and even a slight increase in food prices (which has been steadily happening over the last few years) will cause a great deal of pain for a lot of households.  No one -- absolutely no one -- knows what the coming few years are going to bring, and hyperinflation certainly isn't out of the question.  We're pretty much on the path that brought down Zimbabwe.