In Depth
What a Long Strange Trip it's Been
Aging Baby Boomers face political shifts, life-cycle stress and an uncertain financial future.
Illustration by James Collins
As the clock hand swept us into the first moments of 2006, the "leading edge" of the Baby Boomers—a group 78 million strong, born between 1946 and 1964—began to turn 60. In response, the media has turned its anxious attention to analyzing the Boomers' physical, mental, and fiscal health, prognosticating the impact of this milestone birthday on the nation.
Though aging itself is nothing new, the graying of the "youth culture" kids may merit the attention it's receiving. Those who came of age in the '60s and '70s spent their formative years in an impassioned era of social change that encompassed the Moon Landing, the Vietnam War, Watergate, feminism, the Black Panthers and the Stonewall Riots. And while today they dominate the nation's political, academic, business and cultural leadership positions, in a few short decades, Boomers will be rarer than Elvis-sightings.
In retrospect, is there truly anything different about their generation? Will their legacy include a lasting impact on American politics and values—or will they mostly be remembered for giving the world a few catchy "oldies" tunes? (My strangest time-warp moment? Realizing that the elevator-music I was hearing was, in fact, an orchestral version of "I Can't Get No Satisfaction"—sung by Mick Jagger, whose birth in 1943 makes him too old to be a Boomer.)
The topic hits close to home. Despite missing official Boomer status by one year, I'm married to an uber-Boomer born in 1950 whose life path—sixties hippiedom, multiple careers, divorce, remarriage—is shared by millions of Americans. Sandwiched between the needs of aging parents and school-age children, many of the Boomers' concerns are my own. I set out in search of a broader perspective and, fortunately, didn't have to look too far. Sociologists David Almeida, Duane Alwin, and Melissa Hardy—all at University Park—were eager to share their different takes on the Boomer phenomenon.
Next page: "Talkin' bout my generation"