Boomers : the men and women who promised freedom and delivered disaster

Journalist Andrews debuts with a scathing critique of the baby boomer generation’s “dismal legacy.” Describing the “boomer revolution” as “the most dramatic sundering of Western civilization since the Protestant Reformation,” she examines the fallout of the 1960s in bracing profiles of six public figures. In Andrews’s view, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs represents Silicon Valley’s mix of “idealism and obnoxiousness,” screenwriter Aaron Sorkin embodies the ideological conformity of Hollywood, and economist Jeffrey Sachs personifies the hypocrisy of American policy makers in their continuation of colonialist practices under the auspices of liberalism and globalization. Andrews also cites the ubiquity of online pornography as evidence that the sexual revolution backfired, claims that race relations have stagnated and even gone backwards in recent years, and blames liberal Supreme Court justices for “demolish[ing] long-standing precedent... [in order] to give their humanitarian sentiments free rein.” She concludes with a passionate, albeit despondent, call for millennials to “break free” from the influence of the 1960s and stop believing that “narcissism is the highest form of patriotism.” Camille Paglia, Rev. Al Sharpton and Sonia Sotomayor also are given a pasting. "Baby Boomers (and I confess I am one): prepare to squirm and shake your increasingly arthritic little fists. For here comes essayist Helen Andrews." —Terry Castle With two recessions and a botched pandemic under their belt, the Boomers are their children's favorite punching bag. But is the hatred justified? Is the destruction left in their wake their fault or simply the luck of the generational draw? In Boomers , essayist Helen Andrews addresses the Boomer legacy with scrupulous fairness and biting wit. Following the model of Lytton Strachey's Eminent Victorians, she profiles six of the Boomers' brightest and best. She shows how Steve Jobs tried to liberate everyone's inner rebel but unleashed our stultifying digital world of social media and the gig economy. How Aaron Sorkin played pied piper to a generation of idealistic wonks. How Camille Paglia corrupted academia while trying to save it. How Jeffrey Sachs, Al Sharpton, and Sonya Sotomayor wanted to empower the oppressed but ended up empowering new oppressors. Ranging far beyond the usual Beatles and Bill Clinton clichés, Andrews shows how these six Boomers' effect on the world has been tragically and often ironically contrary to their intentions. She reveals the essence of Boomerness: they tried to liberate us, and instead of freedom they left behind chaos. "For the first time in American history, a generation is worse off than their parents. With their overthrow of tradition and authority, the Baby Boomers claim to have been humanity's greatest liberators, but their children would happily trade that so-called liberation for a little less debt, the chance to own a home before fifty, and a shot at extracting some commitment from the bosses and romantic partners who view their relationships as temporary. In this book, millennial journalist Helen Andrews calls the Boomers to account. With wit and conviction, she presents profiles of luminaries who promised much but failed to deliver, including Camille Paglia, Aaron Sorkin, Steve Jobs, and Sonia Sotomayor. In covering the mighty works of these titans, Andrews reveals how their lives and their generational idiosyncrasies have secretly deformed--in plain sight--our society and our successive generations"-- Provided by publisher