… to think that no one wants to speak up for the younger generation?

[SnowBells]

I don't know what it is. Maybe political correctness gone mad.

Pensioners who are already wealthy get winter fuel allowance, etc. Each time this kind of stuff gets mentioned on things like Question Time or something, people shout and whistle, showing complete disregard for the subject, and no real debate can happen.

I am not talking about the pensioners who aren't well off. But a huge proportion of pensioners did profit from the higher house prices - something not likely to happen for the younger generation.

Our kids have to pay to go to uni. My generation will retire much, much later. We also have to pay for inflated house prices.

And yet, there will be people who say 'but we've paid our taxes'. Well, we pay taxes and our kids will, too, but we are likely to get A LOT less back. I just feel there's a huge generational wealth divide. And I wonder why no one wants to discuss this properly? Why do people want to stop a debate before it has even had a chance to happen?

Everyone will die. Your legacy is the next generation. So why not speak up for what essentially will be your only legacy?

The boomers are in power
Jesus wept. I've heard it all now. Last time I looked, Cameron and Clegg were 'in charge', aided and abetted by George bloody Osborne. None of them are 'baby boomers'.
And as for the boomers being responsible for 'massive pornification, rising misogny and dismissal of feminism?'
FFS. Talk about scraping the barrel.

Oh and I wouldn't worry about what Melanie Phillips says, she was 'let go' by the Daily Mail, supoosedly for being too OTT in her views, pretty impressive for the Mail! She is just a big stirrer.

For the record, I don't hate the boomers, I hate the mess they have left and the fact that they have not used their power and influence to help us be heard. The mentality is very much 'I'm alright Jack', so they just wash their hands of it and insist my generation pay for all unaffordable benefits they have awarded themselves.

twofingers how is that scraping the barrel? It was a direct response to a poster who was claiming that the boomers were responsible for womens lib amongst other things, whilst simultaneously claiming that they were not responsible for anything that did not work out.
Also power does not just mean who the PM and Chancellor are, what about business leaders, other politicians, coucil leaders, which generation are the majority if not the boomers?

I'm not sure Clegg has any power at all! So we'll leave him out of it...he is pretty useless.

I'm confused about these boomer people. I'm in my fifties working hard, retirement keeps being further and further away, the public sector pension final estimate is less and less, I support my ageing parents through an ailing barely adequate NHS and declining social care system and also part fund my student children who were landed with a student debt that my generation weren't warned about early enough in their lives so we could plan for it and prevent it. I still have a mortgage owing to a new age divorce settlement and I would like to know who these mythical boomers are.
That said, my (unmarried) children have asked me if I would like to downsize so as to fund their independent homes. Well actually, no, I wouldn't. A friend of mine sold her forever home to fund her darling son's new flat in Manchester. She is now suffering from serious depression.
Yes there should be provision for the younger generation. Abolish tuition fees and encourage them to shlep it with their parents while they save for a deposit.

Would you still want to send 40%+ of young people to HE as well as abolishing tuition fees? How would that be funded? Would you bring back grants? Allow students to sign on in the Summer like they used to be able to?

I think we should start by making sure that kids are ready for work aged 16, as they used to be. Instead of still being woefully immature into their 20s.

Oh do behave Joven lol.

I said we live on a tiny island because, er, we do live on a tiny island. To be honest I have no idea what exact ratio there is for housing/land but it's pretty obvious to me that we have a high population density and this is what ultimately matters. We have a similar population as France but France is a much larger country. We are more akin to Germany who also have high house prices.

Given we have a high population density do you genuinely think we can expand continuously? The answer is obvious and unless we concrete over everything then social mobility is going to slow down. There's no such thing as infinite growth.

But how is my generation (I'm 40 lol) actually pulling the ladder up from you yoofs and since when are people thinking that you don't exist? I have no control over the price of my houses or condemning anyone to anything.

No-one is listening, funnyperson. The majority of people on this thread have made up their minds that people born between 1948 and 1964 are responsible for all the ills of the younger generation.

Typical divisive bullshit - just like Melanie Phillips IMO.

Those is power now are not Boomers, as has already been said.

Women's Lib began in the late 60s and I "signed up" while at university at that time.

Both my DCs are your generation but they are buying their own homes and neither work 50 hours a week. So not "all" your generation are in the position you describe. They also find time to be politically active and go on demonstrations.

If you care enough about the wrongs in society you find time to do something about it.

(that last post to northeast)

You haven't answered my question twofingers and regarding listening pots and kettles?

technotropic how many times, the birth rate is less than replacement rate, house prices are high due to artificial scarcity and there is plenty of room. Just 6% of UK land is designated urban, and of that the 2.something% a pp quoted as accurate in terms of actually built upon, i.e. not parks, gardens etc.

donna totally agree that it should not be 40% at Uni, it devalues degrees AND trades/apprenticeships etc. It's not necessary.

My mum would be really cross to hear those say that women's lib began in the sixties. Her and her generation were seriously into women's rights in the fifties, and the suffragettes and women working in the war well before that.

morgause sorry but I know a number of FTSE 100 CEO's they are all definitely boomers, and all definitely with power!! As are council leaders, many politicians,senior academics etc. Not sure who you think IS in power...Or has been in power for the last decade and a half for that matter

womens lib started over 300 years ago, the boomers were just noisy, and then let everyone down!

Sorry, morgause I also missed you assertion that I didn't find time to do anything about this. I do everything I can to improve things, including being trustee of a charity for disadvantaged young people, presenting to national government on this type of issue, protesting and petitioning whenever possible, and I do all of that in my spare time, around a job that is high pressure and international. So I totally agree with you that if something is important you make time for it. Many of the people I know do so too. This is why it grates to be told 'young people are just whining',as it is patently not the case whether disadvantaged or not. We are asking for your help and an acknowledgement that we are not lazy, feckless good for nothings.

northeastofeden

Sorry but the uk is one of the most densely populated countries in Europe with about 250 people per square kilometre. We may only have a small percentage of houses to land but who on earth so going to live in the middle of nowhere when petrol prices and congestion are a constant nightmare.

techno two things, firstly being the most densely populated is not the same as being overpopulated. The UK population also has a declining birth rate, so dependent on immigration laws, it is unlikely that we will remain as densely populated. However, and this is my second point, we still need more houses now, and given the number of empty homes, unoccupied buildings that could be repurposed, and brownfield sites there is no need to build in the middle of nowhere.

Cameron, Clegg and Osbourne are all boomers. The UK baby boom was different to the US one.

northeast

A quick google would suggest otherwise. To be honest I don't know the figures on brown sites or unused/unoccupied properties but doubt it's going to sustain our projected growth.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-23618487

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/11/06/britains-population-increase_n_4224673.html

Somehow, it isn't difficult to imagine that in the same family you might find both people who think that young people are a bunch of lazy whingers and those who think that everything has been ruined by a bunch of "boomers".

Perhaps in this situation family therapy would help?

northeast I've worked with young people all my working life and am a volunteer counsellor for troubled teens, so my finger is well on the pulse of how young people feel. Your assertions don't sound like the feelings of any young person I know.

Women's Lib as an organisation began in the late 60s in the USA. To say anything else is just daft. The women's suffrage movement began in 1872 in the UK. Before that women were unable to organise and their only way to power was by wealth or marrying wealth.

You do your cause no credit by stating outright untruths because people who know the truth will discount everything else you say as well.

Some of my generation were greedy, as are some of yours and as are some of every generation. Unfortunately they are the ones who often end up with the power. To blame an entire set of people born post WW2 for all the evils of today is disingenuous to say the least.

Plenty of young people today are doing fine, buying their own homes and in good paid employment. A lot more aren't but to say the entire generation is suffering is untrue. To talk about getting rid of pensions is pointless because it will never happen, no government would bring that in. And to talk about euthanizing a generation smacks of fascism.

You can't replace disparity with fascism.

It wouldn't matter when Cameron, Osbourne and the other fool were born. They are from very wealthy families the same as most of those in positions of power. They and those that came before them are to blame not the rest of us.

We are the parents and now grandparents of the 'young' how can we not care about them.

Some of the 'young' are also very lucky and have parents who are able to play 'bank of mummy and daddy'. Others see this and are . Mine aren't that lucky.....I can provide free childcare and help with DIY so that is what I do.

the problem is not how much land is currently used for housing but how much we depend on imports for food and energy security.

• we only produce about 60% of our food - we need to able to survive only using food produced by this country.
• we need to become less depended on foreign oil and gas because this makes us vulnerable to countries like Saudi Arabia and Russia

and we are at a stage of population growth so will be more dependent on other countries, to eat and stay warm.

we already have one of the highest population density in Europe. I will like these facts later if I have time but tbh this debate is just blah blah not based on facts so for the time being I cannot be arsed.

Haven't stated any untruths, don't call me a liar, it's very rude.

Don't have time to provide you with a load of links right now, but it the birth rate is definitely less than replacement rate, and that is true across Western Europe. You can find the info freely available on the web.

morgause would you care to specify which assertions?

I have not suggested euthanasia! Or getting rid of pensions! I think you are a bit paranoid if that's what you've read into this....

The entire generation is worse off it is not a myth. As I said do go and read Jilted Generation, it's a good intro to the subject.

OP YANBU.

I think you may be labouring under the impression that all posts on this thread are addressed to you northeast. If you RTFT you will see that someone has indeed suggested euthanising baby boomers.
I've given up on this thread, personally.

northeast And you go and blame the baby boomer miners who haven't worked since the pits closed in the 70s or the baby boomer fishermen from the east coast where the industry has died. Tell them it's all their fault and they are better off than their parents or the next generations, even though they've been living in poverty for years.