Solving world problems one beer at a time

I hear it at the prison work camp all the time.

"Your generation (that would be us slack-ass pot smokers born between 1965-1977) just aren't involved like we (those self-agrandizing, 'we changed the world, so nonny, nonny, nonny' Baby Boomers) were back in the 60s."

I sit near some hardline Democrats in the office, one of which is a yippie (old hippy turned yuppie) and every year when election talk heats up they bemoan the fact that our generation hasn't grabbed their torch and set fire to the political structure. They ask if I watch Hardball, Olberman, MSNBC, CNBC, CNN, blah blah blah. And when I tell them no, but I did see a hilarious clip on Youtube that invovled a dude bowling a midget into milk carton pins they just roll their eyes and ask what is coming of our country if this generation can't take things seriously. But really, how can we take the Boomers seriously when they give us folks like Bush, who bombs everything; Clinton, who bangs everything; and John Ashcroft, who bugs everyone?

Tally up the last 20 years and what do you get? A country that's messed up politically, economically, and judiciously, all thanks to those damn hippies from the 60s.

The last two presidents - Baby Boomers.

The majority of lawmakers now - Baby Boomers.

CEOs, city government, county government, commissions, board presidents, liquor store owners, strip club owners, all helmed by Boomers by and large.

With a house full of slightly inebriated (12 hours of drinking, but who's counting) Charger fans - and one Cardinals fan because Bolt fans need a token representative - see, we support affirmative action - politics and the country's direction was the choice topic. The last time I was in such a intellectually stimulating conversation at 2 a.m. I was crammed into a UNLV dorm room taking bong hits while hypothesizing whether Scooby and Shaggy were gay potheads or just really fond of each other and high-fat sandwiches.

In the kitchen of the house I own - Boomers often miss the fact many Xers are buying homes at a younger age than back in their LSD-soaked days - we covered more ground than a CIA-sponsored carpet-bombing mission in some oil rich country. Who are the viable Democratic presidential candidates (sorry Hilary, you didn't make the cut lady)? Jesus freaks are no different than Islamic jihadists. We're a jaded bunch now who trusts the media about as much as we trust the politicians that they're reporting on. In our book they're as crooked as a three dollar bill. And while solutions weren't found there was a better understanding of how our country has reached dysfunction level 5 (I think that's an orange threat level, or chartreuse at the very least).

Our generation realized long before the Boomers figured this out that the news media has been playing a game for nearly 30 years, and the viewers are the game pieces. It manipulates the game board and molests the pieces (the viewers) to fit the vision it wants to portray in the newspaper and on the television. But its in real trouble now as the media slowly learn that we get more information via alternative methods - the web, The Daily Show or the Colbert Report. Humor has as much truth in it as Chris Mathews or Bill O'Reilly. My question is how are those outlets any different than the talking heads on the other alphabet soup channels?

Among our little group of think tankers Saturday night, time and again I brought the conversation back to the Boomers. They deserve plenty of thanks for setting the stage for future generations to question their leaders and fight for what's right. But they must take the blame for where our country is today as well, rather than shift it on to past generation or the next generation (us). The past didn't deal with the problems and all we do is bitch about the problem.

Am I naive to believe they didn't talk the same way about the Depression-era generation? Hell no. The '50s, for as milquetoast as Leave it to Beaver made that decade out to be, there was plenty of hinky shit going down in Washington, there just wasn't an open pipeline of information flooding Americans' homes back then. But to think we're not as involved as the rock-throwing, fire-hosed hippies of the late '60s is wrong. We may not hit the streets like pack of angry daytime hookers, but dammit we want this country to get right, and we want to be allowed to watch midget porn without some snoopy Boomer hacking my IP address everytime I (um, I mean someone) venture over for some little people fun.

Boomers should also remember one thing: Guess who'll be deciding your welfare in 20 or 30 years? That's right! Treat us well and we won't put you in adult diapers and take you to the old folks home before your time.