Baby Boomers Growing Older, but Will They Grow Up?

There's been a lot of press lately about baby boomers hitting retirement age and growing older. There's always a lot of press about whatever baby boomers are going through because there's just so many of them. Still, one wonders what this kind of national attention and societal mindset has done to the boomer psychology and the non-boomers who love them.

Millions of people have grown older and retired and it wasn't news. Millions of people before the boomers learned to face the end of their careers, possible ill health, and grandparenthood with quiet aplomb. Instead of following the modest and noble example of the greatest generation before them, the boomer psychology tends toward self-centered narcissism, as is encouraged by national news on boomers.

Not only did the boomer generation pioneer thinking for oneself and protesting war, they also relaxed social norms that protect children being born into intact families. Not only did boomers assert their right to self-expression and discovery, they also pursued careers and self-interest at the expense of their latch-key children and soaring divorce rates.

And now that boomers are entering retirement and grandparenthood, many are not letting go of their careers and are not making time to develop real relationships with their grandchildren on a regular basis. They would rather play golf and fight aging “every step of the way.”

Boomers, as Pulitzer Prize winning author Anna Quindlen quotes, “No one ever said on his deathbed, ‘I wish I had spent more time at the office.’” I would extend that to say, “No one on his deathbed has ever said, ‘I wish I had spent more time on myself trying to look or be younger.’”

Boomers, it’s all about friends and family. We non-boomers miss you, but we have given up trying to change you. We’ll be waiting here for you now and on your deathbed. The rest is up to you.

Written by a Gen-Xer, whatever that means.

Round 'N Round

Merge Records: "Round 'N Round (video)"

I love Lou Barlow. I love his cover of Ratt's (infamous) "Round 'N Round" from his Emoh record. What I did not realize until today, was that there is a video for it. It's not too exciting or anything, but I think it captures Lou's intent and feeling well.

Rock on.

-Harry

Mistaken Cost of Nuclear Plant

The most common mistake in Cost-Benefit business models is not including all of the cost factors in the model. This mistake jumps off the page from President for Progress Energy Jeff Lyash's letter on the cost effectiveness of nuclear energy.

While nuclear energy has known cost effective benefits over fossil fuels, rarely do these cost-benefit analyses include factors such as the cost of protecting the plant from terrorist attacks (which they have refused to do), the cost of transporting the nuclear waste out safely on trucks and trains (also vulnerable to crashes and attacks), the cost of storing nuclear waste, and the cost to the environment for storing the waste, and the drain on state water resources.

Plus, in the event that there is an accident, the consequences should be weighted much higher for that potential cost. In nuclear power, the costs of human mistakes are much higher than for other types of fuel. Furthermore, until Progress Energy can assure fire regulators that their protocols are practiced and safe, the NRC may fine or block new projects, also escalating the costs for nuclear power. For these reasons, including possible terror attacks and nuclear waste’s toll on the environment, the cost of nuclear energy is much higher than business leaders think.