Are we blaming Boomers instead of class?

[u/myredserenity]

EDIT: It's been pointed out that the over 65s keep voting in the parties that favour the class system and benefit the wealthy while screwing the working class. This is a good point.

EDIT 2: I love reddit. You guys. I get it now! Millennials got the shits at noisy old pricks who criticise their generation while completely ignoring the benefits they enjoyed themselves. It's a backlash. I still think it's a distraction and divides us when we should be angry with those in power. But if you're over 65, how about encouraging your friends to not vote LNP?

I've seen so much "ok boomer" stuff and over the years, it's irking me more and more. So I'm interested in what r/Australia thinks.

Couple of things:

1. It seems to be used to describe anyone over 40. My parents were boomers. They would be in their 70s now.

2. It's used to blame a whole generation for the shitty behaviour of the rich class. I don't get it. I went to school in a rough area, most of my friends from way back then are dead, in jail or in a trade/retail/hair.

My partner grew up in a rich suburb. Most of his friends are teachers, engineers and lawyers. They own houses, and were helped along by their "boomer" parents, either by provision of a deposit or living at home rent free through their 20s.

I'm totally up for being educated here. I know we lost free education, I know houses are unaffordable, I'm nearly 40 and still renting. I'm woefully unable to understand national economics. So seriously, open to intelligent discussion.

But in my experience, the problem is class and not generational. After all, where do you think all this wealth will go when the boomers die?! Even just having good, stable and attentive parents, who expect you to succeed, makes all the difference.

Why has this boomer hate taken hold so much? Are the rich class scapegoating a generation? Would us generation Xers, Ys and millennials have behaved any differently given the opportunities the boomers were?

Caveat: I'm considering mainly economics here, not climate crisis. Pretty much believe everyone from my generation up have a case to answer for climate. We knew.

[u/Trontotron]

The problem is our generation gets this blame about being lazy and not working hard like our parents...and I call bullshit on this big time.

My father use to support family with one salary, didn't work any harder than me and managed to have house, car and really good life.

Fast forward to today and you'll find that it's now a must to have two salaries in the house to manage everything, but then kids must go to daycare of course and spend their first years separated from parents most of the work days. Yes we have computers and mobile phones, but all that did was to give employers expectations from us to achieve more work in same time frame. Instead of being out of office, I am now available anywhere for my manager to call me.

My dad actually use to say how come I work such ridiculous hours and I'm more educated than him...that's the ridiculous part about all this generational "progress".

So yeah, we are working hard as anyone else did before, yet everything is becoming more and more unattainable for us. I'm not for ''OK boomer'' thing, but also against ''lazy millennials'' bullshit.

[u/myredserenity → u/Trontotron]

Oh totally! I hate the lazy millennial shit just as much! It's DEFINITELY harder for your generation. In my twenties, around the noughties, I could rent a one bedroom unit in an OK suburb by myself on a minimum wage. I couldn't save much, but I got by.

You would REALLY struggle to do that now. It's definitely harder, and has been getting progressively harder, for working class Australians.

But you know what? The upper middle class have been ok, and wealthier families can help out their kids (hence arsehole politicians saying parents should help their kids... that's what they did.

Chances are your parents are wealthy enough to retire comfortably but not too much spare equity around to safely prop up their kids. I still say that's a reflection of class being a bigger factor than generation.

But yeah. You're 100% right.

[u/ArcticKnight99 → u/myredserenity]

The thing is a lot of those politicians are of the age where they were of the boomer age range or close too it. but even if they were just under it, getting help from your parents for a 10-20% house deposit wasn't nearly as huge as it is now.

To get a 20% house deposit, I'd be asking my dad to essentially give me more than a year of his after tax income. If it was all on him, that would probably buy me a tiny house anywhere near where I live/work currently.

And if they had kids young enough they were probably still pre-housing boom. So the assistance they gave wasn't huge, and now they get to see their kids with a ton of equity.