You Say OK Boomer! What The Hell Is That About? My Opinion
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ส.ค. 2024
- The term "OK Boomer" is a catchphrase and meme that emerged in popular culture in the late 2010s particularly among younger generations. It is often used to express frustration or dismissiveness toward members of the baby boomer generation (typically born between 1946 and 1964) - older individuals who are perceived as out of touch with the concerns and values of younger generations.
What did it mean?
"OK Boomer" has been used as a way for younger generations (such as Millennials and Generation Z) to criticize or mock older generations, particularly baby boomers, for what they perceive as outdated beliefs, attitudes, or resistance to societal changes. It reflects a sense of frustration with what younger people see as resistance to progress on issues like climate change, technology, and social justice.
The phrase is employed in a dismissive or sarcastic manner, implying that the older person's opinions or perspectives are not relevant or are misguided due to generational differences. It can be seen as a way to shut down an argument or viewpoint perceived as outdated.
"OK Boomer" has become a popular meme and internet trend, spreading through social media platforms and online communities. It is often used in humorous or satirical contexts and has been turned into memes, videos, and even merchandise.
It symbolizes a generational divide and reflects the tension that can exist between older and younger generations, particularly in the context of debates about social, political, and cultural issues.
Stereotypes about the baby boomer generation, as perceived by younger Americans obviously are generalizations that may not apply to every individual within the boomer generation.
Some younger Americans may perceive baby boomers as having benefited from more favorable economic conditions than subsequent generations. They might believe that boomers had access to more affordable education, job opportunities, and housing markets, allowing them to accumulate wealth more easily.
There is a perception that baby boomers had the advantage of entering the housing market at a time when home prices were more affordable. This is often contrasted with the challenges younger generations face today, where rising home prices and student loan debt can make it more difficult to purchase homes.
Younger generations may view baby boomers as having had significant political influence and as being responsible for shaping policies and systems that may not align with the priorities and values of younger Americans, especially on issues like environmental protection and social safety nets.
Some younger individuals may see baby boomers as resistant to social and cultural changes, particularly when it comes to issues related to diversity, LGBTQ+ rights, and gender equality.
There is a perception that baby boomers may not be as tech-savvy as younger generations, leading to misunderstandings and generational gaps in digital communication and technological advancements.
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David Hoffman filmmaker
I think the birth of “ok boomer” came from a view difference of baby boomers compared to Millennial and Gen Z. Mainly on the economical and labor conflicts that young people face today.
Im Gen z and although my grandparents lack understanding of how much things have changed economically. I love listening to their life stories, customs, perspectives and values, the world modernized at an exponential rate. They’ve taught me a lot. They bring me down to earth and help me disconnect from my biases, fast paced life and technology in the best way possible!
Ok boomer is meant to be dismissive to someone with an “antiquated” way of thinking. A response to “back in my day”
Years ago the response was "Okay Old Timer".
Get off my lawn!!!!
Perfect explanation
I'm not sure what this particular generation was called , but my father god rest his soul was born in 1939 , and was Always sayin to us kids " back in my day I had to walk 2 miles back and forth to school in the snow , sleet , and rain , and a mile of that was all up hill..... " Also God forbid we would say we were cold at night growing up LOL... He would say " You kids dont know what cold is , cold is going to bed at night with a glass of water , and waking up the next morning and finding it half frozen " 🤣🤣 I hated hearing things like that growing up , but I'd give my eye teeth to hear it again today......
It's okay, those saying it now will become old and hear 'ok, millennial'.
I'm 62 and stuck in a boomer transitional stage, where i prefer to lift heavy in the gym, mountain biking and being on the track with my car, I'm not wanting to talk about my ailments or investments, retiring, politics or food. I'd rather hang out with youmger people than 60 yr olds
Ok so mid 50s here. I call this complaining and reminissing, or getting hung up on tiny little things, OPS. Old People Shyte. None of can help aging. Do what you can and rock what you got. I like learning new things and celebrate every day my hubby and I are alive!
Ok boomer
It's good to be alive. Keep doing what you do. Just don't push boundaries. My life as a child and teen were wasted away by depression abuse and forced isolation as a teen. I had a friend in high school who helped me to get out more and meet other people.
@@marinablack181they are not boomers but gen Jones
As a Gen-Xer, every time I find myself reminiscing about the "old days", I ultimately tend to get a bit depressed if I let myself stay in that mindset. Whether it's musing on how things have changed, or how old haunts are no longer there. But the one thing that keeps me grounded in reality is a line in the Billy Joel song, "Keeping the Faith," which is, "The good old days weren't always good; tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems." Pulls me out of my funk every time.
I try not to see the past through rose-colored glasses. Sure, some things were "simpler," but I try to remain rooted in the here and now, except for music and classic films. I'll always hold older music and films in a special place in my heart. There is a lot that could be improved today, but there is a lot of good, too, as in every era.
I also don't like generarions against other generations. We're all humans and we all go through every stage of life. I know it's considered that natural order for younger people to bash older generations and vice-versa, but I try to see individuals, rather than how old they are.
Thanks for your thoughts. I hope that wasn't too circular for you.😸♥️
I'm a millenial and honestly movies were better back in the day. I think CGI and an overzealous PC culture have made studios afraid to offend anyone.
The late 90's had some great movies like Fight Club, the Matrix, Blade, etc. that were great films that could not be made today. Even Blade's trilogy had a sad ending with the 3rd film.
Classic films like The Godfather are timeless and just couldn't have the same punch as they did back in the 70's. Marlon Brando is impossible to replicate for modern audiences. No one could pull him off.
The problem, as I see it, is that we've become accustomed to, or been taught to, "group think." Governments and their media extensions, love it. They can group us in manageable hoards. Sure, there are often similarities in groups. But we can't lose sight of the fact that when we're speaking to someone, we are talking to an individual. We all have our opinions, struggles, and set of experiences.
Yes , sheep scare me !
Agreed. Group-think people (sheep) are every bit as scary as the powers-that-be. Sheep play right into their hands -- not a good thing since they want to divide us; it makes it that much easier to conquer. (There's a reason behind the phrase "Divide and conquer.")
Astute comment. Right to the point.
"Every generation blames the one before" First line from the song "The Living Years" By Mike And The Mechanics.
Great comment & a good song.
Spot on those were/ are some haunting lyrics. You can listen as well as you hear, seems like fiction in these modern times.
I absolutely love this song! ❤
never heard the song until iI read your comment, thanks for sharing!
@@reecehightower7297 You're welcome
I actually made a video a few years back about the problematic nature of thinking of the world and these neat little generational boxes, and how really, they have sort of created this generational conflict as people start to associate and established group identities with these artificial terms with arbitrary ranges. What most people don't realize is with the exception of baby boomer (a term coined for when they started going to college), all the other generations were largely coined for marketing purposes. They are marketing terms and don't necessarily apply to everyone equally in the same way. People are starting to attach characteristics to these generational groupings, and they just don't make sense, and getting mad at each other over.
Love the videos, love your content. Just sharing some thoughts out loud.
Thank you for sharing.
David Hoffman filmmaker
Dear David and Heidi,
I have to say many thanks to both of you again. Team effort is an added A+. Also, if I may add, Mr. David, you hit the nail on the head on every point made here today. I did realize that only 8% were over 65. WOW!!
By the way, l love your gold rimed glasses and how your gestures of your right hand swings throughout this video. It reminds me of a composer directing an orchestra playing as your music flows out of your gentle mouth with words of truths about men and women and how they think differently, different genras of generations, your history in the 16 milimenter on film.
Your ability to hear those that may be fibbing is refreshing.
Emerson was one of our great writers, and so were Ralph Waldo Emerson as well Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain, throw in "Leaves of Grass," by Walt Whitman etc.
There is dark and light in all things. May we all join hands now in this pivotal moment of history, which is now this very moment, and learn a new education for the betterment of humanity.
With great respect and appreciation for all you do.
Sincerely,
Cheri
There's a certain frustration that comes with culture never being replaced or turned over. Because GenX was smaller than Baby Boomers, their culture never overcame the older generation. Baby Boomers continued to dominate who we sold houses & cars to, how we framed politics, our food choices, etc. Now that millennials are fully adults & have a different culture, it is going to clash with the older generation, just as Baby Boomers clashed with older generations. Baby boomers' 50+ year run as culture warriors is nearing its end.
Good point, from a Gen X
As a Gen Xer, I remember thinking that our generation never got much spotlight. We had a few year of stardom being called the MTV generation and all that, but it didn't last long. When I was 23 years old in 1999, the media immediately started talking about the new kids behind us, the Millennials or at the time Gen Y was popular. It's now 25 years later, and the media is still talking about the Millennials/Gen Y, and now Gen Z is added in, and in some years we will hear about Gen Alpha. Meanwhile Gen X as a smaller generation, had to fight for attention because we were always overwhelmed by so many bigger generations. The younger kids just lump us in with the Baby Boomers anyway with the whole "OK Boomer" stuff. Now that I'm late 40s and not that far from being age 50, to me generation labels have some merit of truth to them, but it's also nonsense to make such broad sweeping generalizations about people based on the generation they are part. Did some kid working in a sweatshop in 1895 or 1925 have the same silly complaints about life as teenagers from the 1940s to present day? Now pop culture landmarks are true, for instance as a Gen Xer, the late Alan Rickman will always be Hans Gruber, the terrorist mastermind from 1988's Die Hard. But to younger Millennials and Gen Z, Alan Rickman is Snape from Harry Potter.
I absolutely love being Gen X. I am perfectly fine with the older generations and the younger generations duking it out with each other. I normally just grab the popcorn and enjoy the show.
I agree that recent generations do not have the "youth culture" we did because there aren't enough of them. That is probably frustrating for some in a generation that's raised on social media with an obsession for attention.
Gen X here, congratulations on being one of the survivors! Darwin RULES!❤
I’m 59 and rarely watch TH-cam shorts. I enjoy longer videos.
Me too.
David Hoffman filmmaker
David, I really appreciate your videos, insights, and expression of common humanity here. My own perspectives are broadened at least a bit more through these. Even with nearing 50 here, I only became really conscious of even being part of a generation at all in the last few years. Previous to that I just looked at people on an individual basis, trying to see the best in each one regardless... I still do, though am fascinated too to consider these generational distinctions and designations. Hopefully soon enough more of humanity will look at these as something to truly build off of and understand and accept each other further all across the spectrum. Thank you for your own part over the years in contributing to this!
For Boomers confused by how they are negatively perceived by many young people may I suggest this great book: "A Generation of Sociopaths: How the Baby Boomers Betrayed America" by Bruce Cannon Gibney. GOODREADS review:
"In A Generation of Sociopaths , Gibney examines the disastrous policies of the most powerful generation in modern history, showing how the Boomers ruthlessly enriched themselves at the expense of future generations.
Acting without empathy, prudence, or respect for facts--acting, in other words, as sociopaths--the Boomers turned American dynamism into stagnation, inequality, and bipartisan fiasco. The Boomers have set a time bomb for the 2030s, when damage to Social Security, public finances, and the environment will become catastrophic and possibly irreversible--and when, not coincidentally, Boomers will be dying off.
I just dl'd a copy, we'll see how well it goes.
I was born in 86 and if I had a dollar for every time I've been called a boomer then I could buy a really nice car.
you must be a real prude then, you’re technically a millennial, younger than my parents lol
LOL. Now everybody with Grey hair is a Boomer. I just got mine a few years ago and permateen 30-somethings on the internet say "OK, Boomer". Uh, I was born about a dozen years too late to be a boomer even with the end date of 1963 is used.
GenX: We were 30 at 10 and still 30 at 50. Millennials: Now finally turning about 18 at 35.
"Awareness of the differences between genders" is a high contentious topic amongst parts of the youth. I miss my childhood lol....
I'm a GenXer and I wondered exactly what you think those "parts of the youth" are thinking. He says he studies men and women but what about the nonbinary. Which is what I am. When he describes how women interact I feel like I'm probably more masculine as far as listening goes.
It also hit me that he's studied how to tell stories to men and women and old and young but it might help to study how to communicate with neurodivergent people. Which I also am. Autism. Been autistic for over 50 years. The treatment has always been about how to make us more like the people who aren't neurodivergent. All the therapies. All the "cures' they're all about making us "normal". But we definitely communicate different. Sometimes I feel like an alien in these social platforms.
I do not miss my childhood. It was pretty awful.
Especially since nobody believes in gender anymore, or however is the polite way to put it...
@@LittleGrayMouse I feel like our autism can be radically different from each other -- and even the little differences can affect each of us in slightly different ways -- fueling a profound sense of alienation in us.
Not really, we now have asexual, non-binary, transexual etc. Some people are having a coniption about the latter, and it's not the younger ones.
When a male at birth male says he feels he is a woman and wants to behave like one, that is interesting. It suggests that he thinks female comprise certain behaviors or appearance. I am a heterosexual female, but I generally don't dress, behave in the way that many trans or cross dressers (not the same, of course) do. They are "more female" then I am.
As a millennial, I love long videos. I prefer them over short form videos. I feel like I’m not getting all the information I need from short ones, versus paying attention to a longer one.
I really liked the perspective of speaking as a male vs speaking as a woman. It used to be so frustrating trying to talk to my husband because he has no details in what he says it feels like I need to put the puzzle pieces together, which is fine I’m used to it now haha
I really enjoyed this video David, thanks for it!
I'm a Millennial and I think the difference between Boomers and Millennials can best be seen in the Monkee's song "Pleasant Valley Sunday." The song was intended to its Boomer audience as a critique of suburbs but to Millennials it's seen as a lost golden age. All my millennial friends want to live in Pleasant Valley where everyone owns a house, knows all their neighbors by name, and throws barbecues on Sundays. Most can't afford to live in a house, don't know their neighbors, and frequently have to work weekends. I like to host barbecues at my house and am extremely grateful because most people my age are not as fortunate.
The first 10 years of my life was spent in the 1960's as much as I loved growing up during that decade it will always be a special time in my life, from my early teen years up to today I have loved learning about the events that took place during the first 10 years of my life that I was too young to know and unawares of at the time. Thanks, David Hoffman, for this video. 😊✌🧡
I’m a millennial and I would never say OK boomer because point blank it’s a term of disrespect. It was a snarky quip from a British politician who was younger towards an older member. It was obnoxious then and it caught a fad over the last several years and it was obnoxious still. If someone says that or I hear it the conversation is over cause I realize that the person saying that is not worth being in the same conversation no matter who they’re addressing. Level up your responses don’t level down.
Those are my thoughts David, thanks for the video and take care!
It’s about your children’s generation (us) looking at what you inherited and what you left and feeling disrespected when you have the gall to say we get things wrong.
The WWII generation left you: affordable housing, affordable health care, world class infrastructure, affordable education, a working environment, wages that rise with inflation, a fair tax code, affordable amenities and necessities like groceries, a news industry required by law to check and verify information, and a functioning democracy.
Your generation has left us none of those things. Starting with your vote of Reagan, who poisoned the well by not requiring news agencies to check and verify information and his disdain for any governmental check on industry, your generation has degraded the institutions of our society to the point that your children cannot afford to buy a house, does not have wages that keep up with inflation, cannot afford to go to higher education, has crumbling infrastructure, has little recourse against large corporations, a failing environment, unaffordable medical services, and on and on.
Then your generation has the nerve to introduce arbitrary distinctions as to why those changes occurred on your watch but are our fault (we are “snowflakes” and that is why we can’t just walk into a CEO’s office and demand a job and start from the bottom up into a 6-figure position, or whatever other tall tale your generation likes to lie about.)
Our best mental defense against this, instead of having to repeatedly explain this to your generation without hearing all the insulting arbitrary distinctions you think we are stupid enough to actually believe, is just to say “Ok Boomer” and carry on. It’s a dismissive way of ignoring your insulting comments in the same way you have dismissed all of our problems because your generation’s belief is that, since the WWII generation didn’t leave those problems to you, they must never exist. “I was able to buy a home at 20 when I got my first job at an advertising agency” is the type of comment we are talking about which we constantly have to listen to: you dismiss our problems because your parents’ generation didn’t pass them on to you! You created them, passed them on to us, and then deny they exist. We younger folk simply “don’t understand hard work”, according to the generation that got paid respectable wages and took those wages away from us as soon as they got old enough to take power from the WWII generation.
Your generation climbed the ladder left by the WWII generation, then kicked it down before your children had the chance to climb up it themselves. Then your generation has the nerve to ask us to support your retirement. Your generation has been lazy and self-righteous since birth, so it’s of no surprise when you ask us to sacrifice and increase our retirement age, but not yours!
It is just too rich to hear your generation blame us for the problems your generation created, so we invented a word to dismiss you in the same way. Get it now?
How is all that for a start?
You must have more to say but that is darned good for a start. Thank you for your sharing your point of view. I hope you come to a place where you see all generations as providing the next generation with good and bad, hopefully more good than bad.
David Hoffman filmmaker
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Okay boomer.
@@peebay3515 OK shit music lover
@@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker ok, boomer. Ignore the entire post for a sloppy there are "good" and "bad" in every generation narrative
Brilliant! Unfortunately, boomers hear that and carry on with their absorbent spending habits and ignore.
As a GenXer I find Millennials going after Boomers and consider it quite unfair. GenX is my parents' generation. While I've had my differences with my parents, it's water under the bridge and I never made broad assumptions about Boomers being responsible for all that is bad in the world. In fact, I think of Boomers as making some wonderful contributions, including in the arts. Much of the music I grew listening to and still do was made by boomers like Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Talking Heads, and Devo. Or the movies of Steven Spielberg, Brian DePalma, John Carpenter, etc. One thing Millennials should take into account when it comes to Boomers is they had to contend with the social disruption caused by the Civil Rights movement and the Vietnam War, which often overlapped. When you have a friend who can't take a sip of water from the same fountain as you, or you see friends coming back in body bags or missing body parts from Vietnam, it shakes your being to the core. My father did two tours with the Navy in Vietnam. He returned home in 1968 and settled in Los Angeles rather than return to his hometown of Springfield, Massachusetts. He met my mother who hitchhiked from Chicago to come to Hollywood as she if she could get into movies. She didn't. But she did meet my dad, who came from a different background. She was born and raised in Israel her first ten years before coming to Chicago. My father grew up in the very Catholic world of Springfield, Massachusetts. While America was always a mixing pot, the social upheaval of the sixties made for some interesting couples who otherwise might never have met. Boomers my nature are a very adaptable generation. It's based on experience. My generation, X, is also quite adaptable, but more low key, our influence on the culture was also strong, but not as strong as Boomers. So now we find ourselves between feuding Boomers and Millennials, and now GenZers are going after Millennials. The blame game has got to end. We should appreciate the good things each generation brings to the table.
Hold on - this is a beef of mine.
Boomers often take credit for the Civil Rights stuff, but that the segregation and drinking fountain stuff was over and done with by JFK's Presidency, when almost all Boomers were still in High School at the latest, and the biggest birth year of boomers was 1957, most boomers were barely out of Kindergarten.
I wonder if technology is one reason why the younger generations prefer shorter content? I'm Gen X, so I remember what things were like before Cable, Internet etc., came along, but now every child has digital devices instead of books, trees, bikes, and a sunburn.
This video has nothing to do with the boomer phrase has it???
Did you not watch the video
@@notme5205 where does He Talk about OK booker?
@@F5ssLiterally halfway through it, he doesn’t say the phrase directly he talks about it.
@@F5ssoh to be such a simple mind
@@reecehightower7297 are you serious? 😂
I'm a boomer, and this is a very interesting video. Some things that stick out for me ... "Women talk in a circular fashion" 🤣🤣 This is so true! My girlfriend (also a boomer) is constantly telling me stories or anecdotes that seem to go nowhere and have dozens of irrelevant tangents. It's confusing as hell because often she goes off on a tangent and never gets back, and without skipping a syllable. What does that have to do with "X"?, I'll ask 🤣🤣 ....
"We're thinking more linearly now" ... Hmm. Might that be due to the general reliance on technology, which then controls what content we have access to, and which feeds the insatiable desire for immediate gratification?
"Men keeping feelings in" ... I don't know the answer, but was taught that this was a survival instinct we learned from earlier in our evolution. It's certainly been reinforced in patriarchal societies.
"things were better back then" ... Geez, where to start. It was NEVER better "back then", ever. We were more ignorant about wider realities perhaps (no internet), but even then, many people had extremely rough lives. The 60s blame the 50s who blame the 40s who blame the 30s who blame the 20s and so on and so on. Just reading some first-person histories will enlighten people a lot. Those who say "OK, boomer" act as if they understand everything, when they absolutely do not. One might argue that they don't even understand themselves, much less another generation and what it went through. First, there's no such monolithic entity called the boomers. Someone born in 1947 is very different from someone born in 1961, and there are all the class, race, societal, and geographical differences that affected everyone. Also, each generation and each decade is a factor in all subsequent generations and decades. Dismissing or criticizing boomers is nothing less than a cop-out for the younger generations' inability to achieve instant gratification. So they blame their elders, all the while they use expensive cellphones, have their own cars, have access to higher education that didn't exist "back then", travel the world, get everything delivered by Amazon, always seem to wear new clothes (vs hand me downs), etc. Of course this is a generalization, and I'd like to say it's not the rule. People who say "OK, Boomer" don't see the bigger picture (which seems to conflict with the example of being "in the frame"). My friends and I often have deep conversations about a wide variety of issues and fields, and these include millennials who are not all
"We like the past" ... Absolutely, because there's a sort of safety in the idea that if we could time travel we could carve out a good life for ourselves, right some wrongs, and really understand the world. Until we discover that life was a bitch "back then" and that too often people are struggling with the same old crap.
Keeping things in helps maintain the social order. Not everybody is turned on about what turns others on or how they see themselves as a unique victim. There's polar extremes of repression, but also of oversharing.
One interesting phenomenon is women oversharing their love lives on Tik Tok, which seems to be confirming a lot of the darker impressions men have.
I’m 67 and I’ve said for a long time that people remember the 50’s to be better than they really were.
WOW my husband and I are switched in your scenario. lol Also, all the women in my corporate offices speak in the way you describe that men do. I like you and your channel but I whole heartedly disagree. Not to say that NO women do this but that both men and women do this and I think it has to do with something that I do not have the time to get in to.
I was looking for this comment lol. Ur right
Semiotics strikes again!! 😂😂👍
I do agree that together women talk over and over but in the workplace we have to be more organised than that. By the way men can be chatterboxes the men in my home talk way more than me.... Delia Morris
For a lot of people history begins with the day they were born. Before that almost doesn’t exist.
When I hear "OK Boomer", I just pleasantly think about how wonderful it was to grow up in the 50's, 60's, and 70's.
Ok boomer 😊
Makes you wonder what y'all did to wreck it up for everyone else born after the fact then huh.
@@dust195 there is no uglier feeling than resentment. Try to find inner peace.
@@dust195 I agree. Built a life on the freedom their parents fought for, then took away all the security they enjoyed so their wallets could grow. NAFTA alone was enough to destroy our future.
@@dust195 we had wonderful childhoods because the Internet didn't exist. We actually went out everyday to experience life and make memories hanging out with our friends. Real friends, not just randos online. We didn't care about getting likes and still don't. We also didn't compete with others in the victim Olympics or try to be diagnosed with as many negative mental health as ailments as possible for attention and sympathy or believe that neg attention=popularity.
Touch grass & ditch social media for awhile. You'll realize your life is what you make it and nobody's ruining it for you, but you.. You and many others of your generation downs together stuff thru time in echo chambers online. Stop parroting and learn to think for yourself and be proud of who you're becoming.
Seek nature. Go see the ocean, hike the forests, skateboard or ride bikes with friends, get to really know someone in real life. Do anything that doesn't include your phone or clout seeking. You'll come to find others didn't ruin things for you, in fact things aren't truly ruined but they will be if your generation keeps going the same direction you've been heading. Each generation creates their own path, too many of yours are trudging in a negative direction. It shouldn't be that way, you deserve better & I truly hope things do in fact get better. Much better.
People don't want the young generations to feel depressed and anxious and yet it's almost as if that's exactly what many youth want because their fave sites promote feeling this way almost as a good thing while also knowing it's not. Life was so much better before it became lived online. Perhaps purposely spending more time outside and less time online is a big part of the solution.
Nice presentation! We should be more cognizant of each other's differences.
OK boomer is an expression reserved for lecturing old people who say, "When I was your age, I bought a house (in 1970, under $70,000) by working hard (in one job that they will be in for at least 10 years)." AND they refuse to see that circumstances are just different today. They should at least try to LISTEN and consider the realities of living now.
i love this man’s openness to learning from younger people while at the same time imparting the wisdom of the past
David,
My grandma God rest, her soul, she died two years ago. She was 100 years old, she used to always tell me, Moses, you gotta remember one thing, life for what it is never stays the same, we’re always evolving and changing, You never should go back to the past, I still remember that.
I am a baby boomer, I do remember when I was younger, probably in my teens, a teacher told me once about the way men think, and women think well at the time it was how girls and boys think, and basically it’s the way you described it, that’s why sometimes when I make comments on your platform, they seem to be long because at the same time I want to get to the women side of your platform, but at the same time, I’m trying to be informative as soon as I start a comment, I don’t know if I’m making sense what I said but thank you for your platform sometimes I do make comments controversial in a way, but it’s the way I think, and surely I do not want to hurt no one‘s feelings.
I was born in 1961, so I suppose I fall in the range you mention for a boomer. It has been a frustration to me through my adult life that we have built up so much debt. Early on when I was able to vote it struck me just how damaging it is to overspend, so it has been a top issue whenever considering how to vote. Regarding this issue, I can understand people wanting to blame boomers, because it was in the sixties that both Canada and the USA (I have lived in both) had their last decent budget surpluses. Today the States doesn't even have budgets anymore, they just vote for continuing resolutions to keep spending going as it is. We have handed following generations a huge problem.
When I was in my twenties I worked with some older men, and it was always interesting to talk to them about everything, because they had more life experience. I still like to get insights from those who are older than me. A great resource for anyone is all the classic writings that have stood the test of time, so if you don't find people to ask questions of, there is plenty of ancient wisdom to draw from.
Appreciate your thoughts, David. The storytelling stuff is interesting. I do like a good long form interview, which thankfully we seem to be getting more of these days. Just stay away from neews channels with their staccato sound bites!
Another Millennial here, I feel that many of us watch the content you feature because we somehow may relate to those ways of thinking. I wonder how many millennial subscribers were raised by their grandparents. Our world has changed so much. Seeing the invention of texting, touch screen, social networking etc has placed us in the position of watching the old school way of socializing dissolve, I admit I'm quite shell shocked from it still.
Gen x’er here, I appreciate and learn very much from your films. I especially like the insights from the hippies and Vietnam veteran’s perspectives. My parents generation. Much respect for the boomers.
You make excellent points. I think young people just sometimes lack hope and perspective so they get irritated towards older ones. Older ones also tend to criticize them despite the fact they are the generation who parented them😂😂😂😂
Internet and smartphones changed the culture and mentalities a lot so there is a real gap between the connected generation and the older generation who played a lot outside and only watched TV.
I think the hardest thing for my generation is real estate. Mortgages and rents are daunting!
I really enjoyed hearing your perspective David. Thank you for sharing
This is my biggest criticism with the older generations criticizing the younger, I’m always thinking this is your child or grandchild’s generation you are speaking to.
“The millennials like short form” Ha! This was particularly amusing to me because I watched the first 5 minutes of this vid when it posted this morning, then paused it and am now watching the second half (about 7 minutes remaining) just now before bed nine hours later!😅
It was too long to do it all in one go. I guess I truly am your biggest demographic lol! Then later you said “this an extremely long video for me…”
For me too! 😆
BUT I always do come back to finish watching because I absolutely appreciate your videos! They’re interesting for so many reasons, and I’m glad to have found your channel.
I was born in 73. I spent a lot of time around "Silent-Gen" and "Boomers" (obviously).
I do thoroughly enjoy your take and your work, despite not always seeing eye to eye with you.
The "Ok, Boomer" is about the older generation's dismissal of modern day concepts that have become better understood during much more recent generations. LGBTQ and gender identity/ambiguity, for example. Autism. Racial inequality. Mental illness. Back in the old days, it was much more common for people to be ruthlessly excluded and ostracized for having "unacceptable" characteristics. You even did a sad video about a lady who died lonely, undernourished and alone and was treated as a pariah because she didn't have a husband. Modern generations endure similar mistreatment from their parents, the government, education, advertising, religion and basically any influence available. The reaction? "Ok, Boomer." to older people who tend to steamroll and gaslight instead of listen and learn.
Edit: I apologize for reacting to the title before watching the whole video. The older generations still do know and value things that are very true, that I imagine don't seem apparent to younger people, with an unprecedented amount of distractions available. Going to the library vs. quickly Googling something, for example.
My aunt would always tell me don't take anyone's cigarettes she was born in 1899 one thing I do remember her saying that always puzzled me
Thank you for all you do. Wish I had discovered you earlier. I am from what some call generation Jones - late baby boomers. I appreciate your take on generational differences - I am a recently retired US and women's history professor. Thank you!!
Thank you sir… Being a boomer at 78.5 by now, I appreciate your advice. My GenX daughter has spent her years as a journalist and a Human Rights Worker and she credits me with my 12th grade education for being her inspiration.
I am 73 and like much about the 1950s. Of course, when I was experiencing the 1950s, the future was full of possibilities, and I had few responsibilities. It was easy to be optimistic. The USA was the most prosperous country on earth (We were the largest creditor nation.), the middle class hit its zenith, and our population was less than half of today’s population. We had room to build houses, and all the necessary resources, such as quality lumber. I almost forgot to mention that we had a functioning federal government that didn’t need to butt into every aspect of our lives. Of course, we still had those evil Jim Crow laws in part of the country and more subtle racial and sexual discrimination elsewhere. Frankly, I am not as optimistic as David is concerning the future of this country, but hope I’m wrong.
Thank you David! I am in a Facebook group, Gen X UK , and will say that some people look at life through a very small window. I'm British, born 1969 but my siblings were/are all boomers , born '45 - '59, our parents were both born in the early 1920's. I was a teen in the 80's but was drawn to the style and music of the 1960's and as a musician, over the years have come to appreciate the Mississippi Delta Blues of the late 1920's & 30's . I have learnt a lot from the past and use that knowledge in tandem with what I learn from my kids and grandkids.
Really good video!! You made a lot of great points. Personally I enjoy observing the world around me and people... of any age. ✌
I’m 55 retired Army Veteran.. I’m a big multi tasker ,my mom is 76. Complete opposite . It drives me crazy lol
This was almost like a first run through of a stand up comedy set. At least the men and women part.
I think the phrase originally was a response to the casual sexism and racism of previous generations. But it has become a blunt weapon to discount ideas or beliefs they don’t understand or disagree with.
*Proud BOOMER that loves your content, and I, too, see outside the screen!! We drank from garden hoses, did not wear bike helmets, and we rode in the beds of pickups and still survived!! Long live the BOOMERS!!!* 👍🤭💕
My young cousin I taught to drive. I told her she shouldn't text and drive. She said you're just old. I said yeah thats why I'm old.
My son says “you boomers have screwed up everything”. I laugh and tell him generalizations are for the intellectually lazy. Doesn’t seem to matter though he keeps repeating the mantra from some podcast he likes.
Wonderful video. I talk and talk and my husband doesn't really listen to what I'm saying but I appreciate him being there and letting me talk.
I comment on the 1950s videos because in the 1960s, we're seeing reruns. I grew up with nine older siblings born in the 1940s and 1950s.
Thank you the thoughts. We evolve and continue to evolve. As individuals and as a whole. I don't feel some of the changes are in our control. It's bigger than us. People had revolutionary change all along. Impacts in one part of society affect another. For example the Kansas Nebraska Act affected new statehood, movement toward the civil war, the treatment of American Indians,,,, it's all interconnected. The makers of laws don't always consider wide spread triggers and affects going down to the individual level.
Young people are always dismissed and disrespected by previous generations.. now we are living with the political failures of the past, there are less opportunities, people are getting poorer even though the world is richer than ever. So this all feeds into the frustration. Things might seem better in a lot of ways but we have less economic prospects than boomers yet they want to lecture about everything we are doing wrong. Yet one just look at rising cost of living and compare it with wage stagnation and see how much harder it is to buy a house and get the same quality of living as older generations.
I agree with you about everything here.
I just want to add that I think the reason the baby boomers get called out for being out of touch so often is because they seem to over estimate their understanding of the younger generations.
I often see baby boomers talking as if they understand teens and young adults in a way that Ive never personally seen from those from the silent or even greatest generation who tended to say 'im old' and 'I dont understand people now' more.
I think it has to do with the baby boomers being so much more outspoken and identifying with youth seems to be part of their generations identity. This is part of the reason you hears of grandmothers in their 70s now that don't want to be called grandma because it makes them feel old. Still, every generation has their faults. As you say as its still so valuable to see the perspectives of multiple generations to understand things objectively.
Women "speak in circles". Must be why soap operas are more popular with women. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
This Whole Video was better than the drive-thrus and the CarHop smoothies that I used to enjoy with our Drive n Theaters and Fonzi characters Big Boy🤴 🍔 🍟Love David Hoffman 👑 🐐 💯
I couldn’t help but start laughing listening hearing about men’s and women’s different methods of storytelling. Coupled with the title it reminds me of a former coworker of mine in construction. If he got annoyed with a conversation or rant within 10 seconds he’d interrupt the speaker with “is this going to be a long story?”
What the comparison made of the men’s and women’s conversation flow did just dawn on me was how many comedians very frequently will start with the punchline or a blanketed statement, then open into a story for the joke. However there’s also a large number (some of the same comedians) who will close an act with a recurring statement or punchline and come full circle to finish.
I don’t think it's so simple how peoeple think. Gender alone isn’t sufficient information
Thank you for this video. It’s always very insightful to hear what someone from an older generation has to say.
As kind and thoughtful as ever, David. Thank you for adding your voice. My parents are Silent Generation, my stepmother and in-laws are Boomers (in-laws live in the Netherlands, so it's a little different to the generational scheme in the US), my brother is Gen X, and I am an early Xennial (late 70s-early 80s), my wife is a Millennial, and my child is Generation Alpha. I've spent a lot of time with Gen X to Millennial and some with Gen Z. As an archaeologist/historian, I agree with your nuanced assessments of the past and I, too, am optimistic about the future. As an aside, I wonder whether you've ever heard of Solarpunk, a relatively recent, optimistic, ecologically oriented "response" to Cyberpunk (e.g. Neuromancer, Blade Runner), which as a Xennial is an old-time favorite of mine. You might find it interesting! Love your videos. Stay well!
My mother and I were just discussing your videos last night. She worked for the Chicago Tribune in the 70s. We've both enjoyed how you've captured life at that time(/place).
You have nailed it, David. Appreciate all that you do.
I've made a lot of comments so you can see exactly what you said is why we say "ok boomer." These answers may sound abrasive, but that's how y'all talked to us growing up, so why is it a problem when we reciprocate? Also, I'm writing this last one to say, I appreciate and respect you for sharing your opinions. You have a right to your opinion and I'm not trying to change that. I'm just giving you a perspective of how we see the boomer generation. This is by generation, not by individual... because there are incredibly amazing and gifted boomers that I could not imagine how our world would be without them. This isn't personal, it's our perspective and we have every right to it.
David you just proved “the point” of “Okay Boomer”. Generations have their own unique method of communication within the generation. In some instances, the same method can be used with other generations but there will always be some lost translation.
When the term “okay boomer” is used in a conversation between a younger person and older person, it means there will no longer be any communication between the two. That’s it, it is over. The younger person has no need to even consider having any further communication with the older person.
Call it childish or immature, but the reality is you have lost the argument and they have moved on from you and your opinions. This tough to understand and accept for an older person, being rejected by another person like this because that is not how their generation communicated.
🌟 David, I just became aware of a (new?) video on a channel called The Appalachian Channel (?) where they have reopened a general store in West Virginia that was from the 1930s and had closed in 1991!
They're going through all the interesting, precious old stuff in there, and the old man himself is there. Thought you and others here might want to see that if you didn't know about it!
this man is incredibly smart, perceptive and open-minded. clearly a talented guy
Thank you Reece.
David Hoffman filmmaker
Well said, David. The 3 second sound bites have sped things up Blessings
the phrase is a protest against negative personal experiences with older people. it’s a response to comments like “speak english this is america” or “what are those rips on your jeans, were you mauled by a bear”. and women don’t prefer any kind of shape or mode of storytelling, not sure where you got this information. we’re all humans regardless of sex and we act pretty much the same. i know you won’t agree but just wanted to respond.
Thanks!
Thank you Jean.
David Hoffman filmmaker
7:30 7:31 @@DavidHoffmanFilmmaker Thank you all that listen to you.
Never heard of the term Ok Boomers and im 47. Thanks for sharing David good to hear you on video.
Really? It's used by someone almost everywhere I post.
@@donjindra Okay boomer.
@@peebay3515 You do know life expectancy in 'Murica is falling don't you?
@@Dooguk Okay doomer.
@@peebay3515 Okay bigot.
I’m Gen Z and my father is a boomer. He’s a wonderful man and I love him dearly, but I must admit that I have met quite a few people in his age group who are rude entitled and willfully ignorant. People who think that both humor and music are completely dead and, and think that they deserve all the respect in the world solely based on there age. And they proclaim all that with the full confidence of one who clearly forgot what it was like to be a young person getting talked down to by a clueless older adult.
It's anger that boomers complain about the new generations without considering the decline in wages and an increase in the cost of education, housing, and food.
My parents are boomers. I think it’s used as catch-all insult to invalidate the conservative advice of older generations. And it seems fueled by 1) frustration with being disenfranchised from the opportunities that those older generations had: job stability, economic growth, ability to afford good housing, retirement. 2) Being still held to the same expectations those older generations have even though the opportunities are no longer abundant. 3) A type of self defense of the hyper-novel culture and politics of the younger generations.
Generation gap factors large and always has. Still have to chuckle over Daltrey's line, "hope I die before I get old."
As one of my schoolteachers once pointed out, “These are ‘the good old days’ we’ll be talking about years from now. Thank you for your insight/s, David.
I'm 21 years old. Your channel is the most interesting one on youtube in my opinion, and I especially love videos like this where you give an outside perspective into my generation. I basically agree with all of your observations.
I am retired Gen X is in charge now. The punk rockers were boomers remember that when you call us greedy and boring..Delia Morris
David, I love your channel. It’s basically a time capsule of nostalgia and has been a therapeutic escape of how shitty and divisive the world is right now. I’ve never felt the need to give my opinion due to the fact that this is America and you have the right to post whatever you want. However, the political stuff really turns a lot of people off. Posting historical footage of political figures is one thing, but that’s not what is bringing hostility to your channel. The fact of the matter is that there is corruption everywhere and making one sided videos will only add fuel to the fire. I mean no disrespect, I think you are a very wise man. Your channel has been my favorite for years and I hope you keep making amazing content. Take care.
I don't understand the "Ok, Boomer" response. It's dismissive without taking the time to explain why the person takes exception to what is being said. It's the antithesis of a conversation, an exchange of ideas. In the end, we learn nothing except that we don't understand and are incapable or unwilling to breach a gap. The folks waving off the experiences of those who walked before us are doomed to acknowledge their own wisdom as just as seemingly inconquesitial when they turn to see those coming up behind.
Well, the opposite is also true. Older people wave off the smarts and wisdom of younger people. It works both ways, dear.
Oftentimes it's coming from a place of ignorance/lack of experience and arrogance, and instead of hearing them out, they just dismiss them immediately.
It isn't particularly wise in either case.
I appreciate you, David! And I love your channel
Wise words Mr. H. from a 78 year-old geezer.
8:05
Boomers: "The 50s were the best..."
Millenials: "The 90s were the best..."
Silent and Gen Z: "Can't we get along"
Gen X: "Whatever"
9:18
Perhaps as millenials we are now starting to exercise our own nostalgia. We mimic boomers so much, and it's a shame we dont acknowledge them as brothers/sisters, misplaced by 40 years. I think your videos and comments help to bridge this gap beautifully.
Exemplary presentation of Truth which I found informative, intriguing & sincere. That is so refreshing when provided by someone like you whom I experienced as honest, authentic and empathic. I'm honored to have found you and look forward to hearing much moren more fm YO..m your experiences as well I haven't heard much biographical material (YET?)disclosed but I trust that will come...at least I hope so. I deeply appreciate that you've chosen to share so openly with us and absolutely look fwd to learning much more fm you. Do you do speaking engagements? My fingers are crossed. :) Thank you for serving our Country David.
May love, peace, serenity & joy accompany you & your's through each 'n every day as you traverse this Path moving forward David.
) Again TY:)
The best thing about your documentary videos is giving a view into the past, usually without an idealist filter of any kind.
Thank you.
David Hoffman filmmaker
still like "agony aunts" like i did as a pre teen mid 50s on. how the answers have modified or changed. very glad for 60s ,70s on. i'm in the silent generation too.
I always loved the stories from my parents and grandparents. People are disrespectful nowadays
Almost a million subscribers, and deserving of so many more. Thanks, David!
Thank you Anthony.
David Hoffman filmmaker
Generations change - Shorter videos - multi-tasking - brain evolution - bullies - career vs job - good vs bad - displayed emotions .... Oh my! My head is spinning! David, you broke it all down, making sense out of all of it!
I'm 19, I discovered your channel 2 years ago and I love it. What you said about the short content is interesting. I think in terms of documentaries and movies, there will be a golden age of short films in the years to come.
PS : Spot on, I talk a lot like I lived in the 1950's lmao
In answer to "What the hell is 'Ok Boomer' about?," they're called trolls. I'm subscribed to probably 100 channels -- too many to get to watch in a month. None, or very few of them, have the diversity in subscribers as you do.
Trolls/bullies/dismissive types have always existed but, since bad parenting turns out "bad" kids who turn out more "bad" kids, trolls are multiplying in number. I see them in the comment section of every successful TH-cam channel.
Just like school bullies, they're upset because you have something that they don't. What you had to say was very worthwhile to hear (it should now be obvious that I'm female by my circular style!) but my point is to not let the trolls get you down.
You're well loved and appreciated, David! (Which is probably exactly what they're jealous of.) 🥰
Okay boomer.
@@peebay3515 Saving up for a house?
@@Dooguk I actually bought myself a condo before the prices skyrocketed in Austin. I lucked out there. Anyways, this is the part where I say, Okay Boomer.
@@peebay3515 Your not a generation to be proud of. We've gone backwards from when I was young, especially with regards to education. I'm so disapointed by how little the children of today and their parents before them know. I found out the other day 10% of US citizens have an IQ of less than 83. That's borderline trying to communicate with a zombie. That is so low the armed forces won't take them. Imagine that, too dumb to be cannon fodder. What a world we live in!
@@peebay3515 😂
Gen X here! It’s always fun to hear what you’ve got to say!
Just reply with "OK Renter!"
Ok Boomer is used by us Youngsters, when some of the older generation fail to see the struggles Gen Z and Millennials went or go through.
I certainly see your struggles, but I get called "okay Boomer" on occasion on my TH-cam channel. No big deal.
David Hoffman filmmaker
well here goes.
first off, calling you a "boomer", just because you lived through the nicest times of the century is like calling every german man who lived during the 1930s in germany an "ss man". its simply not true, and youre born too early to be a technical "boomer".
also its of course untrue to say "every boomer had it easy, danced their a-zz off in the 70s, then snorted coke by the pound in the 80s and then fizzled slowly out for a sweet fat pension after a thriving career". nah, i guess everyones life has hardship and is different, not to mention, a lot of baby boomers were also environmentalists and not just oblivious consumers.
but still: a lot of the attitude towards life and the "ideologies" even you have learned throughout life, they simply ring no more true. we had a job minister who 3 decades ago made that very infamous statement: "the pensions are safe and secure." he revoked that a few years ago before his death with deep regret.
and whenever an older or elderly person mumbles one of these out of touch "wisdoms", the younger generations shun them for being not in the loop anymore and for "having had it much easier".
that said....its nothing new. did you respect the mumblings of your elder when you were 20? nah. once youre 20 years older than the person youre talking to, youre considered geriatric, ignorant and oblivious, while the young ones themselves being ignoramusses. its how people work.
and gen Z has this weird almost psychotic urge, while doing the same stuff every young generation before them did, to hold the exclusive infallible right to wisdom and morality.
dangerous, selfrighteous and very fallible. i say , social media made it this way.
(then they get jobs, fail and suffer in their own rat race and become exactly the people they so avowed never to be. yeah lol.)
Hey David, i like both long and short videos/ documentaries. I like to talk about when i was a kid, but i like new current things too.Do you think its because im a Gen Xer? 😊
Linguistics are always interesting and I rarely find new phrases I relate to. I relate to this one. I live where there is a very large age gap. A place where the youth are flat out denied, ridiculed and propagandized against.
Trying to talk environmental or ecological issues to a melting pot like Florida has always been difficult. The class divide and age divide rlly takes a toll here. Policy wise and culturally wise. People move here and don’t care about a future. They’re just here to enjoy themselves. Talking climate change? Impossible. And I watched my home county be forever changed in my lifetime from it after years of trying to raise awareness. I would go to city councils and beg them to invest in higher sea walls and the boomers would end up trying who is really to blame for climate change. As if I was even there to discuss that. Even being practical is seen as woke.
When I first learned about ok, boomer it just made me think of the dozens of people who had literally yelled in my face as I tried to organize, screamed they deserved to be on vacation without thinking about the fracking of the Everglades or have yelled their own identity politics at me as if I was trying to steal it. The war on woke is actually so personal because it’s been getting screamed at me for years. I was woke for talking about the issues hurting my communties. I wasn’t seen as a citizen just a millenial with an agenda. This was years and years ago, I’m thirty now with a kids of my own. Some of my greatest mentors, allies and friends are boomers, I get along with them like no other generation. But I’ve been so deeply dismissed my entire life over very valid and educated concerns by this generation too. I was relieved to see others experiencing the same and crafting ok boomer. Felt less crazy. Less alone. Cuz I do feel disconnected from my generation. I’ve wasted so much breath on people I truly should have just said ok boomer to instead. Live and learn.
On the other hand millennials have also created a necessity for the term “doomers” and doomers are something millennial should be just as concerned about as of right now, if not moreso. People my age with no fight left. If this describes you, fight it. Ain’t nobody got time for ur doom
PS: I actually named my son after Ralph Waldo Emerson, this is why I don’t get along with most people my age 😂
Good to hear from the greatest generation /s
The problem is that people dehumanize everyone with language. It's not like boomers are responsible for all their ancestors betrayal.
Hay Dios tu muy estupido todo tiempo chico? Mucho veces no Explicar nada
I’m a Millenial and I HATE these short videos. I often seek out your longer documentaries.
I'm a woman (boomer) who doesn't think like the women you're describing, it's not that black and white, people are a spectrum, some men like the long superfluous way to the story's ending while some women like the abridged version.