Broken Generation

The Broken Generation

It's often said that a definitive experience of Generation Y is getting mugged by reality. They came of age as the post-WWII economic boom and post-Cold War optimism faded. In an era when every day was Christmas, Baby Boomers' promise that getting a liberal arts degree would guarantee a place…
December 28, 20229 Comments
Christmas Toy

A Gen Y Christmas

A reader writes, Brian, My wife and I re-watched a handful of Christmas movies while wrapping presents for my side of the family last night. One section of our DVD library is just Christmas movies, most of which are now decades old, which I realize now is almost a physical…
December 20, 20222 Comments
Gen Y Swag

Swag Rich, Spirit Poor

On the occasion of a visit to the US, Mother Teresa was heard to marvel at the poverty of New York compared to Calcutta. She wasn't talking about material poverty. The US has some of the richest poor in the world, as the Mammon Mob loves to point out. Instead,…
November 14, 202215 Comments
Afterglow Gen Y

Afterglow: Generation Y

The latest collection from author David V. Stewart is out now! Who was Generation Y? Not even they themselves seem to remember. Perched between the cynical Generation X and the activist Millennials, Generation Y was a cohort that lived on both sides of the divide. They had an analogue childhood…
November 11, 20225 Comments
Two Paths

Two Different Worlds

Last week's post on Xennial Odyssey's review of the Gen Y anthology evoked fresh accusations that Ys are just Millennials in denial. This comment from a while back by Generation Y co-author JD Cowan sums up the key differences between Xers, Ys, and Millennials and suggests reasons for those differences.…
October 25, 202213 Comments
Hayter Hate

Hayter Hate

Let the above image serve to remind you that the people behind the product you consume hate you. The Death Cultists responsible for your beloved childhood IPs hold you in contempt and seek to use your attachment to convert you. Put away childish things. Put on the armor of God.…
October 20, 202212 Comments
XOP

Gen Y on Xennial Odyssey

The Gen Y essay collection co-authored by David V. Stewart, JD Cowan, and me was recently reviewed on the Xennial Odyssey Podcast. Listen here. It's cool of the hosts to review the book, and it's good to know the word's getting out. Thanks to XOP for giving the book some…
October 18, 20225 Comments
Nostalgia Sale

Nostalgia Sale

On a recent trip to a local used video game store, a fellow Gen Y friend puzzled over the religious devotion lavished on 80s and 90s IPs by Ys. As our generation enters middle age, many of us increasingly turn our natural religious impulse to Pop Cult relics. More and…
October 11, 202217 Comments
Depression Rates by Age

Generation Depressed

Having pointed out the faults of Generation Y, this blog turns its scrutinizing eye to the Millennial generation. Happiness comes from living in harmony with God, neighbor, nature, and oneself. By that standard, Millennials might be the most disordered, and therefore miserable, postwar cohort. Exhibit A: their astronomical depression rates.…
October 6, 20226 Comments
Adult Happy Meal

Adult Cult Meal

It might be low-hanging fruit, but the new adult Happy Meal from McDonald's demands coverage on this blog. If only because it's the quintessential intersection of my Lost Generations model and the Pop Cult. McDonald's is serving up nostalgia with new “boxed meals” for adults that look like Happy Meals…
October 4, 20226 Comments