Over the past several months, I’ve found myself engaged in numerous conversations with the Millennials, also known as members of Generation Y. Normally, it’s the Baby Boomer set with whom I talk politics, sports, and world events, so it’s definitely been a change of pace. Nevertheless, after the first few conversations with those in their twenties and early-thirties, I decided to test the waters even further by attempting to converse with additional Gen Y individuals. Somehow, each conversation — by my design — got around to a discussion regarding President Barack Obama. And each conversation seemed to end on the same sour note.
While walking my dogs through the neighborhood, my first conversation was with Sally.
“Obama sold us a bill of goods,” she exclaimed.
“How so?” I responded.
She then went on to say that through the utilization of the internet and brilliant teleprompter-assisted speeches, the president indicated his comprehensive understanding regarding the needs of Generation Y. Sally remarked how Obama said that he was going to change the way business was done in Washington, D.C., that he would bring the troops home and never put the Millennials in harm’s way again, all while making his administration the most transparent in history. Regrettably, Sally believed it all. She said that after George W. Bush, she just couldn’t bring herself to vote for more of the same with John McCain. “Obama duped us and used us,” Sally concluded as she went on her merry way.
My next conversation followed soon thereafter.
“So, what do you write about?” Denise asked at a neighbor’s backyard picnic.
“Several things,” I replied, “not the least of which is Barack Obama.”
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“Oh him,” she said with total disdain in her voice. She added that Generation Y got nothing. In fact, Denise kept reiterating “we got nothing” while explaining how jobs were promised but not delivered. She then glared at me and said that during the past five years, the members of the Baby Boomer generation were either remaining in their current jobs because they couldn’t afford to retire or they were rejoining the workforce for the exact same reason.
Denise subsequently exclaimed, “How do we compete with someone who will work for a lower wage, no benefits, and has 30-years of past employment experience?”
Without a doubt, her unabridged anger was focused directly at the president.
“Now that he’s been reelected,” she stated, “Obama doesn’t need us, he just keeps giving the same speech over and over again.”
I then interrupted and pointed out that Obama’s strategy was nothing new. Denise said, however, that because of her smartphone, she was only interested in how Obama’s political message was delivered at that time and simply didn’t care what the message was really saying until now. She then declared that her generation had been “used” and “duped,” words that I had definitely heard before.
Indeed, an entire generation is finally realizing what many of us already knew. Specifically, that Barack Obama the politician was, is, and always will be Barack Obama the politician. He will merely manipulate whoever he wants in order to get his way.
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