Terrified Boomer politico triggers panic with "erroneous report"

"What turned out to be an erroneous report of gunfire in a parking garage led the police to lock down an office building on Capitol Hill for five hours Friday as machine-gun-toting officers went room to room, looking for intruders and escorting lawmakers, lobbyists and visitors out, many with their hands on their heads. "...The report originated with Rep. Jim Saxton, R-N.J., his press secretary said. Saxton heard what he thought were gunshots and had a member of his staff call Capitol Police, said spokesman Greg Keeley." "Capital Offices Cleared After Report of Gunfire" New York Times UPDATE: Saxton thought "pneumatic hammer" was 9mm "[Saxton]said he heard what he 'thought sounded like a 9mm handgun' when he stepped out of an elevator in the parking garage of the Rayburn building yesterday morning...[Saxton] said in an interview last night from New Jersey that he later learned that the sounds 'came from a pneumatic hammer.'" "Report of Gunfire Causes Hill Lockdown" Washington Post

Boomer woman searches for the "crone" within

"Birthing the Crone is a live process, an ongoing creation and a dialogue with others. It has helped me to see that getting older can be a cause for celebration, learning and a renewed sense of creativity and community." Birthing The Crone

Cleaning up after the 60's generation

"From weather to a nuclear winter, we created a whole bunch of ways to end the world. On the bright side, we can now take photographs with a phone. And we can send those photos instantly around the globe so everybody can see what an arrogant, privileged and self-absorbed generation looks like." "Baby Boomers: Man What a Party! Sorry About the Mess" Tillsonburg News

And you thought they had grown up...

"A crowd of mostly baby boomers rocked an otherwise silent volcano, dancing and singing to the first concert inside Diamond Head crater in nearly 30 years. "The crater is our Woodstock in Hawaii," screamed 49-year-old Eddie Knoebel, who once joined wild teenagers for popular crater concerts in the 60s and 70s. "We want this back, baby."' "Crater Concert Returns to Hawaiian Volcano" FoxNews.com

Baby Boomers' selfish tendencies result in fewer blood donors

"Pam Shaffer says the American Red Cross is sending out an S.O.S. to the baby boomer generation. Shaffer, the executive director of the Adams County Chapter of the Red Cross, says baby boomers — those born between 1946 and 1964 — make up a lax generation when it comes to donating blood." "Red Cross Calls on Baby Boomers for Blood" Quincy Herald Whig

Times publisher "apologizes" for boomer failures

"[W]e entered the real world committed to making it a better, safer, cleaner, more equal place. We were determined not to repeat the mistakes of our predecessor. We had seen the horror and futility of war and smelled the stench of government corruption. Our children, we vowed, would never know that. So, well, I am sorry." "NY Times Publisher Apologizes for Boomers" Newsmax

The boomers of Enron: guilty of fraud, conspiracy

"In the end, the jury just could not swallow the defense put forward by Enron's Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling. The eight women and four men rendered their verdict after less than six days of deliberations in federal court and found former Enron chief executives Lay and Skilling guilty of fraud and conspiracy in the demise of the energy company that was once the darling of Wall Street." "Enron Jurors Say Lay, Skilling Defense Fell Flat" Reuters

Taxpayers face "monster" debt to fund boomer retirement

"Taxpayers owe more than a half-million dollars per household for financial promises made by government, mostly to cover the cost of retirement benefits for baby boomers, a USA TODAY analysis shows. Federal, state and local governments have added nearly $10 trillion to taxpayer liabilities in the past two years, bringing the total of government's unfunded obligations to an unprecedented $57.8 trillion." "Retiree Benefits Grow Into 'Monster'" USA Today

Does it play Hendrix? aging boomers spur demand for advanced assistive devices

"[T]housands of older or disabled Americans... have added a lift chair to their assortment of anti-aging gadgets. Following close behind is an army of baby boomers, the leading edge of which turns 60 this year, who will be in the market for this stuff sooner than they think. This tide of discriminating consumers is changing the design of walking sticks, grab bars and other products intended to extend mobility and independence. And it is changing the look of the lowly lift chair." "Chairs for Elderly Get Lift as Baby Boomers Age" Colorado Springs Gazette

Experts, teens deride boomer myspace "hysteria"

"Some sociologists and many MySpace users laugh at the media hysteria over MySpace, saying baby boomers' reaction is similar to the way their grandparents' generation freaked out over such moral threats as rock 'n roll." "As More Teens Flock To MySpace, Parents Click the Panic Button" New Jersey Daily Record

Hillary Clinton "wrong" about Gen Y

"If your generation were as apathetic as rumored to be, we’d expect you to work less, go to college less, and fall behind your peers in other countries. But the opposite is true. Kids today are working harder than Baby Boomers did when they were your age. More go to college and more are working–and an amazing number of you are doing both, simultaneously working nearly full-time while carrying a full courseload at college." "Dear Graduates: Hillary Has Got You All Wrong" Time

Overprotective boomer parents won't let go

"Alarmed by these intrusions into what should be a period of increasing independence, colleges around the country have set up parent-liaison offices to limit angry phone calls to professors and deans. Parent orientations, usually held alongside the student sessions, teach how to step aside." "The Fine Art of Letting Go" Newsweek

In the UK: boomer pregnancy reflects "selfishness"

"Her decision reflects the mindset of her generation who refuse to accept they are aging. Fashion victims, botox adepts, gym freaks, baby-boomers are beating time with every weapon available. Yet Dr. Rashbrook's decision reveals a certain amount of selfishness and irresponsibility. When her child reaches adolescence and most needs his parents help, they will be entering nursing homes." "Baby Boomer Stalls Menopause to Have Child" Seniorscopie

Boomer-cons: the betrayal of conservatism

"George W. Bush makes the wildest liberal in Massachusetts look like a sensible money manager, as the conservative Detroit News noted when it declined to endorse him for re-election two years ago. Alone among any president since Thomas Jefferson, he has never vetoed any bill. Of course, he has had a Congress dominated by a chorus of fellow know-nothings. Yet even other presidents whose party ran Congress would veto the odd spending bill for the good of the nation." "The Destruction of Our America" Detroit Metro Times

"War Wimps": boomers as armchair warriors

"The Reagan administration introduced the nation to War Wimps, that bellicose band of conservatives who so relish American wars (provided other Americans fight them). In prevailing against their liberal critics, the WW’s learned a valuable lesson: The public is more impressed by a politician’s aggressiveness in the present than by any failures to launch in the past. As a result, even the most unlikely tough guys began kicking up sand at the beach..." "Who's Your Daddy Party?" American Prospect

Don't deaths usually happen in threes?

"Lew Anderson, who captivated young baby boomers as the Howdy Doody Show's final Clarabell the Clown, has died at the age of 84. The musician and actor died Sunday in Hawthorne of complications of prostate cancer, said his son, Christopher Anderson." WTOL-TV Toledo, Ohio

One more reason to work out at home

"According to the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), the baby boomers aged 55 plus are becoming the fastest growing division of health club members internationally." All Headline News

Sisterhood no longer powerful: boomer women "unhelpful" in workplace

"...[Y]ounger women feel that senior female colleagues are unhelpful. Only 53% of women said they learnt from older co-workers in a recent Randstad study. Indeed older women are often reluctant to become mentors and to guide younger employees. They worry that younger employees are vying for their positions. Senior female staff often had to confront a male-dominated work environment and fend for themselves. They tend to think that younger female workers should do the same." "Breakdown of Female Intergenerational Relations in the Workplace" Seniorscopie

"Bad news" for boomers: High Court ruling targets unpaid student loans

"The ruling may come as bad news for many Baby Boomers who are near retirement age. While the government has backed billions of dollars in bank loans to college students, those loans become the government's debt if the former students default. Lawmakers have made clear those debts should not be forgiven simply because the former students are disabled or retired." "High Court Rules Social Security Can Be Garnisheed" Los Angeles Times via San Francisco Chronicle