In Australia: failed hippie commune a 'form of cult'

"But though it was all very laudable, it wasn’t to last. By 1988 the oddball project was imploding amid some traumatic infighting. Hence some lingering regrets for the now 58-year-old Mr Carthew, a father of two, grandfather of seven, and a PhD candidate and tutor at the University of South Australia’s division of communication, information and new media. His doctoral thesis explores his Universal Brotherhood years and airs a disturbing realisation: that for all the good he had intended, he helped to create a form of cult which caused psychological harm to some of the members." "How a Hippie Dream Fell Apart" West Australian

Boomer children reject political activism

"One would think that these are issues that would motivate young people to demand more of their aging, baby boomer political leaders. It’s unfortunate they seem to want to avoid social responsibility and concentrate solely on making and spending money. Bill Clinton was the attorney general of Arkansas by age 30, governor of Arkansas at age 32, and president of the United States when he was 46. There don’t seem to be any Bill Clintons bubbling up through the ranks of the dozer generation. That’s too bad. And really quite sad." "Social Activism So Passe, So Uncool" The Guardian (UK)

The death of conservatism: boomer-cons embrace leviathan

"[D]espite six years of every branch of government being controlled by the putatively free-market GOP -- all is not well within libertarian land. The state, even under George W. Bush and a Republican Congress, grows ever larger, the entitlement programs ever stronger. And so, in May 2006, Cato Unbound, the think tank’s vibrant online journal, solicited essays asking whether 'the GOP and limited government have a future together.' The lead respondent, conservative intellectual and former Bush speechwriter David Frum, delivered an answer unnerving to the anxious free-market apostles: No." "The Rise of the Republicrats" American Prospect

Tobacco shop owner eschews 'hippie' label

"The business just last month remodeled its store on South Queen Street. Instead of the mix-matched furnishings Tucci said might have been too 'hippie-ish,' there are now modern matching cabinets, counters and shelves. And inside, there are no posters or stickers with references to smoking marijuana." "Tackling the 'Hippie' Image" York Dispatch (Pennsylvania)

In the UK: Boomers leaving chaos in their wake

"Baby boomers like to trumpet their generation's achievements. But their fondness for conspicuous consumption and foreign travel has led to many a modern-day ill, from rising debt to environmental woes." "Baby Boomer...and Bust" BBC News

Neurotic boomer triggers terror scare

"A 59-year-old Vermont woman faced federal charges Thursday for interfering with a flight crew, after her outburst on a London-to-Washington flight prompted a massive security scare and raised questions about the thoroughness of passenger screening. Catherine Mayo, of Braintree, Vt., muttered incoherently, occasionally saying 'Pakistan,' as she paced up and down the aisle of United Flight 923 on Wednesday, passengers said. She was eventually tackled by two plainclothes men and flight attendants, who threw her to the ground and handcuffed her, passengers said." "Woman Faces Charges in Flight Scare" Associated Press via yahoo news

Designer sends message with 'Baby Boomer Death Clock'

"James Love, created the Baby Boomer Death Clock http://www.boomerdeathclock.com in order to give what he called 'a well deserved humorous jab at one of the more narcissistic generations in human history'. Love grew tired of hearing journalistic exposes on how 'the Boomers are turning 50; the Boomers are turning 60', without facing up to the reality that the days for this generation are numbered. He decided to create a web site which documented the fact that 'the Boomers are about die on mass.' "Web Site Counts Down To Last Baby Boomer" PR Web

AARP panders to grabby boomers

"Many AARP products are aimed at baby boomers, who can be counted on to do the same thing for AARP's membership that they did for marijuana sales and real estate prices. There are more than 80 million of them, if you count immigrants of the same age. AARP acknowledges that aging boomers may render Medicare as we know it unsustainable. But it downplays the arithmetic and says 'the health care system as a whole'' is the problem, not Medicare. That's classic political temporizing, a rousing call to inaction. The reality is that boomers will stress the system far more than most in Washington want to see, and AARP is distributing the blindfolds." "AARP Is Not Good for US" Cincinnati Post

Clueless boomer-cons: how NOT to fight terrorism

"Those who want to pursue our failed policy in Iraq indefinitely or who want to attack more countries -- in the process alienating the whole world even more and exacerbating the Islamic radicalism which even the President says is what causes terrorism -- are not people who are 'strong on security.' They are gradually, though inexorably, destroying our security through a mindless militarism which becomes more reckless and crazed the more it fails. And this bloodthirsty militarism becomes more desperate as the sense of weakness and humiliation felt by its proponents -- including those in the White House -- intensifies." "Bombing Away Terrorism" Unclaimed Territory