Generations at War: Millennials vs. Baby Boomers

Lazy, entitled, and selfish are just a few terms attached to today’s millennials. Millennials, those who were born between 1981-2000, have been given a bad reputation. Known as the generation obsessed with social media, tuition debt, and being politically correct, millennials are seen as constantly complaining and throwing “hissy fits” every time something does not go their way.

 The older generation known as Baby Boomers, those born between 1946-1964, have apparently had enough of our complaining and both generations went to war on twitter with the hashtag #MillennialBillofRights in early February.

Some of the commentary was hilariously entertaining on both sides. Millennials stating things such as “#MillenialBillofRights freedom of emoji” (user @sissyknits) and “#MillennialBillofRights The right to move back to your parents house with a worthless degree…like a B.S. in biochemistry” (user @Bedmundolack).

Photo provided by Twitter

                                       Photo provided by Twitter

On the flip side, Baby Boomers let out their comedic side with tweets such as “I don’t have to pause my Xbox when my mom brings me a sandwich. #MillienialBillofRights” (user @kevinbehringer) and “The right to have a very limited experience of life and get to feel superior to everyone around you #MillennialBillofRights” (user @IvoryWidow).

Photo provided by Twitter

Photo provided by Twitter

While some of the tweets were amusing, many of the millennials brought up some scary points that baby boomers may not be aware of.

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Born between 1946 and 1964 the youngest Baby Boomer is 52 years old, with the oldest Millennial at 35. It is about 20 years difference between the two. Tuition in 1982 when the youngest baby boomer went to college was at most $4,466 covering the cost of tuition, room, and board at universities according to the National Center for Education Statistics (nces.ed.gov). Compared to the average tuition in 2015 for a public four-year in-state institution as $19,548 covering costs of tuition, room, and board according to The College Board’s Annual Survey of Colleges, there was a 437.7 percent increase in the cost of tuition from 1982. Wilson College’s tuition for four years covering tuition, room, and board is $35,620 per year (provided by wilson.edu) which is a 797.6 percent increase from tuition fees in 1982.

Despite the complaining that both sides seem to be doing over twitter there are some true concerns that have been brought up by the millennial generation and it is worth a look at.

“#MillennialBillofRights Congress shall protect the rights of all of its citizens. Not just the christian cis [cisgendered] het [heterosexual] white male ones” (user @FromPawnToQueen).

Photo provided by Twitter

Photo provided by Twitter