The Greatest Generation.
A storm ripped through this town yesterday leaving destruction in its proverbial wake. Today, mounds of would-be slingshots and rustic table legs are being hauled away as our coddled youth lounge in front of video game consoles. The gap in experience and lifestyle which separates the children of today from the children of the Great Depression is almost unimaginable.
The grandparents and great-grandparents of our indolent youth are known as "the Greatest Generation." As young adults those great Americans unhesitatingly sacrificed their lives, futures and fortunes to protect the country they loved from foreign aggression. Some fought the war in far off countries, leaving home and family without being able to return for years. Some served on the home front, dealing with strict rationing of food and fuel, and growing "Victory Gardens" to put food on the table. During the war years, recycling was a patriotic duty, housewives saved grease and cardboard to sustain the war effort. The entire country was mobilized to support the troops. Automobile production ceased and the factories produced war materiel. Can you imagine not being able to buy a new car every year because there were no new cars to be had?
An entire generation of Americans—the Greatest Generation—endured almost unimaginable sacrifice to preserve this country. Can anyone imagine the children of today doing the same? A few— the most exceptional— are showing their mettle in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the vast majority of Americans are too used to comfort and comparative luxury to deal with the challenges overcome by their ancestors.
But, no matter how great they were, the greatest generation was made up of human beings who were no different than the people of today. Had they been given the opportunity they would have grown up as lazy and self-indulgent as their children and grand-children. That being the case, what could have given that generation of Americans the strength and will—the internal toughness—to face the challenges and dangers of World War Two? The answer can be found in the Great Depression. That painful era was a furnace that forged The Greatest Generation. They were made hard and strong by being forced to become self-sufficient in the worst of conditions.
There was no government assistance or bail-out for the greatest generation. They were forced to deal with privation and adversity, relying on their own abilities and the support of friends and family, and had come through strong and proud. They grew up making slingshots from sticks — not just for their own amusement but to put food on the table. The educated and proud found that they could subdue their own egos and sell pencils or apples on street corners. The parents of the greatest generation demonstrated remarkable self-sufficiency while raising the children that would save the world.
Great generations are not great by choice, they are made great by privation and struggle. The current generation of children came close to being forced to greatness by the collapse of the world economy. There is still no guarantee that greatness will not be forced on them as America continues to struggle its way out of this difficulty. However, as the elected, bought-and paid-for leaders of this country continue to mortgage our future so that we can maintain our comfortable lives, it seems more and more likely that the painful experiences that create tough, hard, and great generations, are being pushed to the horizon of the future where they will fall on the heads of our descendants. We, the adults of today, can look forward to having great-grandchildren who will, in their turn, be known as "The Greatest Generation."
A storm ripped through this town yesterday leaving destruction in its proverbial wake. Today, mounds of would-be slingshots and rustic table legs are being hauled away as our coddled youth lounge in front of video game consoles. The gap in experience and lifestyle which separates the children of today from the children of the Great Depression is almost unimaginable.
The grandparents and great-grandparents of our indolent youth are known as "the Greatest Generation." As young adults those great Americans unhesitatingly sacrificed their lives, futures and fortunes to protect the country they loved from foreign aggression. Some fought the war in far off countries, leaving home and family without being able to return for years. Some served on the home front, dealing with strict rationing of food and fuel, and growing "Victory Gardens" to put food on the table. During the war years, recycling was a patriotic duty, housewives saved grease and cardboard to sustain the war effort. The entire country was mobilized to support the troops. Automobile production ceased and the factories produced war materiel. Can you imagine not being able to buy a new car every year because there were no new cars to be had?
An entire generation of Americans—the Greatest Generation—endured almost unimaginable sacrifice to preserve this country. Can anyone imagine the children of today doing the same? A few— the most exceptional— are showing their mettle in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the vast majority of Americans are too used to comfort and comparative luxury to deal with the challenges overcome by their ancestors.
But, no matter how great they were, the greatest generation was made up of human beings who were no different than the people of today. Had they been given the opportunity they would have grown up as lazy and self-indulgent as their children and grand-children. That being the case, what could have given that generation of Americans the strength and will—the internal toughness—to face the challenges and dangers of World War Two? The answer can be found in the Great Depression. That painful era was a furnace that forged The Greatest Generation. They were made hard and strong by being forced to become self-sufficient in the worst of conditions.
There was no government assistance or bail-out for the greatest generation. They were forced to deal with privation and adversity, relying on their own abilities and the support of friends and family, and had come through strong and proud. They grew up making slingshots from sticks — not just for their own amusement but to put food on the table. The educated and proud found that they could subdue their own egos and sell pencils or apples on street corners. The parents of the greatest generation demonstrated remarkable self-sufficiency while raising the children that would save the world.
Great generations are not great by choice, they are made great by privation and struggle. The current generation of children came close to being forced to greatness by the collapse of the world economy. There is still no guarantee that greatness will not be forced on them as America continues to struggle its way out of this difficulty. However, as the elected, bought-and paid-for leaders of this country continue to mortgage our future so that we can maintain our comfortable lives, it seems more and more likely that the painful experiences that create tough, hard, and great generations, are being pushed to the horizon of the future where they will fall on the heads of our descendants. We, the adults of today, can look forward to having great-grandchildren who will, in their turn, be known as "The Greatest Generation."
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