Post by Steve Mallory

Gen X… finally For those of us born between 1965 and 1980, this week has been historic. And that’s saying something for a generation raised on Cold War fears, Space Shuttle explosions and Michael Jackson moonwalking for the first time. Because this week, we got our first Gen X presidential candidate. Which is absurd. There are about 65 million Gen Xers between the ages of 43 and 59 – the age when the majority of US presidents have become US presidents. Thirty-four of the forty-six POTUSi have been 59 years or younger (James Monroe just scooting in at 58 years, 310 days). And yet, Mrs. Harris is our first candidate. And for a generation that practically invented irony, it’s ironic that the only way she got there was when a Baby Boomer stepped aside. Not that I’m dunking on Baby Boomers. The Greatest Generation is excellent at being in charge, taking the bull by the horns and delivering speeches without an ounce of irony (it’s never been their thing). It’s a generation practically created in a test tube to be presidents, CEOs and WWII historians. But Gen X? We’re more comfortable staying under the radar, keeping our head down and avoiding detention (but still bending the rules - more "Ferris Bueller’s Day Off" than "The Breakfast Club"). Our parents did the best they could (my therapist told me to say that) but they were so busy with their careers, divorces and phenomenal tax breaks that parenting often looked like a ten-dollar bill on the kitchen counter and a note about who to call if you broke your ankle. Which means we were left to raise ourselves. And we were damn good at it. Gen X had to become independent and resourceful - the cynicism was just an added bonus. We didn’t want to “sell out”, we were suspicious of authority and protected our kinships to fill the family void.  And like the middle child sandwiched between the older, Type-A overachiever and the younger, disaffected attention-seeker, we tried to stay out of the little dramas and focus on what needed to get done. I’m not a political person in the slightest, but I am a fan of my generation. I like that we are competent, unfussy and prudent. And I’m fascinated that a presidential candidate might share the attributes that make Gen X special. And frankly, this might be our only chance – those millennials aren’t screwing around.