It's a few years old and American, but the trends and characteristics reflect what I've been reading about this generation for a while.

It reflects my father's comment, late in his career as a high school teacher, that the last bunch of kids he taught were in general much kinder and more concerned about others than in previous years.

I'm interested in this generational stuff partly because it explains a lot about why the young people I encounter at work, the barn, and elsewhere are so much pleasanter to deal with than I remember kids being back when I was one.

I'm also interested partly because of this post by llygoden which referred to a writer who was disgusted with the current state of fiction and young writers. It sounds very much as if he fell into the trap of believing that all people of a certain age should be as his generation was at the same age, and if they didn't there was something wrong with them. (This is a common problem with Baby Boomers, but I'm sure I only think that because there are so many of them.)

The current generation are not the same as their parents' generation, because their experiences are different and the way they were raised is different. I once listened to a generational researcher, who is a Boomer himself, explain that his WW II-generation parents were affiliative and concerned about others, while his own generation were rebellious and disrespectful of authority and often others ("Remember, the National Guard at Kent State were the same generation as the people they were shooting at. The represented two different ways of being aggressive"--I never thought of that) And his kids are part of the respectful, affiliative, concerned-for-the-group Millenial generation. He giggled that when he was young and raising hell, his dad used to say, "Wait until you have kids of your own!" And he did! And his kids are nothing like he was! So his generation has largely gotten away with it!!

Anyway--generations are not individuals and I know there are assholes in every group, but there's something in this. And as I was thinking about my latest story idea it occurred to me that Kowalski would be impressed and influenced by the music of the old Sixties band, and the old guys would like knowing that a young band was still into what they did... but there would be a lot of times when each band's group behaviour would... puzzle the other. Their experiences and assumptions about almost everything would be that little bit different, beginning with the fact that Kowalski encountered the older band in the first place while happily listening to their parents' record collections. With their parents, in some cases.

Which could actually be a lot of fun to write and could make an interesting thread, if I wanted to concentrate on getting the details down. It's a thought, anyway.