In praise of the younger generation.

I watched the Occupy Movement and it made my heart proud. Looked at all those young faces, listened to all those young voices. Vibrant. Alive. Enthusiastic. And smart as hell. They've educated themselves. Hell, they had to! The mainstream media sure hasn't done it. They cared enough to inform themselves. They're paying attention, they don't like what they see and they're doing something about it. They are much like we were when we were that age yet very much their own generation with their own unique perspectives, their own unique ideas and their own approaches.

I've got 15 of the 99Rise Marchers here at the house this weekend. Almost all of them under 40. Most of them WELL under 40. Good goddess are they organized! MUCH better than we were. So much of what we did was chaotic and the organization did not include minorities or women. Not so these guys. They grew up in a world that saw much more equality between the sexes and between ethnic groups (most of them are from L.A. -- a very cosmopolitan area). Exclusion would never occur to them. They are educating ME on what it takes to amend the Constitution. They've read the requirements. They know the history. And they're not limited to one or two topics. They've studied environmental issues, they're discussing urban gardening, aquaponics, so many issues I can't even remember them all. And you know what? I LOVE sitting here listening to them. *I* get excited all over again. And it gives me GREAT hope for the future.

To my fellow Boomers out there: We're in good hands.