# OK Boomer! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 8, 2019, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162 "2019-11-08T01:49:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/81 "2019-11-08T20:04:11Z")
> [@BeagleJesus](#): > > It’s the attitude, not the age that triggers this particular response. When you are trying to work to make things better and certain folks just won’t shut the fuck up about how everything is good enough as is you just get tired of having to entertain these people. Right, but you aimed it at me and that is not the attitude that I have. > [@](#): > > OK, Boomer is an excellent dismissal and a quick way of saying if you can’t respect younger folks positions on important topics then you should not expect younger people to respect your position. If you aren’t going to help then the least you can do is get the fuck out of the way. If I thought there was a hope in hell of that term being confined to attacking just those people, for those reasons, with those attitudes then I’d agree. It won’t be. It’ll become a bastardised shorthand and used to close down discussion between older and younger groups. I guess we’ll both see how it develops but the usage in this thread so far doesn’t give cause for optimism. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/82 "2019-11-08T20:17:01Z")
> [@crazyjoe](#): > > This response is targeted specifically at the people with that attitude. The people who want to use the same old debunked arguments, who just want to basically troll younger people. It’s for the people who like to drop “But he never produced the birth certificate” or “He’s secretly a Muslim [or better yet, Moslem]” into conversations about Obama, or who refuse to acknowledge that a difference exists between pure socialism and a democratic socialist. It’s the tired response of a generation of people who get prompted to re-hash old arguments every time they turn around by someone who thinks they are clever on the internet. > > The case has been made. The facts are out there for those receptive to them. Those who refuse to see them, and who continue to cling to the idea that it’s all just overblown, get dismissed by the people who want things to change for the better. And if you want to sling a pejorative at the people who specifically think and act that way then great, I’m all for it. However, creating a pejorative based on a demographic group that contains many people who do not actually think way seems unhelpful at best. It seems to be identity politics rearing its ugly head again. You are part of group “A” therefore you most hold view “X” I detest that thinking no matter where it comes from. ---
**Author:** ![BeagleJesus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5daacb/32.png) [@BeagleJesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeagleJesus)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/83 "2019-11-08T20:51:03Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Right, but you aimed it at me and that is not the attitude that I have. We’re going to have to agree to disagree about that. I submitted a post with my opinion on the subject and you immediately started to nitpick and dismiss my position with: - “poor results in what way? is the world a better or worse place overall since the second world war? by what metric?” - “The main thing is you are keeping a sense of proportion on this, apparently the young these days are wont to hyperbole and exaggeration.” - “And of course the next generation won’t be fixing the problems using the tools bequeathed to them by the previous generations will they? When the youth finally implement fusion, wind or wave energy as a means of clean energy production they’ll be inventing it from a standing start on an abacus.” If you feel the need to rehash these same old tired ass arguments then you are exactly the type of person OK Boomer is aimed at. > [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > If I thought there was a hope in hell of that term being confined to attacking just those people, for those reasons, with those attitudes then I’d agree. It won’t be. It’ll become a bastardised shorthand and used to close down discussion between older and younger groups. I guess we’ll both see how it develops but the usage in this thread so far doesn’t give cause for optimism. Sadly, it’s past time for a lot of the discussions between older and younger generations to be shut down so we can get off our collective asses and do something. I have no problem with anyone using OK Boomer as shorthand to kill another bullshit conversation where you have to explain to some old fuddy duddy that obvious shit is obvious. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/84 "2019-11-08T21:00:56Z")
I don’t think I get into any cross-generational blaming or name calling. I will, however, willingly express my opinions as to what I think about various trends and developments. I eagerly express my reactions to modern developments which I do not understand and appreciate, hoping to have the benefits/attraction explained to me. And I greatly appreciate that I am well on the downslope, and that the future is up to those younger than me. If I express something I thought was well thought out and supported, and someone replied w/ a catch phrase, my response would probably just be to decide the individual was not worth my time/interest, and to disengage as soon as possible. I’d be less interested in someone’s ability to come up with what they consider to be a clever rejoinder, than in learning what they are actually DOING that is different/better than previous generations. ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/85 "2019-11-08T21:01:06Z")
I’m guessing this will last about as long as “Thanks Obama.” It’s going to get old quickly, even for non-boomers. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/86 "2019-11-08T21:01:43Z")
> [@BeagleJesus](#): > > We’re going to have to agree to disagree about that. I submitted a post with my opinion on the subject and you immediately started to nitpick and dismiss my position with: > > - “poor results in what way? is the world a better or worse place overall since the second world war? by what metric?” > > - “The main thing is you are keeping a sense of proportion on this, apparently the young these days are wont to hyperbole and exaggeration.” > > - “And of course the next generation won’t be fixing the problems using the tools bequeathed to them by the previous generations will they? When the youth finally implement fusion, wind or wave energy as a means of clean energy production they’ll be inventing it from a standing start on an abacus.” > If you feel the need to rehash these same old tired ass arguments then you are exactly the type of person OK Boomer is aimed at. > > Sadly, it’s past time for a lot of the discussions between older and younger generations to be shut down so we can get off our collective asses and do something. I have no problem with anyone using OK Boomer as shorthand to kill another bullshit conversation where you have to explain to some old fuddy duddy that obvious shit is obvious. This attitude is failed, dangerous and myopic. History is packed full of people who think they know a lot more than they do. ‘Doing something’ can be worse than doing nothing and history has many examples. Large scale social engineering almost always makes things much worse. Leninist/Stalinist USSR, Maoist China, Khmer Rouge Cambodia, post WWII Eastern Europe, Nazi Germany. Some of the more extreme climate change proposals will lead to economic disaster, starvation and war. It will not make things better. If you cant convince a large enough percentage of the population then your ideas probably arent good enough. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/87 "2019-11-08T21:06:39Z")
Oh FFS, how many times does it have to be said that if it ain’t about you then it ain’t about you? Anyone gnashing and slobbering over “Okay, boomer” is probably also one who insists on intoning “BUT NOT ALL MEN” in any feminist discussion. Knock it off, you fucking snowflake, if you don’t feel you fit the profile then ignore it like any sensible person because all your freaking out is doing is making it titanically obvious that you DO feel a sense of being picked on that indicates you ARE the one being talked about–and if that’s the case then SHUT UP AND DO BETTER. Fucking babies. Bad Janet has the right of it–they’re called baby boomers because one little pinprick to their ego and boom, they become babies. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/88 "2019-11-08T21:12:12Z")
> [@BeagleJesus](#): > > We’re going to have to agree to disagree about that. I submitted a post with my opinion on the subject and you immediately started to nitpick and dismiss my position You mean I asked you questions? ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/89 "2019-11-08T21:12:36Z")
> [@](#): > > Then you must not internet a lot. The phrase is already being used to try and shut down anyone with a differing viewpoint. I very rarely see it used against anyone who is an actual boomer. Even on platforms where the age of users is very apparent. > > When you complain that you are Gen X and not a boomer don’t be surprised when the reply is “OK boomer.” Yes, and I’d like to propose using it (outside jokingly in this thread) should be treated the same way here as using “bless your heart” ([which was my very first warning](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=20899724&postcount=205).) ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/90 "2019-11-08T21:18:33Z")
> [@SmartAleq](#): > > Oh FFS, how many times does it have to be said that if it ain’t about you then it ain’t about you? If it is being used as a broad-brush for an entire demographic then it is about them isn’t it? Whether they like it or not. Their input dismissed on the basis of age rather than the substance of the argument. It’s a bullshit tactic when aimed at all young and a bullshit tactic when aimed at all of any other group. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/91 "2019-11-08T21:25:09Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > poor results in what way? is the world a better or worse place overall since the second world war? by what metric? Is it hotter? Are there less animal species? Is there more microplastic in everything we eat? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/92 "2019-11-08T21:42:26Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > If I express something I thought was well thought out and supported, and someone replied w/ a catch phrase, my response would probably just be to decide the individual was not worth my time/interest, and to disengage as soon as possible. You get that’s the point of the meme, right? Someone saying, “OK, Boomer” isn’t inviting you to engage in nuanced debate, they’re telling you to shut up and go away. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/93 "2019-11-08T21:43:44Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Is it hotter? Are there less animal species? Is there more microplastic in everything we eat? Yes, Yes and Yes. Is lfe expectancy increasing? Is absolutely poverty decreasing? Is democracy increasing? Would you prefer to be a random human being born into the world in 1945 or 1995? My opinion is not that the world is a better place in every single way but that it is a better place \*overall \*than in the immediate post-war years. Yes, that means balancing the pros and cons and making a judgement. Your’s may very well differ form mine but I would certainly prefer to be here and now than then and there. The problems you mention are above are exactly the ones that I trust the younger generation to tackle successfully. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/94 "2019-11-08T22:04:51Z")
> [@SmartAleq](#): > > Oh FFS, how many times does it have to be said that if it ain’t about you then it ain’t about you? Anyone gnashing and slobbering over “Okay, boomer” is probably also one who insists on intoning “BUT NOT ALL MEN” in any feminist discussion. Knock it off, you fucking snowflake, if you don’t feel you fit the profile then ignore it like any sensible person because all your freaking out is doing is making it titanically obvious that you DO feel a sense of being picked on that indicates you ARE the one being talked about–and if that’s the case then SHUT UP AND DO BETTER. Fucking babies. Bad Janet has the right of it–they’re called baby boomers because one little pinprick to their ego and boom, they become babies. The point is it is about you. For about a day and a half when it first started maybe it meant something only to a certain percentage of people. Now it’s being used just to shut up anyone that you don’t disagree with. That will include you as well no matter what your age is. It took maybe a couple of days after I first saw it when I saw 20-somethings using it with no irony against other 20-somethings. It’s already become as meaningful as the term snowflake. > [@BeagleJesus](#): > > Sadly, it’s past time for a lot of the discussions between older and younger generations to be shut down so we can get off our collective asses and do something. I have no problem with anyone using OK Boomer as shorthand to kill another bullshit conversation where you have to explain to some old fuddy duddy that obvious shit is obvious. One of the gifts of age is the wisdom to understand how little you actually knew when you were young. Ever since we came out of trees and crawled out of caves the new generation has always thought the older one didn’t know what the hell they were talking about. And here you are thinking you discovered something new. It’s pretty amusing. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/95 "2019-11-08T22:07:26Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Yes, and I’d like to propose using it (outside jokingly in this thread) should be treated the same way here as using “bless your heart” ([which was my very first warning](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=20899724&postcount=205).) Context is key but it will be modded when appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/96 "2019-11-08T22:10:35Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Now it’s being used just to shut up anyone that you don’t disagree with. That does seem over-broad. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/97 "2019-11-08T22:40:05Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > You get that’s the point of the meme, right? Someone saying, “OK, Boomer” isn’t inviting you to engage in nuanced debate, they’re telling you to shut up and go away. Happy to oblige them. I’m trying to think of a time - after I was an adult - that I didn’t think there was something I could gain from my elders’ experiences. But I have zero desire to interact with anyone who doesn’t wish to. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/98 "2019-11-08T22:41:42Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Is lfe expectancy increasing? Is that an unmitigated _good_ thing? Let’s ask the Japanese… > [@](#): > > Is absolutely poverty decreasing? Is that rise out of poverty directly correlated with an increase in ecological footprint? I want poverty reduction, but in the right way. > [@](#): > > Is democracy increasing? Not seeing it… > [@](#): > > The problems you mention are above are exactly the ones that I trust the younger generation to tackle successfully. There is \*no \*magically bringing extinct species back. There is \*no \*cleanup for microplastics, especially since we haven’t cut down on new plastic. There is nothing a younger generation can do to tackle those successfully (that isn’t pure science fantasy) And while there is something we can do to slow down Climate Change, it has to happen now. By the time a younger generation have any power to deal with it, it will be too late. Guess which generation is in charge, and stopping that from happening? Thanks, O’Boomers. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/99 "2019-11-08T22:43:58Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > You get that’s the point of the meme, right? Someone saying, “OK, Boomer” isn’t inviting you to engage in nuanced debate, they’re telling you to shut up and go away. Or maybe, just maybe, they’re saying “FFS, why do you think you’re so unique and special that you’re the only jeenyus who’s ever made these same tired arguments that I’ve had to listen to over and over and over for decades because people with your privilege are absolutely convinced that everyone is required and wants to listen to them?” When someone is just done and fed up with talking about a subject, they shut down and refuse to engage any more. This is a trauma response. Maybe if you hear “Okay boomer” really often you might consider shutting up and listening for a while? It won’t kill you, it really won’t. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2019, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162/100 "2019-11-08T22:45:10Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Happy to oblige them. I’m trying to think of a time - after I was an adult - that I didn’t think there was something I could gain from my elders’ experiences. All of them? You never met someone older than you and thought, “This guy is an idiot!”? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-boomer/843162.md?page=6)