Generation X

Sometimes I get immensely uncertain of myself and my place in the world. I blame this on my birthyear; I was born in 1971, which puts me bang in the middle of Generation X (1963 - 1981), and this is a really shit generation to be belong to.

The generation before, the Baby Boomers (1946 - 1962) may be self- confident, self-absorbed, self-important egotists, but they are social pioneers, changing the world in their image as they go through every stage of life from youth to, now, retirement, and leaving the rest of society to deal with their detritus.

And the one after, Generation Y or the Millenials (1982 - 1999) are cyber-savvy eco-hedonists, living in the now, enjoying all the pleasures of life completely guilt-free. Everything goes, everything is acceptable, except perhaps jealousy and driving a hummer. You can shag as many people as you like, no worries; as long as you wear a fair-traded, carbon-offsetted condom and put the pix on the internet the next day. Life is for living, pleasure is for taking, so have it now!

On the other hand hand, Generation X is crap: the children of Thatcher and Reagan, characterised by guilt, debt, uncertainty and existential angst. It lacks both the purpose of the Baby Boomers and the confidence of the Millenials, and seems doomed never to find its way.