The Turnings, Part 4: The Crisis

 Since I began looking at Generational Theory, with few exceptions, I've tested it against the Bible primarily by looking at the historical books. It's time to change that.

If history interests you, then Generational Theory is fascinating enough just for how it finds patterns in what has already taken place. But it's most valuable aspect is probably how those patterns are predictive of future historical cycles...and how that meshes with what God has told us will occur in the future.

WHAT WE KNOW FROM GENERATIONAL THEORY

The four turnings in the saeculum correlate to the four seasons in a year. The crisis is the historical winter. It's dark and bleak for a while...a time for death...and only after the climax, when the worst of the cold subsides and the days lengthen, do we begin adjusting to the favorable weather of the spring and new life.

Since the USA has existed, it has gone through three Crises/Fourth Turnings. The first was when our republic was born--the War of Independence up until the ratification of our Constitution. It was an existential crisis to be sure. Had we not driven the British away, our country would not exist. After that, any number of wrong turns could have also doomed the republic. We could have sputtered on under the Articles of Confederation until it became necessary for the states to splinter. The states might not have insisted on a Bill of Rights, and freedom would have been lost much sooner and much more rapidly. Or we could have become just another monarchy with George Washington as our first king.

The next Crisis was our first civil war. It was kind of existential, and kind of not. The USA would have continued to exist (at least for a while) if the southern states had won and never been reconciled; but would likely be a much different country today, whatever the fate of the Confederacy. But the Union did survive, albeit significantly changed. States' rights were curtailed; federal power increased; and the political landscape was revamped. The fledgling Republican Party of Lincoln would rise to dominate for seven decades, while the pro-slavery Democrats took a back seat (with occasional exceptions like the Woodrow Wilson Administration).

The Civil War of 1861-65 was especially brutal. Contemporary observers remarked that up until then, wars had been fought by gentlemen. Sherman's rampage through Georgia and the burning of Atlanta are just two factors to support their claim. Had either side possessed weapons of mass destruction, they might very well have used them.

Most notably, historians Strauss and Howe point out that the Crisis came too soon that time. As a result, there was no Barn-Raiser (AKA Hero/Civic) generation  in that saeculum. Nomads fought the Civil War, picked up the pieces afterwards, and rebuilt society themselves. The generational cycle skipped from the Nomads straight to the Custodians (AKA Artist/Adaptive). The resolution of the Crisis didn't seem like a victory to the average American. There were no winners--just survivors.

Our last Crisis encompassed the Great Depression and Second World War. That crisis wasn't existential, but was widely perceived as such. Unprecedented tampering with the free market turned the Stock Market crash into the Depression. But politicians, mainstream media, and later, historians, have kept nearly everyone deceived about what caused it, from then until now. Also, there was no realistic chance that any of the Axis Powers could have successfully invaded the USA--much less conquered it. Yet that was believed at the time to have been a credible threat--therefore the crisis was perceived to be existential.

The American High Command had no intention of accepting anything less than unconditional surrender. By that time, weapons of mass destruction were available, and were, in fact, used.

Even more radical changes came about from that Crisis. States and individuals lost more rights, while federal power skyrocketed. And the political landscape shifted in the opposite direction: the Democrats have dominated Congress since 1932--including a 62 year stretch wherein they never lost control of the House of Representatives. This--and how the Supreme Court was realigned during that period, are largely responsible for the political, economic, and cultural reality facing us today.

That brings us to the current Crisis, which began in 2008 according to Strauss and Howe; and began its climax in 2020. The climax might last until 2025 or even 2030, according to Generational Theory.

HOW DOES ALL THIS MESH WITH BIBLE PROPHECY?

Some Christians are in the habit of denying prophecy. Other Christians have been assuming the end times were already upon us...since the First Century. I'm guilty of it, too. As a kid in the 1980s, I was sure I would be obliterated in an atomic blast during a nuclear war between the USA and Soviet Union. In the 1990s, and around 2000, I interpreted current events in a way that convinced me we were almost ready to enter the Tribulation period. So with that on my rap sheet, I don't want to cry wolf or "the sky is falling!" yet again.

However, there are some developments which are worth pondering.

The nations noticeably absent in the Magog Invasion prophesied by Ezekiel are signing treaties with Israel...perhaps paving the way for Israelis to "dwell securely" in the Land. The Russia/Iran Axis is still in place. But not only is Turkey now beating its chest as a regional power, but there are signs the Turks are putting aside their traditional rivalry with the Russians--just as Ezekiel seems to have warned when listing the nations in the Magog coalition. Furthermore, the rising nationalism among Europeans (including Gomer/Germany) suggests that it's going to require at least one more major international crisis before they're ready to permanently embrace the globalism that was prophesied by John in Revelation. And therefore, we might not be far away from Gomer joining the Magog coalition, instead of remaining a part of the European Union aligned against Russia.

I'm sure I've mentioned before that I consider the Magog Invasion to be World War III. It might coincide with the Fourth Seal and the death of a quarter of the Earth's human population. I also believe it is the global catastrophe that will make people so desperate for "world peace" that they will clamor for a strong international dictator to take over everything. (You can already see that attitude rising to prominence on "both sides" of the political spectrum.) In other words; I believe the Magog Invasion will immediately precede "Daniel's 70th Week" (often referred to as "the Tribulation").

Deep State politician Rahm Immanuel once gave voice to a tried-and-true ploy by globalists: "Never let a crisis go to waste." With an adequate crisis, exploited effectively, human beings will surrender freedoms and subject themselves to oppression they never would have accepted otherwise. This adage has served Satan well throughout history. Crisis brought the Soviets to power. Crisis (or perceived crisis) allowed Chancellor Hitler to become Der Fuhrer. Crisis made Americans accept the New Deal; then membership in the United Nations; later the "Patriot Act;" and uncountable other violations of our rights as free men. It only makes sense that the mother of all crises will be used to make every nation, tribe and tongue to accept the Beast and his global system. A whole lot of people are clamoring for a socialist dictator already. Only the Elect will resist one, after an adequate crisis.

Up until the 1990s, it was rather a stretch to refer to Red China as "the kings of the East." But it's perfectly logical now that suicidal and treasonous US policy (in addition to their own cheating and theft) has turned that enemy into a military and economic superpower.

* It's hardly a stretch at all to anticipate that the debit card will be replaced by "the mark."

* Financial organizations like PayPal and the credit card companies have already begun preventing people from buying or selling, if they don't agree with the correct ideology.

* Livestreaming is commonplace around the world right now--no technical advancement is required for people in every country to watch the bodies of the two witnesses lying dead in Jerusalem, when that happens.

And then there's the United States of America--which plays no significant role during Daniel's 70th Week, so far as we can infer from the prophecies revealed to Daniel, John, and others. It's remarkable that a country as rich, powerful, and influential as the USA just doesn't show up in the End Time scenario. Obviously, by the time of the Tribulation, either America is destroyed, or has been rendered so insignificant as to not be worth mentioning.

If you've read my posts on the old Wordpress blog, you may recall my theory that the USA (or at least New York City) is one part of the tripartite Mystery Babylon. If I'm right about that, then she gets destroyed prior to the Tribulation period. A sudden world power vacuum potentially explains some of the turmoil prophesied.

So, look at where Americans are today: Our present Crisis began with the Great Recession of 2008, and is moving into the climax right now as I write this. The quarantines/lockdowns are wrecking what is left of our economy. The death blow to small business (and therefore our middle class) may be imminent, though the woke anti-American megacorporations are profiting like never before. That fits. We are also teetering right on the brink of a descent into socialist despotism and/or civil war. A foreign war might be closer than any of us realize, as well. All that fits, too. This Crisis is, without a doubt, existential. Everything hangs in the balance right now. The stakes could not be higher for the American republic. To survive, we have to handle each aspect of the Crisis the right way...and that's leaving foreign enemies out of the equation.

If the theft of our election stands (which it very well might, since most of the Republican party is nothing but controlled opposition today--neither the Supreme Court, nor the state legislatures can be trusted), then the fundamental transformation of our constitutional republic into a third-world police state will soon be complete. Freedom once lost is seldom regained; and despite all the trash-talking, it's still unclear whether enough Americans are willing to die on their feet rather than live on their knees. Remember: it is the Millennials who are of fighting age right now.

If the theft of the election is thwarted, then the rioting we saw over the spring and summer will prove to be just a preview of a full-blown color revolution. And our Armed Forces seem to be hopelessly woke and corrupt now, too.

Looking at the pattern of American history, we know that economic upheaval is a fixture of fourth turnings. And there has been a war in every Crisis we've experienced as a country. What's worse: wars during a Crisis tend to be total wars. We have nukes, by the way...as well as biological and chemical weapons.

Look at the frothing hatred on the left for people like us. You can bet they will use the nastiest weapons in their arsenal if they have the chance. Meanwhile, patriots seem to be backed into a corner. If our choice is liberty or death, then our choice must therefore be victory or death. It's war to the knife. 

The last two Horsemen (Death and Hades) must be licking their chops at how this is shaping up.

Before speculating further on what might play out, it's important to consider that God has not promised us a Pre-Inconvenience Rapture.

Let's consider two different directions for the USA.

Scenario One: 

Joe Biden is installed in the White House. At that point, whether it was the courts, the state legislatures, and/or the electors who allowed the fraudulent, stolen election to stand, it will all be moot. Biden may be retired in a matter of months, and Harris elevated to become our Pied Piper. Her handlers will have her begin the final phase of the transition of the USA into an unexceptional  socialist regime (and eventually a territorial kingdom of the New World Order). A series of false flags and crises will be manufactured to justify the consolidation of power via "temporary" suspension of individual rights and the rule of law.

The only way to stop the descent, or even just slow it down, will be by way of the 2nd Amendment. There is a question, for some, which side the military and police will come down on. There's little doubt in my mind: the police will side with whoever signs their paychecks and holds their pensions. The military was going NPC woke when I served. It would only make sense that it's far worse, now. Perhaps some in the combat arms would mutiny rather than attack their uncles, fathers, and grandfathers. But again, these are Millennials. They've been raised under the same cultural and psychological conditioning as the BLM/Antifa NPCs fighting for "justice" by stealing iPhones, burning down Auto Zone and murdering people for the crime of wearing MAGA hats. These are not the stout, barefoot and hungry patriot-soldiers who endured the winter at Valley Forge, obeying strange orders only when Baron Von Steuben explained the lawfulness and utility of the task given them.

Hot civil war would be the best-case scenario at that point.

According to the pattern, old institutions die during the Crisis, to be replaced or rebuilt and assigned new purposes. Every single institution has been thoroughly corrupted (and many of them weaponized against political dissidents) already, so change doesn't need to be as radical in Scenario One. The mission of the corrupt institutions will become more explicit, since plausible deniability is only necessary in a free country. The people will no longer be able to hold the ruling class accountable in any way. Their vote will no longer mean anything, and the law will be whatever the ruling class says it is...until they say it's something different. The most noticeable perversions of institutions will likely be against the Church and the nuclear family. The Swamp has been telegraphing this. It's also openly bragging about the compiling of vendetta lists. Anybody who had the audacity to oppose their agenda is being put on those lists, and targeted for "accountability." If this sounds like a prelude to the Night of the Long Knives, that's because it is.

Of course, before the left goes full Storm Trooper, they will go all-in on disarming the people. They will certainly cut off water and electricity to their political enemies. Autocratic governors have already begun such against citizens who don't obey their unconstitutional decrees. You can extrapolate from what is already happening and assume that you won't be able to buy or sell if they identify you as an enemy. You certainly won't enjoy freedom of speech, press, religion, or peaceful assembly. Fourth and Fifth Amendment protections are already selectively nullified thanks to the "Patriot Act," NDAA 2012, FISA Courts, etc. Kiss them goodbye forever, for everyone, under a Harris Administration and what follows. Harris hasn't been exactly subtle about her attitude towards the Bill of Rights. You can bet there will be genocide, theocide, and mass relocations. The scale will depend on the quality and quantity of resistance encountered.

While our countrymen are tearing each other apart, this might be a good time for our foreign enemies to undertake a Middle East invasion with no fear of American interference. This could be easily justified by way of a false flag event. The hatred for Israel is already present, and widespread. Once the USA is sufficiently weakened and distracted, Israel is fresh out of allies on the world stage.

I've mentioned before about the quantum leaps humanity will likely take due to the Magog Invasion. According to Ezekiel, the Lord will intervene in such spectacular fashion that atheism/Darwinism will no longer be a viable belief system. Everyone will know the God of Israel exists. (Of course, the devil will then simply move the goalposts, as always when his lies are exposed. "You're finally mature enough to accept that there is a supreme being...and I'm am He. Now follow my Anointed One and his Prophet, without question.")

The Beast will make war against the saints, and overcome them. If whatever country still exists here has not already been absorbed by the arising global government, it will be at that point. War from a foreign enemy probably won't even be necessary in this scenario, but might happen anyway.

Resolution of the Crisis (completion of the fundamental transformation) would normally be followed by the High. The pseudo-peace of the Beast's reign could fit the bill nicely.

Then again, the American republic could be history for an entire saeculum or more before the Magog Invasion, and the following Tribulation period. God's timetable is His alone to supervise.

In fact, God could decide to disrupt the historical cycle and trigger the end irrespective of where we are in the saeculum. He's God, and can do whatever He wants. I suspect He won't, though. As I mentioned in my very first post on Generational Theory, He follows patterns. And the world He created operates in distinct patterns.

Scenario Two:

The republic prevails. In the short-term, that means Trump remains in the White House. So either the courts, the legislatures, or the electors refuse to be bought, show some guts, and do their jobs. Tall order; but let's imagine they do it...or there's some other method to stop the theft of our election I'm unaware of.

Best case scenario: Team Trump doesn't just do enough to secure his next four years; but he has laid a trap for the traitors and criminals, and begins surgically removing them from the reins of power. It's hard for us to imagine our side actually taking full measures; doing more than taking a few weak, meaningless, token jabs at some minor symptoms of the problem; or slapping a penny-ante henchman or two on the wrist while letting the kingpins remain at large, because we've watched the RINO Establishment sell us out and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory all our lives. But fourth turnings being what they are, major heads should roll before it's all over.

Whether evil heads roll or not...no matter what happens in this scenario...if Trump remains in office, the riots resume. There's a good chance that they merge into the color revolution the CIA has been rehearsing for; or the civil war their useful idiots believe that they want.

In this scenario, it's much more likely that the police, and a good portion of the military, are allied with the patriots. That could result in a shorter (but still bloody) domestic conflict, stopping only when the enemy unconditionally surrenders. Unconditional surrender in this conflict would probably include trials for high crimes and treason, followed by prison terms, deportations, and executions.

Remember: old institutions will be rebuilt, replaced, or disbanded, no matter which side prevails. Some of the institutions just begging to be rebuilt, replaced or disbanded are:

CIA

FBI

IRS

Most other alphabet agencies

The Pentagon/JCS

The Federal Reserve

Planned Parenthood

The existing "justice" system

Big Tech

MSM

Hollywood

Academia

Public Education

Both political parties

Will they be? Can't say for sure; but it would definitely be a better world if all of them were burned to the ground, and only the absolutely necessary ones replaced with new institutions built from scratch.

This scenario is not without its dangers, even if the God-haters suffer a crushing defeat.

America's enemies aren't just internal. There are plenty of external enemies, too. Chaos on the home front could convince a foreign country to engage in a shooting war with us as well, knowing it might be their best chance to achieve regional or global objectives.

Plus, there is plenty of room for disaster even if the Deplorables win both domestic and foreign conflicts. Many among them fantasize about being ruled by a strong man dictator and abolishing individual rights. Many of them claim to be Christian, but are too ignorant of history to recognize the danger of state control over the Church. And, of course, there seems to be no shortage of cultural Marxist/LGBT advocates, and National Socialists/supremacists (worshipers of genetics) who have infiltrated the Deplorables. Satan will offer whatever sin you're susceptible to, and build from there. If the evil isn't purged out, then any initial victory will prove to be just a delay of the same descent into despotism and debauchery.

Which Path For America?

Scenario One would best fit a segue into WWIII (the Magog Invasion) during the resolution of the Crisis climax. Then the High would likely be the "world peace" which ensues, brokered by the Assyrian Son of Perdition--cut short (or at least soured) by the Trumpet and Bowl judgments. The saeculum and its turnings will likely be shortened and accelerated when the Earth enters its final chapter. The Awakening might occur during the first half of Daniel's 70th Week; and the Unraveling during the second half (the Great Tribulation). The next Crisis, of course, would be Armageddon and the Judgment. Again, the length of the turnings might continue to break the format we're familiar with. The following High may last for centuries. Then again, turnings might resume at their normal intervals and the Millennium might be composed of ten or more full-length saeculi. Or, with the Son of God ruling the Earth, the entire Millennium may be a High, followed by an abbreviated, rapid-fire Awakening, Unraveling, and Crisis once Satan is unleashed one last time.

In Scenario Two, only if Americans make mostly good decisions, fixing more than just superficial issues, would it make sense that there is any sort of lasting recovery in the USA. If we do, then perhaps there might be another full-length saeculum (80-90 years) before the final cascade into the climax of history. If we fail to purge evil (regardless of political affiliation), the cancer will spread, regardless if we win the civil war and/or put down the color revolution. Weakened and weary from our internal struggle, our ignorant and Godless countrymen will embrace the Beast's global government just as readily as in Scenario One.

Suppose the Deplorables win the domestic conflict AND purge the degenerate cancer from their own ranks? The USA could still be attacked by a foreign enemy. And being a Fourth Turning, the attack might very well be NBC (Nuclear/Biological/Chemical). Red China is more than willing to do this, if it seems beneficial to their long-term plans. It's also worth noting that Ezekiel prophesied that during the Magog Invasion, God would call down fire on the land of Magog, and on those who dwell in the coastlands. Whether this is a nuclear exchange being described, or purely supernatural, you have to consider what the prophet meant by "the coastlands." If this takes place during a geopolitical situation resembling the present one, then what "coastlands" might God be ready to judge with fire; and what enemy might a Russo-Turkish/Persian-led coalition want to disable with a first strike in order to carry out a Middle Eastern conquest unopposed?

Remember: the city (or one of the cities) alluded to in John's "Mystery Babylon" vision is destroyed in one hour. I've long suspected that the one-hour destruction of The Great Prostitute (at least the New York aspect of her), the Magog Invasion (especially the nuclear exchange--if that's what it is), the ride of the Second Horseman, and the First Trumpet Judgment all overlap. They're possibly all describing the same event, from different angles.

The only possibility I see for the USA to survive for another full-length saeculum is for God's people inside America to humble themselves, pray, seek God's face, and turn from their wicked ways. Then, circa 2025-2030 the Crisis will finally be resolved and we will enter the next High. If that's how it's gonna go, then if my life hasn't ended already, it probably will during the next Awakening.

There's a possibility the USA can last for another saeculum. I just can't see it lasting longer than that.

For right now, and for what it's worth, that's how I see Biblical prophecy meshing with Generational Theory. There are two major scenarios and different variables within them. In all but one variable, the United States of America, as we know it, falls within the next decade, approximately. In the one remaining variable, it could linger for almost another century. In all variables but that one, it would make sense to me if Daniel's 70th Week begins shortly thereafter. But, of course, that doesn't mean it will.

The Turnings, Part 3: The Unraveling

There are four turnings in the saeculum, just as there are four seasons in a year. The High is like the spring; the Awakening like the summer; and the Unraveling correlates to the fall/autumn. Autumn is when stuff starts to die (leaves, flowers, etc), and as the days grow shorter, darkness comes to dominate light.

During an Unraveling, the institutions criticized during the Awakening are rejected entirely my portions of the population (Nomads, mostly). Individualism peaks. Narcissism transitions to nihilism. Society devolves into a low state of trust.as the Nomads, undervalued as children, reach adulthood in a state of alienation and cynicism. Crime rises while necessary solutions to the problems introduced in previous turnings are deferred. The problems grow worse as the can is kicked down the road, guaranteeing they will build into an existential crisis. Culture wars flare up and the population begins to polarize.

As I've mentioned before, it might not be possible to precisely apply Strauss and Howe's generational theory to the historical accounts of the Bible, for a couple reasons. Nevertheless, I wonder if an entire saeculum might be documented in the Books of Samuel. Here's my hypothesis:

Samuel reached adulthood during a High. The Awakening began just prior to the Israelites losing the Ark of the Covenant to the Philistines, and climaxed with their rejection of theocracy (demanding a human king, like the heathen nations).

The Crisis likely began when Samuel died, and entered its climax when Saul consulted the witch of Endor. The resolution of the crisis, then, was the period from the death of Saul to the coronation of David and his occupation of Jerusalem. Afterwards was another High, during which the Ark was brought to Jerusalem and David accumulated all the material for the Temple.

Therefore, the Unraveling began with the anointing of Saul as the first King of Israel, and lasted until the death of Samuel.

Kings and kingdoms are referred to interchangeably in the Bible. When the King is wicked, his wickedness rolls downhill and infects the nation. When a King is righteous, the nation receives God's blessings along with their leader. So, since God himself rarely makes distinction between a nation and its leader, then King Saul's personal unraveling was likely a microcosm of the Unraveling that took place throughout Israel during that time.

Just as autumn can start out pleasant, with mild weather and an explosion of bright colors in the trees, the last Unraveling in the USA began during the "Morning in America" period, guided by the confident optimism of President Reagan (GI Generation/Barn-Raiser) and his economic rebound. The explosion of color didn't come just from pop culture like Miami Vice, but from the neon clothes worn by Generation X, who definitely liked to party; but surprised everyone by how hard they worked. (Though considered "slackers" by the Silent and Boom when teenagers; we had to work much harder than they did to acquire some of the blessings they enjoyed and took for granted when they were our age.) We could also be considered colorful for our unprecedented racial harmony.

It did seem pleasant, at first. I remember thinking a great life lay ahead of me when I left my parents to go see the world for myself. But the damage done to our culture and economy during the previous turnings wasn't repaired--it was made worse. Inflation, college tuition, and the tax burden for young individuals would skyrocket during the late '80s and throughout the '90s. Wages didn't keep pace, but actually fell (when adjusted for inflation). With NAFTA and other destructive policy, most of the remaining manufacturing jobs were exported to America's enemies. But that didn't bother Boomers, Silents, or GIs. They voted for politicians who increased their own entitlements, while saddling X with the cost. Politicians of every age were also shielded from the consequences of their economic incompetence (or perhaps quite competent and deliberate sabotage).

GIs and Silents still clung to their institutions with blind faith. Boomers disparaged them and cried out for reform. X/13ers would have preferred to destroy most institutions outright. Institutions may have benefitted people in the past; but they were just more obstacles, hindrances, and hassles for us. And life had more than enough of all three in our experience. Our suspicion and contempt sometimes extended even to the institutions of family and the Church.

X turned the '90s into a violent decade. The prisons overflowed with our peers. What had still been a relatively high-trust society when we were born (outside urban jungles like Chicago, Philadelphia or Detroit, anyway) became a society where you had better lock your door, invest in security systems with video surveillance, and ignore people who appear to have car problems on the side of the road.

And the culture wars began in earnest.

During the Awakening, fornication, adultery, divorce, and infanticide were normalized. After removing the stigma from those sexual sins in our erstwhile Christian republic, the cultural svengalis ramped up their game, rubbing sodomy in our faces at every turn. After normalization came glorification.

The racial harmony of just years before began breaking down under a divide-and-conquer strategy (labelled "diversity"). White heterosexual males became the scapegoats or villains of every narrative; and would eventually come to reciprocate the resentment and hostility.

Strauss and Howe decided that America entered the Fourth Turning circa 2008. It's hard to argue with that. When autumn transitions to winter, the weather turns bitter and death hangs over the landscape. In 2008-9 some of the disastrous economic policies of the previous turnings were coming home to roost (but, typically, the architects of the disaster shielded themselves from the effects, at the expense of those who were already the hardest-hit victims of it, while posing as the victims' advocates).

Starting in Kindergarten, American children (Millennials) were taught to hate their country, deny God, and accept sexual depravity as normal. Neighbors and co-workers hated each other knowing nothing about one another, except their skin color. Identity politics had installed in the White House the most brazen Marxist yet, who would play the race card at every opportunity and divide the country to a degree not seen since the Bleeding Kansas period. We had transitioned from a culture war to a cold civil war. All the burning resentment built up in previous decades was focused on each other, instead of the ones responsible for the core problems.

It's sad how predictable this all was.

The Turnings, Part 2: the Awakening

 The 2nd Turning in a saeculum corresponds to the summer. The warming trend that makes the spring so pleasant continues, making the summer somewhat uncomfortable due to the heat. So it is with an Awakening. People begin to question and defy existing institutions, attitudes, and traditions. Prodigals, who enter rising adulthood (20-40) during an Awakening focus inward, rather than forward. They are typically selfish and self-obsessed. A gaping generation gap appears between them and their Barn-Raiser parents. Having been raised with maximum indulgence, the "younger generation" of narcissists reject the conformity of their predecessors, only to adopt an attitude of extreme entitlement. They see themselves as visionaries, and as more "conscious"--and therefore more important--than everyone else. Including their own children. Their focus on self, and on "consciousness" lead them into quests for spiritualism.

In the book of Judges, if not all the historic books of the Old Testament, I think many Awakenings are documented. In my opinion, every period in which the Israelites chased after foreign gods was probably an Awakening.

In particular, the account of Samson strikes me as occurring in the late stages of an Awakening. The culture in Israel (specifically in Dan) had already embraced pagan religion, and by the time Samson was born, that had progressed to its logical conclusion: rule by heathens. Samson was a spoiled brat who rejected the council of his indulgent parents. He bossed them around, instead. He was gifted with an access to spiritual power none of us have enjoyed. The manifestation of that power through him, superficially, makes us think of him as strong and masculine. Yet he was dominated by women throughout his tenure as a judge. Females "wore the pants" in his life. His weakness was rather sickening, and tragic. The gift he was granted at birth was magnificent. And all he had to do was uphold his Nazerite vow to keep it. By the end of his life, he had pissed it all away.

The last Awakening America went through began with the JFK assassination and ended during the "Morning in America" period of the early-to-mid 1980s. It included the "Summer of Love;" the moon mission, the Vietnam debacle, Watergate, the Civil Rights movement, the sexual revolution, civil unrest and domestic terrorism.

The Boomers followed the pattern, and actually pushed the boundaries. Probably the most spoiled, indulged children in history; they grew up to be the most ungrateful adults, with the most dramatic generation gap between themselves and their fathers. They questioned and defied institutions like never before--most notably, the Draft. But they despised more than just that institution, including gender norms, marriage, and the family itself. (Of course those are even more despised today, but the slippery slope began in the Awakening.)

While the generation gap widened, the gender gap narrowed. Masculinity was reviled, in men. Males grew their hair out long like women; music featured male vocalists singing in ever-higher voices; sodomy came out of the closet and was celebrated. Young females became as promiscuous as the worst of men in previous times, burned their bras in public, demanded "liberation" from roles as wives and mothers, and increasingly sought their own careers and traditionally masculine pastimes like sports. They cut their hair short, wore business suits, and preferred masculine (or at least androgynous) nicknames.

They took birth control to avoid having children, then aborted children who were conceived, anyway. They got abortion "legalized" via a ruling by a cultural Marxist Supreme Court, which has been treated as law ever since. What children were actually born to them were undervalued, neglected, or abandoned. To compensate for this "baby bust," left-wing activists in government opened the floodgates to the largest, most prolonged invasion in history. Since 1965, the red carpet has been rolled out for hordes of foreigners who value neither our culture, our once-predominant faith, nor our freedom. It was inevitable that, given their unabashed lust for dominance, and our timid "inclusive" philosophy and appeasement, they would one day rule over us, demanding of us the assimilation we never demanded of them.

Rising spiritual awareness led the Boomers to experiment with "mind-expanding" drugs and/or dabble in eastern mysticism/pagan religions, on the quest for "Nirvana" or a "higher plane of consciousness." And within Christianity, they became "Jesus Freaks"--often personalizing their concept of the Savior into an effeminate, pacifist hippie space cadet whose only objectives were peace and love--as Boomers defined it. In other words, their picture of Jesus was nearly identical to their own self-image.

It has been rightly noted that Boomers can't take credit for the Apollo missions. To be fair, neither can they be blamed for Vietnam. However, their reaction to the indecisive, pointless intervention in Vietnam, and Watergate, and Roe v. Wade, etc. has had long-term effects on America to this day, and spurred on the Unraveling.

The Turnings, Part 1: the High

 A "saeculum" is a period of 80-100 years, or roughly equivalent to a (currently) long human life. It comprises four "turnings." A saeculum is a historical cycle that repeats.

Strauss and Howe suggested we could look at history not as a two-dimensional circle that simply spins in place over and over, but as a three-dimensional spiral. I think of it as a spiral, because even though history keeps spinning along through the turnings in the same sequence, and the cycle of archetypes keeps producing generations  (in the same sequence) that generally fit those archetypes, there are linear trends that continue through the spiral of history that make certain qualities of the eras and generations unique.

One of the linear trends is the advance of technology. Another one is wrapped up in gender relations/gender identity/gender confusion. Careful researchers like Strauss and Howe can examine two Barn-Raiser generations like the GIs and Millennials, for instance, and point to several characteristics in the peer personality that are the same. However, stepping back from the trees to look at the forest, the culture of those two generations are radically different. Average members of one could probably never accept what the other was comfortable with.

Christians should not be mystified by this. The god of this world/age grows more powerful all the time. As his power grows, the world becomes more corrupt, and sin more ubiquitous.

I like to compare turnings to seasons. There are four seasons every year; and four turnings every saeculum--always in the same sequence. We can't predict what the exact temperature will be on a given day in the future; but we know winter will be cold; summer will be hot; leaves will change color and die in the autumn; rain will fall and flowers bloom in the spring.

In a saeculum, the High equates to the spring. In spring, the weather transitions to a more pleasant condition. What died in the winter is either reborn, or replaced with new life. Living things grow and prosper. So it is with a High: Economies recover. Wars end and the troops come home. Optimism and confidence permeate society. Old institutions are either rebuilt or replaced. People enjoy peace and material affluence--rising adults (Custodians) live much better than their parents did. They marry young and start building families.

Again, I may miss the mark when offering examples from the Bible because:

1.Strauss/Howe's turnings and archetypes were identified from looking at American history.

2. The USA didn't exist in Biblical times.

3. The average lifespan varied in some Biblical saeculi.

With those caveats in mind, the generation that had not reached fighting age by the time Joshua's Holy Land campaign ended, entered rising adulthood (age 20-40) during a High. They enjoyed peace and prosperity, for the most part. Their primary mission was to maintain and preserve the institution(s) passed down from Moses, Aaron, and Joshua. The priesthood and the Law were two obvious institutions. Obviously, those sheltered, overprotected Custodians didn't do such a great job.

Another High might be after Saul died and David finally took the throne. Solomon's reign, though, is probably a better example of a High. The immediate post-Flood and post-Tower eras were probably similar to the American Highs in some respects. When the last of the apostles died off, and their disciples took charge of the Church, that might be considered a high. The same goes for when Constantine legalized Christianity.

Our Biblical picture of what the Millennium will be like is sketchy; but from what we do know, it sounds like a High to me. The absolute highest High ever. Then once we enter eternity, I doubt there will be a cycle of turnings at all. High for the saved; Crisis for the unsaved. Forever.

The last American High was the postwar era. You could mark the beginning at V-J Day and the end at the JFK assassination. Some might locate it between 1946 and 1965...or some other span that covers many of the same years.

While the Silent Generation (Custodian) entered rising adulthood, the GIs (Barn-Raiser) entered midlife, the Boomers (Prodigal) were still children, the Lost (Nomad) reached elderhood, and the Missionaries (Prodigal) began dying off.

Good-paying jobs were plentiful. Housing and college tuition was affordable. Middle-class neighborhoods were safe. Police protected and served. Families were strong and stable. Men looked outward and forward, stewarding society and posterity. A normal guy with a normal job could buy a nice house and pay it off quickly; raise a family with the wife remaining home to raise the kids; take them all on vacations every summer; put the kids through college; retire in midlife and live comfortably off his pension (luxuriously when his ballooning Social Security checks were added to it). Everything became increasingly convenient for them.

Young people really had nothing substantive to rebel against, but some tried to rebel all the same. Rock & roll and hot rods were part of that.

The Korean War was an ugly blip on the societal radar. It lasted almost as long as WWII, but only because it wasn't taken as seriously. Prosecution of the war was indecisive, and the supreme commander got into trouble for seeking decisive victory as he and everyone else had done in the previous war (during the Crisis). Of course, the Korean war was ostensibly fought by Americans to stop the very force that the previous war was fought to benefit; but that political dynamic fits perfectly within the generational one.

Outside of that, average Americans enjoyed peace during the High.

Also, society hit peak conformity.

As we know from the Bible, it's when people enjoy blessings of peace and prosperity that they turn their backs on God. It was no different in the USA.

If the cycle holds, the next High should begin circa 2030.

The Nomad Archetype From the Inside

I'm not in the habit of blogging personal stuff, but this post will be an exception.

I haven't felt solidarity with hardly anyone in my life--especially people my own age. (I always thought I should have been born in an earlier era.) Until reading Strauss and Howe's work on generational theory, I assumed I was radically different from everyone my age group. But it turns out that I'm actually a poster child for my generation.

I'll start with the name of the archetype. I've commented on the archetype names before, and actually assigned them my own names...except for this one. It may be a coincidence, but "Nomad" fits me so well, I kept Strauss & Howe's label.

Both before and after my parents' divorce and remarriage, I was constantly on the move. I rarely spent an entire year at the same school. For the first several moves I remember, nearly everything I owned (toys, books, etc.) was left at the previous residence. After I made friends at each new place, the adults I lived with would move somewhere else and I'd never see those friends again. As I grew older, it became increasingly difficult to make friends before the next move. By the time I was in high school, there was only one year when I actually did make friends.

Throughout my childhood, I told myself that, once on my own, I would settle down somewhere, establish a permanent home and stay there. However, I remained just as nomadic as an adult as I had been as a child. Not because I wanted to, but because of the consequences of choices I made.

 

My parents were Silent Generation (Custodian), and, typically, married young and began having children immediately. They had three Boomer (Prodigal) children, one child right on the cusp between Boomer and Gen X, waited a few years, then, for whatever reason, had me. My parents split up multiple times up until the divorce, which became final when I was 10 years old.

I noticed being treated differently than the other kids early on. Even the way my parents referred to us, it was obvious they considered me in a separate category from my siblings. As a boy I assumed it was either because of the age gap, or because there was something wrong with me. Most of the time, I was excluded from what my siblings (and parents) did. Once when I was a teenager, my father put together a slideshow of photos he had taken over the years. My stepmother had helped him put it together and, right before my father turned on the slide projector, she gave me a preemptive excuse for why there were so many pictures of each of my siblings but so few of me. Looking back, I don't believe the excuse she offered. I believe my parents' attitude about children changed, in sync with the society writ large. My timing was just bad, as it would be throughout my life.

Across the USA, the attitude about children was changing as I and other Nomads survived the abortion epidemic and began growing up. Children went from being blessings to burdens during the "awakening" cycle. I certainly felt like a burden to whatever adult I was in the care of. The adults in my life were all caught up in their own pursuits, and society catered to them. I wasn't important enough for consideration. To varying degrees, most of the 13th Generation wasn't.

My father had a hierarchy of favorite children. His oldest daughter was always his favorite, until the day he died. His youngest daughter was perhaps tied with his middle son, who he obviously admired and perhaps lived vicariously through. His oldest son and I were at the bottom. Which of us exactly was in dead last place could be argued (at least as the eldest fell out of his favor, and my estrangement possibly convicted his conscience), but that doesn't matter anymore--except inasmuch as my oldest brother and I (born 10 years apart) represent different generations.

A good portion of my childhood was spent sitting alone in a parked car, waiting for whatever adult I was with to finish their business inside a building somewhere. During my parents' breakups and after the divorce, there was time between when school got out and an adult got home (or all day during the summer) when I and my sister closest in age were alone at home. Sometimes she would stay with one parent and I with the other. Then, and when I entered junior high, when she finally went off on her own, I would be alone at home for various lengths of time. I never heard the term until I myself was an adult, but I was a "latchkey kid."

Even though my father took that sister's side in every conflict (and there were many) and I was excluded from what the rest of the family did (when the family all lived under one roof) most of the time, that sister, to this day, still accuses me of being "the favorite." Laughable as it is, maybe she actually believed it at one time. There had to be some reason behind the contempt she always had for me, and I never did anything deserving her treatment. I could provide many examples of my father's favoritism, but that would really make this a long post. Here's just one:

During one period, my father had custody of me and the two of us lived in a nice apartment in a decent part of town. My father was gone nearly all the time, either working or dating my soon-to-be stepmother; and I was alone in the apartment. I was used to being alone by then, and starting to prefer it. I look back on that time as one of my favorite summers. Then school started, and my hybrid Boomer/X sister came into town. My father took the apartment key away from me and gave it to my sister, just in case she needed a place to stay. I always needed a place to stay at 12-going-on-13, and protested that this arrangement was unfair. He reiterated that she might have no other place to sleep on a given night, so that was that. I can't remember what I did every day after school waiting for somebody to arrive and unlock the apartment, but I do remember that on cold days/nights, I could sit under the exhaust vent from the laundry room and enjoy a blast of warm air. I guess it never occurred to my father that he could have had a duplicate key made. Or he didn't want to spend the money.

After the marriage of my father and stepmother, they moved into a trailer they bought, sitting on land they rented. Between them and my step-siblings, there was no room for me. So I slept in a little camp trailer on the same lot. I actually liked the arrangement. But then they bought a plot of land outside the city and moved the trailer(s) there. During one phase of the move, they had to get the camp trailer. I begged them to let me go with them, hoping I could pack up my stuff so that it wouldn't fall and break during transport. I was overruled because they needed me to wait at the empty lot in case one of the utility guys showed up to turn on something. So there I sat (needing to use the toilet, but with no toilet in sight). The utility guy never showed; and when the adults returned, towing the camp trailer, everything I owned that was breakable was on the floor, broken. Looking back, most of it was silly kid's stuff. But at the time, I treasured what belongings I still had and would have preferred to keep them intact. My father felt bad (after stepping on some of the wreckage and crushing it) for all of about five minutes, promising that he would help me repair the damage. He never did. He rarely kept promises--at least those made to me.

This was one incident in a growing list of evidence that I just wasn't all that important to my father. Not as important as his other kids had been when living with him; and certainly not a priority for him at that time. I, and what I wanted, came last. There was always something that took priority over me.

Up until about 11 years old I admired my father, wanted to be like him, and always hoped one day we could spend quality time together. By the time I left "home" at 17 years old, I had little respect for him, didn't care what he approved or disapproved of, and rejected many values he espoused, including Christianity. I realized that the only times he showed an interest in me were during custody squabbles with my mother, or when he felt rejected by my stepmother and his other kids weren't around.

I see now that my experiences were not unique. Most of the 13th Generation grew up alienated, even in our own families. That's probably one of the main reasons we were so violent.

Again, society's focus was on adults. Kids were a burden, or an afterthought. But the bright side was (so I thought) one day I would be an adult, and it would finally be my turn. But I became an adult just in time for society's focus to shift back to kids. While visiting my oldest brother on one occasion, I was astonished to witness him actually leave the living room to watch what he wanted on a different TV, so his kids could watch a show they liked on the main television. I was further astonished when my sister-in-law told me they would like to move out of their current house, but were putting it off for a few years because that would place them in a different school district, and she wanted her youngest child to have a specific teacher in a specific grade. Plus, their kids had friends where they were.

This blew my mind. I couldn't imagine my parents would have ever sacrificed their TV viewing for me; much less delay a move out of consideration for my education or friendships. Public school was "free" babysitting, after all--just a convenient program so they wouldn't need to worry about what I was doing during the day. Schools were interchangeable, just like childhood friends. One was as good as another, the way they saw it.

I still didn't understand that this was a clue of a society-wide trend. Over a decade later I was shacked up with a single mom (hybrid Boomer/13er) who claimed to love me. Everything revolved around that woman's kids. Dense as I was, it took me years to realize that I would never get my turn while with her, either. One of our bones of contention was how her teenage daughter habitually opened up the house to her pothead associates, who helped themselves to everything they found, rifling through my belongings and leaving them scattered all over the house. I had sacrificed hard-earned money to acquire my books, records and other stuff over the course of my life, and had taken care to preserve them as best I could. But the mob of stoners didn't care if the records got scratched when they left them laying on the floor outside the protective sleeves; or the books got torn or wet, or dog-eared. It existed, therefore it was theirs to do with as they pleased. I could not understand that attitude at all. This happened repeatedly, and (politely at first) I asked the single mom to help me stop this. I found it disrespectful, and unfair that they were allowed to damage what didn't belong to them. But every time, the single mom reacted as if I were oppressing her daughter with my draconian tyranny. There were no rules in that house concerning her offspring, except "Don't Inconvenience My Precious Children In Any Way, For Any Reason." Years after I left her, I still didn't appreciate how foolish I was to even get involved with that woman (who claimed to love me). While I don't think my own upbringing was healthy, this sort of child-rearing isn't, either. A happy medium might have have been nice.

Now that these precious snowflake Millennials are fully grown, you can see the effect this kind of parenting has had on society.

I don't completely understand why I was so attracted to older women for so long, but I have some hypothoses. First, when I hit puberty, all the "sex symbols" in society were Boomers. My alienation might have influenced this predisposition, too. Also, during my pre-pubescent years, a friend's Boomer mother did something to me that possibly has had psychological side effects ever since. For whatever reason, most of my romances have been with Boomer women, or hybrid Boom/13. I've only had a few younger girlfriends, and I should have made more of an effort with one or two of them. One of them I unintentionally defrauded and it still haunts me to this day. God forgive me for the psychological/spiritual damage I may have inflicted.

There is a phrase I would bet money was coined by a fellow 13er: "The beatings will continue until morale improves." That sums up my military experience perfectly.

Looking back, I see that one reason I wanted to be in the military was a subconscious assumption it would become my surrogate family. In actuality, it only amplified my alienation. And I haven't kept in touch with one single person I served with. Not one.

Mid-grade officers and nearly all the NCOs I dealt with were Boomers who made their rank in the lax post-Vietnam atrophy of the Armed Forces, when very little was asked of them. Once placed in authority, however, their latent sadism was unleashed and unchecked, (actually considered a sign of leadership by the time I arrived as a green junior enlisted man). My chain of command ran my unit like a Nazi prison camp. Boomer schadenfreude went well beyond the need to discipline young punks fresh out of training. We were far more disciplined than they probably ever were, yet treated worse than hardened criminals for the sin of wanting to serve our country. It wouldn't have been as bad, had I and some of my 13er peers developed the kind of comradery that the GI Generation enjoyed. But I guess we were all too competitive with each other and I, for one, had almost no social skills and was still stuck at the maturity level of a young adolescent.

My rising adult years were spent in the military, then college. I felt no solidarity with my own generation because conformity abounded in both institutions. When I first heard of "Generation X," I didn't realize I was a part of it. I thought it was the label for my younger peers who came straight out of high school into college. I didn't see myself as similar in any way to the kids who dressed all in black, wore toboggans in the summer, listened to "alternative" music, went to raves, etc. "I want to be different, like everybody else," was how I lampooned such people. But outside college, the Armed Forces, and other such ideosyncratic conformist subcultures, Xers were transforming from alienated loners to incorrigible cynics, just like me.

In basic training, I was puzzled that my fellow recruits already hated military life and wished they were back home. Why did they enlist in the first place, I wondered. Every mail call, they received letters and care packages from family. No wonder they missed home so much. Their families sure seemed to miss them. I couldn't relate to their experience and they couldn't relate to mine, even though most of them were only 1-4 years older than me. But outside that subculture, Xers who probably could relate better to my experience made more intelligent, pragmatic decisions--learning computer programming instead of pursuing a so-called "life of adventure" in uniform.

I kept in touch with my parents through basic and subsequent training, but gradually lost interest in doing so. I think, by discovering what a different experience my peers had, I began to connect the dots, realized how shortchanged I had been in childhood, and resented it. I did spend one leave visiting family. My peers thought I was crazy for being happy to be back from it.

My enthusiasm for soldiering took a while to die, as I kept anticipating that, just around the corner, something would change and I would finally find my niche in life. But when I had had enough, the whole experience just added to my bitterness. When I rejoined civilian life I quit shaving; grew my hair out long; refused to tuck in my shirt or wear a belt; made a habit of putting my hands in my pockets, and expressed contempt for most military types ("LIFERs") and wannabes. My philosophy was: "I'm a civilian now, and I'll do whatever the ______ I want." Unfortunately, my rebellion carried over into my spiritual life, too.

Over time, I communicated less and less with family--especially my father. I only attended one family reunion out of four or so that took place.

As an adult, my father was a lot friendlier to me than when I was a child, but I didn't have much interest in him by then. Spending time with him was awkward. We had almost no common ground. It's kind of like that Boomer song "The Cat's in the Cradle." Thematically, at least.

 

 I did eventually forgive him, and made more of an effort to visit. He died in 2017 and it made me sad for a while; but honestly, I don't miss him.

I get along well with my siblings, and enjoy spending time with them. I'm closest to my two brothers. But we might never see eye-to-eye on some matters. I see now that our conflicts result from a classic contrast in attitude between the 13th and the Boom. For instance: my brothers (and Boomer friends) recognize a need to reform institutions, but are horrified that I think every last one of our corrupt institutions should be torn down. I think the United Nations should be kicked out of the USA (should never have been allowed in to begin with, in fact); the IRS, Federal Reserve, and welfare state should be razed to the ground...for starters. The mainstream media has been deceiving us going back to at least 1898 (probably much earlier), but their deception gets more centrally-controlled, standardized, and blatant all the time. Television programming is a moral cesspool filled with everything God hates. There's no escape from unGodly messaging anywhere in pop culture today. Yet at least one brother (and other Boomers) still faithfully watch local news, and CSI/Law & Order/NCIS/whatever on the Idiot Box. They know, on some level, they are being lied to, but they keep exposing themselves to the lies. "You can't just throw out the baby with the bath water," Boomers will tell you--meaning there's something worth watching amidst all the lies and cultural brainwashing they consume. So if there's just a little bit of poison in your food or water; or just a little bit more than there was last time, no problem. Eat, drink, and be merry.

Discussions/debates/arguments are handled differently by my brothers and I. They are concerned about balance--not wanting the other person to adopt a position they see as extreme, on either side of an issue. I tend to see most issues in black & white. There is right, and there is wrong. If you're wrong, I don't care whether you're a radical or a moderate--you're all under the same umbrella, and part of the problem. If you're right, then why not be extremist (by today's definition) about it? If you compromise with evil, then you're also part of the problem, even if you believe intellectually in what is right.

My Boomer brothers (one to a different degree than the other) believe they can educate others out of their ignorance or twisted logic. This causes them to sometimes spend time trying to reason with individuals who are unreasonable. I regret every single pearl I have cast before swine. Through prolific experience, I have concluded that some people are willfully ignorant and will reject truth mostly because they're heavily invested in lies...and there's no way I can compete with that investment. When I recognize that fanatical ignorance in a person, I normally just disengage. There's no use in contending with somebody who rejects truth out of hand, so why waste time or energy doing so? Sometimes such a fight is inevitable or necessary for one reason or another, but when it's not, I just walk away with the valuable knowledge that the other person can't be trusted. I'm a lot less frustrated since adopting this policy; but I also probably write people off too quickly. Thankfully, God doesn't write people off as easily as I do.

A trend toward cynicism began with the Boomers, and peaked with Generation X. Same with individualism. My brothers would probably be considered antisocial by Barn-Raisers or Custodians, but they're nothing compared to me. Solitude was an affliction as a young boy, but now is a preference. Although I sometimes enjoy the company of others, I have no emotional need for it. Looking back at the times in life when I was most happy, they usually occurred when I was isolated. Sometimes I had friends during those times, but kept them at arm's length. My brothers and Boomer men I know draw strength from being with family or part of a community. I don't. If I get too much of that, it's an irritation.

I don't believe I'm any sort of model for psychological health; I'm just admitting how I am. And I suspect there are a lot of 13ers/Xers who are very similar. Would I like to be part of a warm, loving family or community? Sure. But even if I found that, I don't think I'm cut out to be a part of one anymore. That ship probably sailed long ago.

I kept hope for that, and many other desires, alive for a long time--like approval from my father and the fairy tale love of a good woman. I was naive for clinging to my hopes for so long, in fact. But when I finally let go, I guess it was permanent. Now those erstwhile desires don't interest me, except in an abstract sense. Dreams of great accomplishments have died, too. What do I want out of this life, at this point? I still want success, as I define it now. I want to minimize stress, drama, hassle and suffering. I want the rest of my life to suck less than it has up to now, and that's about as high as my expectations dare go. In short, I suppose I'm drifting into nihilism--another characteristic of my generation.

It does no good to complain about "my lot in life." Boomers and Millennials wouldn't believe or understand the complaints. Other 13ers have their own problems and baggage to worry about. It wouldn't generate sympathy. And what good is sympathy, anyway? Sympathy can't be cashed in for anything of concrete worth, and is short-lived at best, anyway. Trying to please God is the only worthwhile endeavor left. That's perhaps the greatest revelation a human being can be given. My specific life experience was the path I traveled to get to where I could accept it.

Enough of that. I'll start on the historical cycles next.

Generational Archetypes: the Nomad

There are personal reasons, as well as current-event distractions, which have delayed my writing of this post. But here it is, finally.

Generational theory, as it complements Biblical prophecy, led me to believe that the "4th turning" or crisis (winter) phase of the generational cycle was upon us in 2020, not in 2008 (as Strauss and Howe proposed). First the Wuhan coronavirus, and now the communist/terrorist revolution taking shape on our streets, has convinced me that this is so. It is tempting to simply jump ahead in this series and get to that...but I'm going to try laying out the whole picture methodically as planned.

With the other archetypes profiled here and at the old Wordpress site, I have rejected Strauss and Howe's labels, and replaced them with my own (civic/hero=Barn Raiser; adaptive/artist=Custodian; idealist/prophet=Prodigal). For this archetype, however, I will retain their label. Strauss and Howe initially designated this archetype as "reactive," but later called it "the nomad." In my next post, I might explain why I'm using their term.

In the generational "family" of four types, the Nomad is the middle child, or stepchild. They are born during an "awakening" period to Custodian or Prodigal parents. They are the least valued and least protected children of the cycle. They come of age during an "unraveling" period. Their reputation from childhood to adulthood is as the bad seed, and a lot of them live up to that reputation. They tend to be pragmatist, if not survivalist, and are the most fiercely individualistic of all generations. They grow old impoverished, alone, and as neglected as they were in childhood.

Nomad generations are born during a spiritual awakening, a time of social ideals and spiritual agendas when youth-fired attacks break out against the established institutional order. Nomads grow up as underprotected children during this awakening, come of age as alienated young adults in a post-awakening world, mellow into pragmatic midlife leaders during a historical crisis, and age into tough post-crisis elders. By virtue of this location in history, such generations tend to be remembered for their rising-adult years of hell-raising and for their midlife years of hands-on, get-it-done leadership. Their principle endowments are often in the domain of liberty, survival, and honor. Their best-known historical leaders include Nathaniel Bacon, William Stoughton, George Washington, John Adams, Ulysses Grant, Grover Cleveland, Harry Truman, and Dwight Eisenhower. These have been cunning, hard-to-fool realists—taciturn warriors who prefer to meet problems and adversaries one-on-one. - Lifecourse Associates

When I think of Biblical figures who exemplify this archetype, I usually settle on King Saul. We don't know much about his upbringing, but Saul seems plagued by insecurities and self-doubt, despite being a head taller than all the other men in Israel. He also tried to avoid the limelight--at least at first. Upon Saul's first act of disobedience, God rejected him. (Contrast that with the patriarchs, Aaron, David, Jonah, and many others.) After that ultimate rejection, Saul's mind grew increasingly depraved--yet he didn't succumb to the common sin that all the other evil kings of Israel and Judah indulged in: idolatry. And though he didn't seek self-glorification either, his pride was so wounded by the praise heaped on David that he turned into a homicidal maniac. He finally suffered a humiliating, ignominious death.

I think of most of Israel's tribal ancestors as Prodigals except Benjamin (Barn-Raiser), and Joseph (Nomad). The affection of his father for Joseph doesn't fit, but how he was kicked around for much of his life does. His older brothers despised him; conspired against him; and literally sold him into slavery. Joseph worked hard in the house of Potiphar, but was thrown in prison for demonstrating integrity. While in prison he helped others, but was promptly forgotten when a prisoner he had helped gained his freedom, who could have put in a good word for Joseph. Joseph's tireless hard work finally paid off, and he was in a position to exact revenge against the Prodigals who stole the best years of his life from him, but he let them off the hook.

The doughboys drafted to fight in WWI, subjected to horrific carnage and poison gas, who came home to make the 1920s roar, were part of "the Lost Generation." Those Nomads (unappreciated as children, then fed to the meat grinder of a pointless European war) scratched and clawed for prosperity during the Stock Market boom while throwing caution to the wind in their personal lives. They bore the brunt of the Great Depression; and also took the blame for it. In fact, the Lost took the blame for pretty much every bad development in society during their adult lives. Whereas the GI Generation were venerated and lavishly cared for (at public expense) right to the grave, the Lost got the short end of the stick at every phase of life.

Strauss and Howe made an interesting point about the 2nd World War, which highlights the contrast in how the Lost and GIs were valued. To resolve the second phase of the "secular crisis" (winter) of that cycle, America shipped all their optimistic, team-oriented, cherished GIs overseas to fight the Axis. But leading them into battle at the strategic level would be the cold, hard, pragmatic Lost generals and admirals. The most famous of those Lost commanders was George S. "Blood and Guts" Patton. The opening scene of Patton's eponymous film tribute is a compilation of many Patton quotes as he addresses his army of (unseen) GI troops. Stab the enemy with your bayonet, the brutal general tells his young, untested soldiers, then rip his guts out and use them to grease the treads of our tanks. Patton was regarded by the establishment like a dangerous beast, only to be released from his cage when the crisis was so acute as to require exceptional savagery. And despite his cowboy approach to warfare (which certainly ruffled feathers in the military establishment), what got him in the most trouble on the Home Front was when the old brute slapped a precious young GI in the face for alleged cowardice.

Fast forward to the 1960s and the first waves of the next Nomad Generation.

Silent and Boomer adults used the brand new birth control pill to avoid having children. A decade later, they legalized infanticide inside the womb, in case they were too lazy or careless to use that contraceptive, and conceived anyway. Children, cherished and appreciated before, during, and after the secular crisis, were now effectively disposable. The 13th Generation was little more than a burden and nuisance during the hedonistic orgy of the awakening. The changing attitude toward children was exemplified by the stream of popular "evil child" movies during the period, like Village of the Damned; Rosemary's Baby; the Omen; the Exorcist; It's Alive; etc. (plus Evil Child themes in TV shows like the Twilight Zone, Star Trek, etc.).Children with evil supernatural powers arrived to screw up the Hippie Utopia simply by being born.

As the survivors of the Pill and abortion epidemics grew into teens, adults assigned them a reputation as mindless, amoral savages, or "party animals" at best. In the teen exploitation movies (produced and directed by Boomers) of X's youth, the teenage protagonists were usually portrayed as sex-crazed slackers who practiced apathy as if it were a virtue. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many youngsters tried to emulate this model the Boomers built for them.

This demographic was originally called the 13th Generation (interesting for its sinister and "bad luck" connotations) or the Busters (for the "baby bust" that ended the postwar Baby Boom), but later dubbed "Generation X." The implication was that these people had no "identity," no "consciousness," and no purpose. They weren't "cool" or "groovy" like the socially conscious Boomers; but apathetic and nigh-anonymous. They were so devoid of worth and nondescript that they didn't even deserve a name--just an "X."

Even the oldest of the 13th/Xers were never conscious of a world not wracked by the uncertainty and self-doubt (often self-hatred) that permeated America after the Kennedy assassination.

Society was focused on adults when the Xers were children. Every institution catered to adults and strove to satisfy their immediate gratification. Xers who survived abortion were an inconvenient obstacle to their parents' self-discovery via sex, drugs, Eastern mysticism, careerism, and every other fad in their non-stop hedonist life cruise. Born during (and sometimes because of) "the Sexual Revolution," it was inevitable that few of the 13th would be nurtured in the stable nuclear families that previous generations enjoyed. Motherhood was viewed as a form of stifling oppression, so if Xers' parents actually remained together, the "woman of the house" liberated herself by pursuing her own career. Divorce went from rare to commonplace during the 13th's childhood. Either way, most of them came home from school and fended for themselves until a parent or step-parent arrived that afternoon or evening. Nights and weekends were often spent alone for children of divorce, whose swinging mothers went out to date and party. The 13th was largely the "latch-key" generation. They became extremely independent, if not alienated. Families had shrunk by this time, but some Xers had siblings who either relieved or compounded the alienation.

As the 13th entered adulthood, the robust industrial postwar economy enjoyed by the Boomers was nearly strangled, and the quality of life for young adults plummeted. Even during the economic recovery of the 1980s, the bulk of the largesse benefited the older generations while X faced dwindling opportunities and bleak prospects as hourly-wage flunkies in the new "service-oriented" economy. Meanwhile, college tuition skyrocketed. X also inherited a new sexually transmitted disease developed by the Boomers during their "free love" adventure, which attacked the body's immune system.



In the ugly, bleak new reality in America, many of the Xers harnessed their individualism and survivalism to become entrepreneurs, often in fields built around emerging technology. Others, who didn't have the technical foundation or social acumen to succeed in business, transitioned to lives of crime and drug addiction.

X was a highly competitive (and violent) generation from childhood to young adulthood. I never appreciated how uniquely so this was, until observing the Millennials interact socially, play sports, etc. The contrast is stark and stunning.



Alienated as children, X became cynical as adults. This is reflected in most of the pop culture crafted by the 13th. Movies made by X are raunchy, intentionally offensive, sardonic or nihilist. Music is dark, cold, hard, or mocking. Dancing was a communal exercise for the GIs and Silent; sexualized for the Boomers; but anti-social for Generation X. When the 13th went out to party (or "rave"), it wasn't unusual to see many of them, like Billy Idol, dancing with themselves. It also became common at concerts or raves for a "mosh pit" to form. In a mosh pit, young men turned dancing into a bloody full-contact sport. X ushered in the age of electronic music, wherein a band of other individuals with various instruments isn't even necessary--one person with a keyboard or computer can do everything.

As the 13th became adults, society's focus turned back to children. (No matter what stage of life they reached, it was never Xers' turn.) Society became protective of the young once again. The Evil Child movies lost popularity and were replaced by Good Child films. The market exploded with car seats, strollers, and papooses. 24-hour cable channels like Cartoon Network, Nickelodian, and Disney catered to children. Politicians poured tax dollars into public schools and arranged free lunches for the Millennials. Now students get free breakfast, too, all at taxpayer (mostly Xers) expense. Anti-bullying campaigns proliferate society, so Millenials and Homelanders won't have to go through the same crucible X did. Divorce is still commonplace, but parents now make an effort to nurture and validate their children. A lot of those parents, by-the-way, are 13th.

Violent and apathetic as kids, the 13th proved to be the hardest-working generation of all, despite their "slacker" reputation. They had/have to work much harder, for longer hours, to earn the same buying power as previous generations. And they've done so. If born female and/or of color, they are entitled to a helping hand from the system, and immunity from criticism by the macroculture. Otherwise, 13ers are out of luck. They have to look out for Number One, because nobody else will stick up for them. Nobody ever has. Life has been dog-eat-dog and every-man-for-himself. Survival is it's own reward. Acclaim and congratulations are always reserved for someone else (again: it's never X's turn. X doesn't get a turn). Who needs acclaim, anyway? Like the 13th cares, if others approve of who they are or what they've done.

X typically doesn't seek attention or recognition. Many Xers gave up looking for sympathy long ago, and wouldn't know what to do with it if they finally did get some. It would likely make them uncomfortable. Some of them don't feel sympathy for others easily, and come off as cold or heartless as a result. If you want to be dismissed and discredited, try lecturing the average white heterosexual male from Generation X about how "privileged" he is.

The cynicism, independence, and extreme individualism of X cause them to scoff at Christianity. It's very difficult for them to accept the notion of a perfect, loving, longsuffering Heavenly Father--often because of what their earthly fathers modeled to them. A nihilistic cynic hears about a selfless Jesus who willingly gave up His life to pay for our sins, and can't help assuming there's some sort of ulterior motive involved. It's too good to be true. It must be a scam designed to cheat people out of their money, or make their life suck even worse, somehow. Christianity is just another organized religion, after all. Their Boomer elders dabbled in various religions enough for Xers to know it's all just a silly waste of time, anyway. Besides, there's no such thing as "sin." The Boomers taught them: "If it feels good, do it;" and that philosophy took root. Xers typically bristle at any sort of judgement. To them, Christianity is just codified judgementalism. Why would they opt in? Making money and feeling good are what's most important in life--not trying to please some invisible Sky Pilot who watches in detachment an unfair world that utterly sucks. Life has been rigged against X from the very beginning. Where was this loving, all-powerful God when they were getting kicked around by parents, society, and the system?

There's a lot more to be said about the Nomads in general and Generation X in particular. I plan to say some of it in my next post; but after that, it's time to move on to the seasons/turnings.

UPDATE: Upon further reading, Strauss and Howe identified 2008 as an important shift in societal mood and the beginning of the Crisis, but predicted the climax of the Crisis would hit in...wait for it...2020.