The Long Goodbye of the Baby Boomers

P.J. O'Rourke:

Thus reported the Associated Press on Tuesday, October 16, 2007:

The nation's first baby boomer applied for Social Security Monday, the start of an avalanche of applications from the post-World War II generation. . . . Kathleen Casey-Kirschling . . . was born one second after midnight on Jan. 1, 1946, making her the first baby boomer--a generation of nearly 80 million born from 1946 to 1964.

O rend thy garments, America! Heap ashes upon thy head. We, the generation of generations--triumphant in our multitudes, invincible, indomitable, insufferable--have come into our inheritance. Hereby we claim our birthright. Give us all your money...

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