Boomers Had It Harder Than You Think

Between violent crime and stagflation, the 1970s were kind of a mess

Two youths in Uptown, Chicago, 1974 / Danny Lyon (National Archives)

Hating on boomers is a cottage industry online. Some of it is the usual generational foofaraw; some of it is conveniently viral clowning. But it’s all ultimately grounded in a perception that their generation got cheap college and houses, locked down the balance in pensions and stocks…