MAYBE--DON'T FEAR THE MILLENNIALS?: Kept meaning to write about this, it's your pop sociology article of the moment that the Inky published a week or so ago about the generational dynamics behind the Obama phenomenon. It fed into my Boomer hatred (or whatever flattened emotional response a card-carrying GenXer is supposed to have) as it portrayed them as an idealistic generation unwilling to compromise and thus unable to get shit done, and contrasted them with a civic generation--and they're putting the Millennials in that category--who're more low-key and--gasp!--actually capable of compromise. Previous civic generations gave us Lincoln and FDR so Obama is going to be a super-memorable president, is I guess what the take-away conclusion is. And it wouldn't be a pop sociology article without one moment of stupid overreach:

Since they started watching Barney as toddlers, the millennials have learned to be concerned for the welfare of everyone in the group and to try to find consensus, "win-win" solutions to any problem.

Yeah. And Mr Hooper taught Generation X apathy!

Note: following Kevin Drum's guide to blogging, I googled the authors and neither one is an actual sociologist and they have a book to push. Yay for pop sociology written by laymen!