12. Being a "Boomer"

Written October 2025

( There are a number of topics which I’ve wanted to write about here for the last few years, but haven’t dared, as doing so might have cost me my job, or prevented me getting another. While I don’t need to worry about "social media", as I don’t use any – I believe the term should be preceded with "anti" - I know from past experience that prospective employers also spy on people’s personal web sites.
But I’ve recently retired, so there is no longer anything to stop me! So contentious topics start here. I’m well aware that what I have to say in this and subsequent essays will offend many younger people to the point of apoplexy; frankly, I don’t give a rodent’s posterior! If you don’t like it, don’t read it! )

I was born in 1961; I’m at the bottom end of the age range commonly referred to as "Baby Boomers", or just "boomers" for short. That term is derived from the so-called "baby boom" of the years following the Second World War, when birth rates increased significantly – for obvious reasons in the years immediately after the end of the War, and into the 1950s as economies recovered and standards of living improved. Today, however, with the baffling obsession of the Moron Media for labelling age groups with silly names, and making interminable and pointless comparisons between them, the term is defined to include people born up to the early 1960s – so that includes me.
But many young people today, of "Gen Z" or whatever other daft label they give themselves, apparently use "boomers" as a derogatory term for those of any generation significantly older than themselves, whom they consider old-fashioned, and who dare to disagree with their views!
So using this definition, let’s look at what being a "boomer" means to me…

I speak plain English, and not pseudo-American gibberish. ( I’ve never "reached out" to anyone, as I don’t even know what that ridiculous expression means. )
Similarly, I speak plain English, and not contrived politically correct or "woke" gibberish.
I write in correct, coherent and grammatical English, instead of unintelligible "textese". ( Yes, even in text messages. )
I'm a master of the lost "black art" of mental arithmetic, and don't need a calculator to add two and two.
I actually read books! I own around 500 of them.
I don't need to use an "app" for every simplest task.
I regard a mobile phone as a useful functional device, not a fashion accessory, and don't feel compelled to "upgrade" every year to the latest "trendy" and stupidly expensive model.
I've never taken a "selfie".
I don't feel the need to have my phone glued to my hand every waking minute of every day, and certainly don't carry it to the toilet!
I've never used any "(anti)social media"; nor do I ever intend to.
I don't regard anyone as a "friend", whom I've never actually met and never will. ( Well, one exception - a former work colleague in India, whom I spoke to online every working day for two years. )
I don't measure my own self-worth by how many "likes" or "followers" I have - which is by definition zero.
I neither know nor care what a "hashtag" is.
I'm not a braindead sheep, and don't give a rodent's posterior what any so-called "influencer" says or does.
I’m perfectly capable of making decisions for myself, without eliciting the opinions of random strangers on the internet.
I've never heard of 95% of the people who are somehow regarded as "celebrities" these days, having done precisely nothing to merit it.
I understand the concept of history, and that things which happened before I was born were actually important.
While many terrible things happened in the past, I believe that we should learn from history, and not try to erase it.
As a white British person, I don’t believe that I should be personally made to feel "guilty" for what my distant ancestors did more than two centuries ago.
I believe that people should be given jobs entirely on their merits, not to tick political correctness boxes or fulfil "diversity quotas".
I’m all in favour of equality, and believe that it should mean exactly that! I understand that "diversity and inclusion" has nothing to do with equality, but equates to discrimination against straight white males.
I don't wake up every morning and think "What can I be offended by today?"
I accept that other people are entitled to their opinions ( as long as they don’t contradict indisputable facts ), and I've never "cancelled" anyone - whatever that even means.
I don’t define "hate speech" as anyone daring to say anything with which I disagree.
While I don't intentionally offend anyone, nor should I have to bend over backwards not to. I shouldn't have to live in constant fear of getting into trouble – or being sacked, before I retired - for saying a word out of place, because I haven't caught up with this week's update of what Generation Offended have suddenly decided is offensive.
I have no idea what "passive-aggressive" means, or what a "microaggression" is.
I don't believe that every joke which could conceivably be mildly offensive to anyone should be banned – and I certainly don’t believe that anyone should be sacked for telling a joke!
I don't consider Irish jokes "racist".
I’m nostalgic for the dim and distant days when comedy was actually funny!
I don't believe that popular comedy programmes of the past should be banned, and find it extremely irritating that those which aren't now have to be preceded with idiotic warnings about "language which some viewers may find offensive". ( Is anyone really so pathetic as to be offended by Corporal Jones referring to "the Fuzzy-Wuzzies"? )
I understand that the whole point of Love Thy Neighbour was not to condone racism, but to ridicule it; the racist character always ended up making a prat of himself!
I don't believe that classic children's books should be banned or censored, just because they contain a few old-fashioned words.
I accept biological reality, and the fact that there are two genders, and one can’t "become" the other.
As a published author, I pride myself intently on my command of the English language, and refuse to mutilate it to pander to the fantasies of a handful of deluded nutcases.
I don't care about anyone's imaginary "gender identity" or "preferred pronouns". "Trans women" are not women; they are men in drag!
I neither know nor care what "non-binary" means, and absolutely refuse to refer to a single person as "they/them".
I will not, under any circumstances, describe myself as "cisgender" – as is now actually required on some job applications! I don’t need to use a ridiculous made-up word to indicate that I’m normal!
I don't believe that a man can be regarded as a woman, just because he chooses to wear a dress and use a female name.
I believe that men who go into women's toilets or changing rooms should be arrested, and that the "rights" of men in drag should not be allowed to trample all over those of women.
I struggle to imagine anything more absurd or obscene than men who pretend to be women being allowed to compete in women's sports!
While I don’t particularly care what consenting adults do in the privacy of their own homes, I don’t want their lifestyle pushed in my face at every turn.
While some businesses claim to "proudly support" the "LGBTQ+ whatever daft letter they add next week community", I object to them doing so to the exclusion of normal people!
In the last 18 years of my working life, I took a total of two days off work sick. I have never, in my entire life, taken a day off for reasons of so-called "mental health".
In my entire working life, I never claimed to suffer from "stress", or any imaginary "mental health issue", as a result of being asked to actually do the job for which I was being paid. Nor did I ever suffer emotional meltdown due to any valid criticism.
Even in the post-lockdown world of "working from home", I never considered it unreasonable to be expected to actually turn up at my place of work, and to work the hours for which I was being paid.
I don’t regard being a bit tired, or every minor setback or disappointment, as a "mental health issue". I believe that today’s ridiculous overuse of that term is a gross insult to those who have genuine mental illnesses!

So if all this makes me a "boomer", then I'm a boomer and damn proud of it!!!
Have I missed anything?

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