Why did the baby-boomer generation in the UK decide to enrich themselves at the expense of their children?

[john]

Why did they decide to purchase buy-to-let properties, thus pushing up the price of housing to ridiculous levels, ensuring that their children could never afford to buy property? Why did they decide to have final salary pension schemes for themselves, but defined contribution schemes for their children, thus subjecting their children's pensions to the vagaries of the stock market whilst enjoying a lavish retirement to be paid for by their children (baby boomer's pensions are on average a shocking 108% higher than their contributions)? Why did they decide to have free university education for themselves, but subject their children to crippling levels of debt in order to gain a degree?

[casually defiant]

it wasnt a conscious choice

[Greybeard]

I'm a Baby Boomer, but I have to agree with you, it's a bit unfair!

[Poohcat1]

It seems to me that you should be grateful to those baby boomers. If it weren't for THEM....you would not have had the kind of life you had as a kid. They pushed for things so YOU would have a better life than they did. Same thing happened here in the US. Now, the young folks are so spoiled, they THINK that all this stuff they take for granted is their RIGHT to have. Nonsense. Someone had to work for it...and that was their parents and a whole generation of parents.

[Mugwumps]

Good question.

[Patrick S]

I think you are over generalising and blaming one generation on the problems of today,we all do not fit into your boxed in ideology so engage brain before thinking.

[justchillin]

the baby boomers are only partially to blame. it was the conservative policy of selling social housing stock at knock down criminal prices, and copying america by encouraging home ownership. the tory trick was to rig the market by not replenishing social housing stock, therefore creating a demand on limited property for this island. the baby boomers were simply led by GREED and the tories duly obliged. tory capitalism is built on a ponzi scheme unless we break the cycle, we shall perpetually experience, a RECESSION. this time they have created an almighty GLOBAL RECESSION with no end in sight

[Celia H]

Come off it - I suggest you don't let malice, probably actually directed against your parents, blind you to the real culprits. Most of us were broke for years paying for our houses and have no savings to speak of other than those houses. Most of us have only our own houses, and despise landlords as exploiting criminals. Every last one of us outside a corrupt unrepresentative political caste are utterly opposed to tuition fees, Blair's other crime against humanity for which he deserves to hang.

Every one of us outside that criminal caste are utterly opposed to the crimes being committed against today's workers by the same criminals. It wasn't a generation, but the obscenely rich, irrespective of generation, who have attacked your future - and they should ALL be put up against a wall and shot for doing so.

Come and join us silvertops on the trade unionists' rally against the cuts and for a socialist future - and I bet you'll see we outnumber The Youth on that march by 4 or 5 to one.

TURN THE RICH OUT OF POLITICS! ALL OUT ON 26 MARCH, ASSEMBLE 11.00 VICTORIA EMBANKMENT!

AND DON'T VOTE FOR TORIES OF ANY PARTY, INCLUDING PINK ED'S TORIES!

[Lennon Franklin]

Because you touch yourself at night.