Subscribe to this BlogYoung Americans may welcome higher taxes
Catastrophes or triumphs can define generations. If you're part of "The Greatest Generation," a moniker coined by Tom Brokaw, the Great Depression and World War II molded your early life. And those first 30 years of deprivation and struggle probably influence your decisions now.
Today's Millennials (roughly, Americans born after 1980) haven't had a world war to contend with. But as we speak, their worldviews are being shaped by the most severe recession since the 1930s. Where could that lead?
To find out, a professor at UCLA and a researcher from the International Monetary Fund looked at responses to the General Social Survey, a long-running study of Americans' demographics and attitudinal preferences. Since there wasn't a good sample of national recessions to study (the survey started in 1972), the researchers turned to regional recessions, where, say, the farm belt suffered while the rest of America did fine. They published the results of their research last month in a paper entitled "Growing Up in a Recession: Beliefs and the Macroeconomy."
Here's what they learned: If someone grew up in a region experiencing a recession, he or she was much more likely to express "a stronger preference for government redistribution and tended to believe that success in life was much more a matter of luck than hard work," according to the researchers. In contrast, the recession didn't morph the attitudes of respondents older than 25 nearly as strongly.
So what exactly might this recession teach young people? It's probably teaching them that the stock market doesn't create wealth, but destroys it. Other studies have confirmed that people who experience losses early in life stay risk-averse even years later. If the government turns to inflation to pay off debt, it will also teach them that the bond market is no better (since bond prices tend to fall when inflation rises).
And how about that conversation so many laid-off fathers and mothers have had with their children? How do you answer your kid's question of why your job was lost when the reasons have little to do with work ethic and a lot to do with bad decisions made by others? Your kid probably doesn't walk away thinking that hard work leads to wealth, but that randomness and forces beyond his control play the biggest role.
The result? The researchers theorize we'll have a generation that's willing to accept high taxes in return for social welfare and wealth redistribution. What do you think?
Taxes are the worst thing ever devised by the mind of man, except for one thing: DEBT. As a near-Millennial, I will never vote for a national leader who does not vow to have a transparent, balanced federal budget–except in times of national emergency, like war or economic free-fall. Better to be taxed, but in a growing economy; than not taxed, and hanging on by a thread.
I'm a Millenial, albeit not a typcial one. I wasn't overparented, I wasn't coddled and spoiled. I started working at 14 because I decided I wanted some money and that's how people get it, by working. The longest break I've had since then was taking two weeks of paid leave when my son was born last year. I'm 27, worked two jobs through college, graduated, have had the same career ever since. I'm married with a child, own a home and two cars and have a spouse that stays home. I contribute 10% to my 401k and work hard every day to provide for my family. I'm a hard right Reagan conservative. If I can do it anyone can.
It's amazing how fast people forget their history. To all the people posting here shaking their heads in dismay at the folly of youth that leads them to embrace high taxes…. You should remember, the prosperity of the 1950's and the 1960's, that created the me generation, was purchased through the hard work and sacrifice of the generation that grew up with the Great Depression. Part of that sacrifice was a 90% top tax rate, and the sky didn't fall…..
I really feel that he is not far off. When "youngsters" have grown up in a society that is driven by the phrase "you deserve", and all they have seen is how people get what they want, cannot afford it, and then are bailed out because someone tells them they are victims and it wasn't their fault this happened, is obsurd.
Until we start to take ownership of the mistakes we made, learn from them and move forward to be a better person, we will continue down this muddy road we are on.
Don't have a world war to contend with? I think it would be better to say don't have "WWI" or "II" to contend with, but war itself is ongoing and very real.
Strauss and Howe mention in "Generations" that Gen X, the Millenials predecessor, are mistrusting of traditional authority figures (like companies) because they watched their parents get sacked after years of loyal service to the company, too. That is not a new phenom for families in America by any means.
This was a really good article!
Sorry to see many of the comments are poorly thought out.
Of course most successful people work very hard. The point is that many, many not very successful people work very hard, too. Read Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers" to better understand the case for a more progressive tax system, including especially, an estate tax. Very successful people work very hard, and are very, very lucky.
Part of the Obama's masterplan.
"make them hurt until they cry for help"
Easy to be popular with hand-outs…but the "chickens will come home to roost"
The term entitlement irks me. Paid my way through college. Worked two jobs to do it. Paid off all my debt, took more than a few career chances and worked a good bit more than 40 (still do at times). Now you're telling me that my achievements will support the slacker who blew off high school and was too lazy to work to open a few of those doors???? The company I work for is international. If my generation feels so entitled and opts to reward mediocrity, maybe I'll relocate and let that theoretical slacker continue to reap his rewards.
What's the old saying?
If you're not a liberal by the time you're 18, you have no heart.
If you're not a conservative by the time you're 35, you have no brain.
I suspect that many of the 20-30 year olds will tire quickly of having 50-60% of their earnings taken from them, But, maybe not.
Just luck…I left GM in 2006 right before it went belly up and jobs got scarce, entered a job that was a totally new career direction, worked 12 hr days for about 2 1/2 years straight and now have a secure job at a growing company in the middle of a jobless "recovery". Meanwhile, those who were too comfortable and willing to stand pat made the choice to stay on the belief that GM could "never go under"(with an unshakeable belief in GM that is similar to the belief some have in our government)- they then got to hold their breath through the April 2009 layoffs. Some didn't make it and now are in deep. Yeah…hard work and taking a chance has nothing to do with my security – if I had my way I'd have the U.S. ran by Jennifer Granholm and Arnold Swartzenegger – then we would really see the green grass of "security" on the other side of the hill.
What does this have to do with taxes? I completely disagree with this article. What makes my generation is the spread, there is no middle with people 20-30. To quote the great philosopher Katt Williams: "You're either ballin' or you're strugglin' … there ain't no in between." I love the fact we have no middle class in my generation, the poor are trying to not poor anyone and the rich are trying to get richer ….. the middle class just takes from the rich and pushes down the poor all in an attempt to maintain the status quo. Competition has made my generation great.
Chicago,
Why would the US want to become "equal" to the rest of the developed world? The "sense of mutual responsibility" you speak of is a sense that no one is responsible for anything.
I hope its true, so that the US can become equal to the rest of "1st world" nations in its treatment of citizens and the sense of mutual responsibility among them.
That's a BIG stretch from believing that success has more to do with luck to willingness to accept higher taxes in return for social welfare. The ones who are unlucky are relatively few (unemployment at its highest is 10%)! So all will not be willing to pay high taxes for those 10% because the chances that they will be those 10% are, well, just 10%!!
To those who have already done some studies on the attitude changes amongst the various generations, one thing has been noted continuously. Along with a high degree of comfort with technology, the millenials have an inflated sense of entitlement.
I'll be curious how this sense of entitlement plays out in the future, especially if the focus of this article holds true and millenials are more accepting of government wealth redistribution programs.
My gut feeling? After working hard and making money, even the millenials will grow tired of having that wealth transferred to others, regardless of whether that redistribution is because of bad luck or lack of ambition.
Yes, younger generations would like jobs also. If they were hired by their skill set and not by who they knew, the sense of luck would be less and their sense of self-fulfillment would be greater.
What option do they have, unemployment with no gov't assistance or unemployment with gov't assistance? The choice is obvious. It is not good in the long run, but no other alternative currently exists.
Funny – I thought US younger generations had more of a left-leaning bent, simply because 1) they're young, 2) the young nowadays don't have a lot of money and 3) the TV they generally watch tends to lean left, too, influencing their outlook in life.
I theorize that people are willing to pay more taxes only when they are young enough to pay barely any taxes, or when they are so rich that the taxes assuage their guilt without making a dent in their disposable income. Anyone riding it out in the middle lane should question a government that is constantly coming up with new ways to spend money and NEVER coming up with a single place to save a buck. Both political parties have proven to be equally carefree with the spending, and set an unfortunate example for the rest of the country.
Personally, if we must have more government spending, I would like a big new Federal department that spends all its time cracking down on the corporate fraud and theft that has made the super rich even richer while plundering the value from the stock market and the real estate market in the process.
In my brave new world, any executive who pays himself $50 million a year while the company stock tanks will be spending his days in jail. It's not just Bernie Madoff, people. Since when did corporate executives become entitled to earn a fifty lifetime's worth of riches in one year? That is what I call Millennial Greed.
The self-congratulatory "Greatest Generation" label makes me shake my head sometimes. I can't help thinking about all of the SS men, Soviet sociopaths, and Japanese kamikazes who were also part of that generation. I suppose they were also great in their own way.
I've noticed more of a libertarian bent among the US's younger generations. That's annecdotal, of course. Somehow it wouldn't surprise me if the young folks continue on down the road to despotism. I pity them actually.
That would be a terrible shame. The Greatest Generation never wanted something for nothing. They valued hard work and making your own way.
Everyone knows the story about the woman who asked Benjamin Franklin, "Mr. Franklin, what have you given us?" He responded "a republic, if you can keep it."
Franklin also warned that if we give people the opportunity to vote themselves money, the republic will be destroyed.
The high tax theory may be correct for a time, but if you analyze the problem properly you will see it is the government that has squandered opportunity and is beyond broke because of it. If you want to rely on a government check that is just fine, but as you can see from the millions of the greatest generation that have tried that with social security you will be left hurting. You must save for yourself even if taxes go to 95 percent. Government check = misery.