In Focus delivers deeper coverage of the political, cultural, and ideological issues shaping America. Published daily by senior writers and experts, these in-depth pieces go beyond the headlines to give readers the full picture. You can find our full list of In Focus pieces here.

I’m often astonished at the indifferentism that I encounter among older people (read Boomers) who insist that young people who say they can’t buy a home are just lazy and need to get a better job.

Now I know what you might think. I, a 28-year-old still early in his career who gets paid to write his opinions on the internet, is trafficking in a time-honored cliche of blaming older people for my problems. And yes, I’ll admit, to some degree, that is what I am doing. 

There’s a stereotype about politicians that they generally see the world through the lens of the year they were first elected, no matter how different it may be now. If you were elected in 1992, and the year before there had been a wildly successful Middle East military operation, then, obviously, after being reelected in 2002, supporting another Middle East military operation will yield great success and definitely won’t destabilize the entire region for a generation.

And while most Boomers are not politicians, there’s a general truth to the fact that your perspective on the world is largely informed by your life during your early adulthood. After all, this is when you put down roots, start your career, and set yourself up for the next several decades. In other words, if you worked hard, bought a house, and supported a family on a single income when you were in your 20s, then everyone who doesn’t is lazy. And that’s true no matter how different the world may be from 1980.

Which brings me to this data point from a 2019

© Washington Examiner