[OPINION] Millennials have low opinion of themselves, compared to boomers

Millennials have a relatively low opinion of their generation. They don’t even like the label “millennials” to describe the group they’ve been lumped into, especially when compared to baby boomers, who eagerly self-identify as such.

That’s the finding from the Pew Research Center, whose latest report on generational groups holds a mirror up to each to see how they perceive themselves. The report, released Thursday, says boomers have the strongest generational identity, followed by those in generation X. Only the so-called silent generation seems to identify with its label even less — perhaps because the name has negative connotations.

As for millennials – a highly diverse group of people born between 1981 and 1997 and between 18 and 34 years old – only 40 percent consider themselves part of that generation. A third of older millennials (33 percent) would instead prefer to identify with gen X-ers, who were born from 1965 to 1980 and are now 35 to 50 years old.

Millennials are also more likely to give themselves low rankings in categories such as patriotism, responsibility, willingness to sacrifice, religiousness, morality, self-reliance, compassion and political activism. Fully 59 percent say “self-absorbed” is an apt description of their bunch.

But, hey, they’re young.

Boomers, however, tend to have relatively healthy self-regard, giving themselves better scores in patriotism, responsibility and so on. Only the silent generation -- those born between 1928 and 1945, who are between 70 and 87 years old – gave themselves an even bigger pat on the back.

Carroll Doherty, director of political research at the Pew Research Center, said the survey suggests that boomers like being considered boomers, perhaps because of the catchiness of the alliterative phrase and its descriptive qualities for a group of people whose post-war births created a population bubble. It may also be proof that the field of generational identities involve as much art as science.

“That name has really connected. And the others haven’t, and it’s unclear why,” Doherty.

Via: Washington Post

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[VIDEO] Rents are rising, but there are ways to stretch your dollar

If you're paying more for rent this year, you're not alone. Rents climbed an average of 15 percent across the country between 2009 and 2014, according to a recent analysis by the National Association of Realtors, and the cost to rent in some markets like New York, Seattle and San Francisco has jumped more than 20 percent.

Renters nationwide can now expect to spend 30 percent of their income on rent, according to a new report from the real estate data firm Zillow, which noted that rental affordability worsened year over year in 28 of the 35 largest metro areas covered by the company.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the NAR, attributes rising rents to "supply constraints" in housing and rentals: fewer rentals means higher prices. And millennial renters have been particularly hard hit, as rents are rising faster than income levels in many markets. "It's very demoralizing," he said.

But that doesn't mean you can't get a good deal—even in high-rent cities. Here's how to get the most for your money no matter where you live.

Expand your search. Rent is often highest in the hottest areas of a city. Even moving a couple subway stops or highway exits away can make a big difference in what you'll pay, said Paul Magyar of Mirador Real Estate in New York City.

For example, the average price of a one-bedroom apartment in Manhattan was nearly $3,200 (in a nondoorman building) in July, according to the latest rental market report from real estate group MNS. But the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Harlem, an area that is rapidly gentrifying, was $2,145—far less than the city's overall average rent and $700 less per month than the average one-bedroom rent in the neighboring Upper West Side neighborhood. And Harlem is only one or two stops away from midtown Manhattan on an express subway line.

Moving a little further outside a city can also save money. But it's worth factoring in the cost of owning a car and paying for gas if you're considering a suburban rental versus living in a city with good public transportation.

Decide your budget and stick to it. Before you start looking, figure out what you can afford to pay each month. Experts suggest spending no more than 25 to 33 percent of your income on rent. "It's not an investment," said Catherine Seeber, a senior financial advisor at Wescott Financial Advisory Group in Philadelphia. And you want to make sure you have enough money set aside for emergencies and other expenses. (A new Zillow analysis found renters with a high burden—those who spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent—have a median savings rate of zero.)

Don't forget incidentals. Be sure to find out what's included in the rent and what's not (like water, heat and laundry). Seeber also recommends making sure your landlord, building superintendent or management company will be easily accessible. Otherwise, if you need an emergency repair, it could end up costing you time—and money, if you pay out of pocket with no guarantee of reimbursement.

Consider a roommate. Splitting the rent with a roommate means you can often afford a nicer apartment than you could on your own. Not only will you save money on rent, but you can split the cost of utilities, Wi-Fi and other bills.

Check the out clause. Find out what's entailed if you or your landlord wants to end the lease early. Not only do you want to know what you might be responsible for if you need to move before your lease ends, but you want to know what to expect if an owner decides to sell the unit or move into it. If that happens, you could end up looking for a new place and paying moving fees before you planned on it, said Brian Morgan a realtor for Citi Habitats in New York City (where you may be on the hook for another broker's fee as well).

You could also consider living in a more reasonably priced city like Detroit, Memphis, Tennessee, or Lexington, Kentucky, where the NAR noted incomes have risen faster than rents. Although the same rules apply there too, of course.

Via: CNBC

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Millennials Can Rescue Cities from Their Leftist Rulers

Most American cities have been ruled by left-wingers for decades, and a good case can be made that this has contributed mightily to their decline. Of course, this has done no favors for groups — minorities, the poor, blue-collar workers — that urban progressives count as loyal political allies.

Many Millennials are, so far, enrolled in this coalition but, if they’re paying attention, might be wondering why. On two key issues, the Left is unalterably out of step with most twentysomethings’ beliefs and interests.

First consider New York mayor Bill de Blasio’s recent attempt to defend his city’s taxicab cartel and stifle the fast-growing ride-sharing service Uber. His Honor lined up enough city-council votes to cap the size of Uber’s fleet (among other things) and then, while on a junket to Rome, went on a populist rant to justify his regulatory offensive, decreeing that “the people of our cities don’t like the notion of those who are particularly wealthy and powerful dictating terms to a government elected by the people.”

 Which turned out to be exactly backward. Uber and its (mostly Millennial) subscribers mounted a relentless PR counterattack, punching holes in the mayor’s assertions about the need for more regulations and making clear that they don’t like terms being dictated by the government. The chastened mayor backed off, promising to study the matter for a few months. In the unlikely event that this study is honest and objective, it would teach the mayor some very important lessons — foremost, that Millennials’ embrace of “Sharing Economy” firms like Uber does not merely make their lives easier and save them money. It helps save cities and, indeed, the planet.

Uber and its rival Lyft do not just bring competition (read: lower prices, better quality) to monopolistic markets. They exemplify a new kind of business that enables us to lighten our ecological footprints by making more-efficient use of our possessions. When we share otherwise-idle residential space (via Airbnb), tools (Open Shed), or clothing (Thredup), we squeeze more value out of the scarce resources used to create and maintain these goods. 

A nerdy economist might call this “efficiently amortizing fixed costs”; everyone else would just say it’s “being green.” And, in truth, this has always been a signal virtue of city life. When we cluster together in dense urban areas, we enjoy much lower costs per customer for our streets, water and power lines, and much else. Matthew Kahn has found that (after controlling for income and other influences on demand) the average suburbanite drives 31 percent more miles and consumes 58 percent more land, 49 percent more fuel oil, and 35 percent more electricity than the typical city dweller. 

Millennials are on board: A 2014 Nielsen survey found that almost two-thirds of the 77 million Americans aged 18 to 36 “prefer to live in the type of mixed-use communities found in urban centers,” and are currently living in such areas at a higher rate than any other age group.

Via: National Review

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Shapiro: Obama Millennials Want To Leave The America They Created

A new poll from TransferWise shows that 35 percent of those born in the United States would consider ditching their home country to live elsewhere; that number skyrockets among those aged 18-34, the so-called millennials, 55 percent of whom said they would think of taking off if given the chance.

Most of those millennials cite economics as a chief factor in their desire to leave: 43 percent of men and 38 percent of women said they’d leave if they could get paid more in another country.

The rationales for staying in America, articulated by Americans, are particularly weak: 59 percent say they would stay because “it is home,” another 58 percent say they would stay thanks to romantic and family ties – and then the stats drop precipitously, with just 22 percent stating they would stay for the democratic society, 17 percent for the culture, 10 percent for the good future for children, 5 percent for wealth, 3 percent for low crime, and 2 percent for low taxes.

Via: Fox News

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Advice for Arguing with Millennials

RUSH: Max in Scottsdale, Arizona, next up, how are you, sir?

CALLER: Thanks, Rush. It's a pleasure to speak with you. My dad recently gave me a signed copy of your book, "See, I told you so." It belonged to my grandpa. I've been reading it a little bit. It seems like things have gotten a lot worse. You wrote about Ice-T and a song about killing cops and how they're really celebrated. And I'll tell you that today that pop culture, and hip hop in particular, is even worse than it was back then.

And today what it means to be a man and a rugged individual is no longer something that's respected or celebrated. It's ridiculed and we hold up these other guys like Ice-T and the cop killers. It makes me feel kind of alone out here trying to live up to my grandparents and their values. It was cool opening your book and seeing all this stuff and I appreciate it. But I'm a little lost as to where we go today and also wanted to check in on your marketing plan for Millennials and see how that was going.

RUSH: You want to know how my marketing plan for Millennials is going.

CALLER: Yes, sir.

RUSH: Not very well. (laughing) What do you think, how's it going?

CALLER: You kind of keep it close to the vest.

RUSH: That's it. When you have a marketing strategy, my theory and philosophy is you don't announce it, you just implement it. If you admit to people that you're targeting them for anything, either to separate them from their money or to get them to change their mind and agree with you, why tell them that that's your objective, because they just prepare a resistance to you.

So I'm prepared not to give any details of the secret marketing plan to persuade Millennials. And I'm not going to now. I'm not going to now either. It's not going to be easy, and I'll tell you why. And again, I hate to be repetitive. But I'm sure there are people listening today that haven't in a while. I'm sure there's all kinds of people tuning in today, Snerdley, who just want to gloat and they're hoping to hear all kinds of sadness and anger and misery. I'm not going to give them the satisfaction of that. But the Millennials in this country, the vast majority of them, they know things aren't right. Most everybody does.

This isn't the United States of America that most people know or expect, not economically, not in terms of people's good vibes about the future. But the percentage of people in poll after poll think the country is going in the wrong direction and the number keeps expanding. Here's the difference, though: In previous times when people have thought the country was in the wrong direction, or in the right direction, either one, there was always, in the world of politics, people always tied those opinions to a particular political party or a particular president given who was in power.

Meaning, when the economy was in the tank, the president got the blame for it. When the country was on the wrong track, the president and his party got the blame for it. And when parties lost elections, particularly if they lost big in landslides, then it was incumbent upon that party to respect public opinion, go out and openly promise the changes they were going to make to once again appeal to people who voted against them.

That's gone because today's Millennials do not associate any of the current circumstances of the country with the political party in power. Amazingly, everybody's blaming the Republicans for everything, and the Republicans haven't been in power for six years. The Republicans had nothing to do with what happened in Charleston, South Carolina, had nothing to do with any mass shooting. The Republicans had nothing to do with what went on in Baltimore. The Republicans had nothing to do with what went on in Ferguson. The Republicans had nothing to do with the economic policies in the last seven years, and yet Millennials blame them. And a lot of other people blame the Republicans. It's the most amazing thing

Via: Rush Limbaugh

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Jobs Report Shows Millennials Need A Republican President

Millennials continue to struggle under President Obama—no wonder 73 percent think finding a job will be difficult once they graduate. What my generation needs is the opportunity to achieve the American Dream, not the failed Obama policies that make it tough to find a job. Hillary Clinton would be more of the same. We need a new direction and a Republican president.

BACKGROUND:

The Unemployment Rate For 16-24 Year Olds Increased From 11.6 To 12.2 Percent In May. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 6/5/15)

The Unemployment Rate For 20-24 Year Olds Increased From 9.6 To 10.1 Percent In May. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 6/5/15)

The Unemployment Rate For 25-34 Year Olds Stayed At 5.8 Percent In May.(Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 6/5/15)

Survey of Young Americans’ Attitudes toward Politics and Public Service(Harvard Institute of Politics, 3/18/15-4/1/15)

119. Based on the current state of the economy, how easy or difficult do you think it will be for students in your class to find a permanent job after graduation?

Very easy…......................3%

Somewhat easy............. 23%

Somewhat difficult........61%

Very difficult..................12%

When Compared With The Overall Labor Market, The Young-American Economy Is “Sort Of Terrible.” “But a deeper look at the Young-American Economy today suggest that, in contrast to the overall labor market, it is still sort of terrible.” (Derek Thompson, “The Economy Is Still Terrible For Young People,” The Atlantic, 05/19/15)

“The Median Income For People Between 25 And 34 Has Fallen In Every Major Industry But Healthcare Since The Great Recession.” “A recent analysis of the Current Population Survey last year found that the median income for people between 25 and 34 has fallen in every major industry but healthcare since the Great Recession began.” (Derek Thompson, “The Economy Is Still Terrible For Young People,” The Atlantic, 05/19/15)

For Recent College Graduates Underemployment Is “High,” The Quality Of First Jobs Is “Getting Worse” And” Wages Are “Growing Slowly, If At All.”“Underemployment (the share of college grads in jobs that historically don’t require a college degree) is high. The quality of these first jobs is getting worse. And, for these reasons, wages are growing slowly, if at all.” (Derek Thompson, “The Economy Is Still Terrible For Young People,” The Atlantic, 05/19/15)

Via: GOP.com

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Obama core still crumbling

Poll: Obama’s Base Continues To Crumble, Approval Rating Among Voters Under 30 Hits New Low, 37%

OBAMA CORE STILL CRUMBLING - The latest New Fox News poll gives President 

Obama a 41 percent approval rating among all registered voters – not a great way for him to end year five. But how about this: Only 37 percent of voters under 30 approve of the job the president is doing. That’s a 17-point decline in one year among the voters who represent what was once the core of the president’s coalition. These are the people to whom the president is making an increasingly frantic plea to enroll in ObamaCare. And surely the “Lie of the Year” about Americans being able to keep their coverage and care under his law is a big reason. Sixty-one percent of all respondents believed he knew at the time that his statements were untrue.

[When it comes to his signature entitlement program, 54 percent of respondents say they wish it had never passed. Another 60 percent do not see ObamaCare being successful. Sixty-seven percent favor a delay in its implementation, including 54 percent of Democrats.]

Can you hear me now? - But when it comes to younger voters, the other big scandal – the president misleading voters about his expansion of domestic surveillance – is likely just as important. A White House panel has proposed limits for domestic surveillance, and White House Press Secretary Jay Carney says President Obama will soon address those proposals. Reporters expect that could come as soon as today. Fox News has more.

PUTIN STICKS UP FOR OBAMA ON SPYING - Russian President Vladimir Putin claims Moscow is not controlling leaker Edward Snowden. Putin told reporters Thursday that anything published by Snowden came prior to his arrival in Russia. The Russian President maintains that Snowden’s asylum was conditioned on halting anti-American activities. Putin also defended the NSA’s surveillance program saying it is a necessary defense against terror but cautioned it needs to follow the rules. In referring to Snowden’s leaks, Putin said he “envies” President Obamabecause “he can get away with it”. AP has more.

Via: Fox News

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Obama Warns Millennials of Bar-Related Injuries

Something is up!  The "young invincibles" who were largely responsible for catapulting Barack Obama into the seat of power appear to be spurning ObamaCare and its joke of a website.  A recent Harvard University Institute of Politics poll revealed that 50% of 18- to 29-year-olds disapprove of ObamaCare and believe that it will raise their health care costs. 

Compounding that problem is the fact that less than one third of uninsured young people say they plan to enroll in coverage, which means that those the president was depending upon to carry the weight of health care costs would rather spend the little money they have trying to get their Obama logo tattoo lasered off.

Good for them!  America's youth are smarter than Obama gives them credit for.  They've figured out that the guy who's ruined their chances for a lucrative career now wants them to shoulder the bulk of the costs for his health care bill with money that his economic policies have prevented them from earning.  Seems those between the ages of 18 and 29 are on to the president's Ponzi scheme, wherein the government wrangles the young into shifting their nonexistent resources to older, sicker Americans.

A recent Gallup survey found that more than one quarter of people without health insurance would rather pay the fine. 

Via: American Thinker

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Obama Loses Millennials: 57% of Young Adults Reject Obamacare

A new Harvard University poll finds a majority of millennials (57 percent) disapprove of Obamacare. The news comes on the second day of President Obama’s latest effort to sell the health care law to the public at large and young people in particular.

The results from Harvard’s Institute of Politics, which surveyed 2,089 young adults aged 18 to 29, found only 18 percent of millennials who thought Obamacare would improve their care. Less than one-third said they’re likely to enroll in the Obamacare insurance exchanges.

Whether pollsters referred to the law as the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare, most young adults (50 percent and 51 percent, respectively) believed their health care costs would go up because of the President’s signature domestic legislation.

Millennials, who played a critical role in the election and re-election of Obama, now rate the President at the lowest level since he took office in 2009, with 41 percent approval, the poll found. Millennials named the economy as their top issue, followed by government spending, jobs, taxes, and health care.

Via: The Foundry

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