“When we talk about generations, we’re not talking age cohort astrology for desperate brand managers—we’re talking history. The three big groups that dominate discourse are really three different experiences of empire. The boomers got a full dose, and despite the MAGA paroxysm remain irrationally exuberant about America. While post-empire Gen Z has no idea what the fuck they’re talking about. The middle-class country that boomers insist still exists is Netflix Original nostalgia-porn. Only millennials experienced the promise of empire and the reality-check of its implosion as the unfortunate trajectory of their lives.”