Revolution X: A Survival Guide For Our Generation

No, I'm not talking about Revolution X, the arcade shooter video game that featured Aerosmith prominently as seen here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolution_X

I'm talking about the hopelessly hilarious and out of date book written in 1994 entitled 'Revolution X: A Survival Guide For Our Generation' by Rob Nelson and Jon Cowan. With a forward by Bill Bradley no less.

Any book purporting to be speaking to a specific generation is going to inevitably look silly as time passes. That much is obvious. And believe me when I say that I approached this book with a healthy amount of leeway given the title and how easy it is to mock things that speak earnestly. That said, it's hard not to laugh at this book. At the time this was as earnest and serious as it comes, but I don't think the two authors could have foreseen in such a short period how much irony, post-irony, and cynicism would envelop the 'Post Generation X' generation even more so than the aforementioned GENERATION X. I.E. Me and my similarly aged folks.

Let me make it clear. Following the publishing details page, the dedication page reads as follows.

"We dedicate this book to the millions in our generation who are tired of being put in a box and labeled, and who want to join the movement for a better feature."

I burst in to laughter when I saw that. I also immediately envisioned a Claire Danes/My So Called Life or Winona Ryder/Reality Bites saying that while wearing a slightly stretched in a neck oversized wool sweater while their bangs hang slightly in their face and they coyly blow them out of the way. Yeah I envisioned that whole thing while also laughing at how fucking dumb that quote sounds.

To be fair the book mostly outlines how increasing debt, rising cost of education, and things like gay rights are important. And that is true. And one should vote. But the way it is presented is so shockingly hilarious to see that I almost feel bad laughing about it. But I can't help it. I'm writing this on a blog and I'm being snarky and all these things could not have been envisioned by the writers at the time.

The book does attempt to be quite "REAL" by having random side bar boxes in the book that include quotes from real GEN-X folk! Unfortunately it reads really stupidly. Mary, 26 years old and an office assistant drops this pearl of wisdom on us.

"Every day I try to do something to make our lives a little easier, or better. Like try to use just one cup. Or not throw out paper and recycle it."

Elizabeth a 25 year old grad student says, "I don't see our generation as being really content. I think they're search for something. I see a lot of people rejecting what their parents have had or done."

John, age 22 says, "I feel my voice mute in a world increasingly target marketed for people with bladder control problems and who need spray on hair."

Eben who claims to be a 25 year old graphic designer but says, "I went to one of the best colleges in the United States and I'm working as a bike messenger for next to nothing, no benefits, barely paying my rent, not paying my college loans." [HIPSTER!]

Kirsten, 24 year old bartender, "The american dream? Right now...the dream for me personally would just be to survive."

Yeah...again these are honest answers but its hilarious seeing them complain about how shitty things are when they were on the precipice of one of the greatest growth stretches in the American economy. The Dot Com boom and all that fun stuff. But instead we have Susheela, 29, a law school grad saying, "No One's hiring. The job market sucks. I'm paying rent on credit cards."

The book does provide a handy chart entitled "HOW OUR GENERATION WILL REDEFINE POLITICS" which is genuinely worth a laugh. It has two columns. One labeled "THE OLD" and the other "THE NEW."

The Old: Air Force One - The New: Video Teleconferencing
The Old: Polls - The New: Televised National Referendums
The Old: Voting Booths - The New: Voting by Internet
The Old: Evening News/The New York Times - The New: CNN, Cable + Insta-News
The Old: Left vs. Right - The New: Postpartisan

There also happens to be a very funny undercurrent of fear that the Japanese are going to take over! That has now been replaced by China. Included in the book are the "100 Harshest Facts About Your Future."

Number 16: In 1970 The Japanese had none of the world market share in dynamic random access memories, a semicondutor device; by 1988, that share had risen to 80 percent.

Also, this is what the cover looks like:



Am I being an asshole? Yes. Did I buy this at a book store for 2 dollars? Yes. Do I think its funny that people were complaining about college being expensive when they were paying something like 2000 dollars a year on tuition? YES.