Mark: Yes, the differences are hard to see when you look closely. But life has changed a _lot_ in the past twenty, forty years, and those changes shape the way we grow up and the way we think. 2008 is not all that different from 2007, and so on, but it is _very_ different from the 1950s. And people (in North America, particularly) do tend to be born in cycles, thanks to the effect of that last World War…So I think it's worth talking about generations, even though it's a touchy topic.

Anything that is in the world when you're born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.
Anything that's invented between when you're fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.
Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things.

Clicking "Add comment" and crossing fingers in the absence of a Preview feature….

I agree that both sides represent resources, capabilities and perspectives that can help each. It is the difference between the two sets that provides the dynamic for change, but maybe appreciation for each other will help eliminate unnecessary tension between the young and the old generations (or on a smaller, more personal scale, between young people and older people - whether in families, companies, organizations or communities).

Maybe young people (young people of all present and past generations) need to rebel against the ways of the old in order to bring forth change that would bring the world to the next level. It maybe the dissatisfaction with the old (old ways, old products, but hopefully not old people) that forces people to look for and create changes. It could also be the hope or quest to remain young (look at all the anti-aging products in the market!) that bring forth all sorts of discoveries in medicine, cosmetics, health maintenance, etc. Being young is also identified with impatience, which probably explains why machines get faster and faster.

On the other hand, some older folks like me start to see the folly of working faster, faster, faster on a direction that we no longer wish to take, especially, with the realization that we seem to be on a treadmill that goes faster and faster but is not going anywhere. We realize that there are more important things in life to enjoy.

When we were younger, we wanted to learn everything, go everywhere and do everything. Now that we are older, we are happy with what we know and can define what we would still like to learn and no longer feel the need to learn everything. We have learned to accept our limitations, which is not to say we are no longer interested to learn new things or new ways. We pace ourselves when we try to learn something new, and choose what else we need to know so we are no longer in a frenzy and no longer going in different directions to learn new things.

But each generation serves a purpose. The world needs the calm and contemplative contentment and wisdom of the old as much as it needs the tireless energy and intellectual curiosity of the young. It needs the dynamic incompatibility of the two generations in order for the world to move on, but we also need, as you said, for us to understand each other so that we do not diminish each other.

Note: I am not finished with writing my comment but I need to interview a couple of applicants. I will think about this more and try to finish this before you arrive tonight.