Zero Hour: Last of the Four turnings

       

       

We as a nation have indulged in the peace our constitution has given us for years and years but how long does that feeling of safety and comfort last? The Strauss-Howe generational theory also known as the "Fourth Turning Theory" is the idea that in America we as a nation run in cycles. Every 80-90 years is the start of a new cycle or " saeculum" and each cycle is divided into four "turnings" which are around 20 years long. I'm not going to go into extreme detail on the entire theory because what has happened in the past cycles isn't relevant so I want to focus on our current cycle the "Millennial saeculum".
       Lets start with the Baby Boomers who were born between 1943 and 1960, this first turning (the High) was born mostly after world war two and experienced America as the superpower of the world and a great golden age of western capitalism. When I think of this turning I usually revert to the stereotypical idea of the 1950s with ice cream shops, diners, drive in movies, and a strong industry with minimal almost no unemployment. Strauss and Howe describe them as "Idealists" born out of the end of the last cycle's crisis.
      Then we have Gen X born 1961 through 1981 this turning is what they coined as the "awakening" and it had the pleasure of dealing with the Vietnam War and the War on Drugs. These "reactives" experienced strong individualism and moved away from the establishment of their parents. The hippie movement defined this generation and paved the way for the third turning.
      Millennials and the "unraveling". Everyone loves to hate millennials especially the products of the previous turning. What they don't take into account though is that this generation born from 1982-2004 were the ones who at a very young age experienced the biggest terrorist attack in U.S. history and felt compelled to embrace their inner patriot and sign the dotted line to get sent to a war thousands of miles away. No wonder why Strauss and Howe coin this generation as "civic". The Persian Gulf War, War on Drugs, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Iraqi Freedom were at Generation Y's core.
      Gen Z born 2005-present are the products of the Obama Era. The Great Recession, climate change, and the rise of Democratic Socialism define this poor generation know as the "adaptives". The name is fitting I suppose as they had to adapt rather than react to this fourth turning known as the "crisis". So this is where we are right now.
        Crisis. Thats scary isn't it? But it isn't really that scary unless you understand what has happend in the last few fourth turnings in our nation's history. The last one began in 1929 with the Great Depression and ended in World War Two. Before that was the Civil War (1860), and before that was the American Revolution (1773), then (before our nation was born but still in our timeline in 1675) the Salem Witch Trials, then the Spanish Armada (1569), and finally in 1461 the War of Roses. The dates may be a bit confusing but they indicate the beginning of that particular turning and remember they last about 20 or so years and each cycle lasts about 80 years give or take. So every 80 or so years we have a large crisis that gives birth to a new wonderful age and then deteriorates and withers only to die and be born again.
      Pretty crazy if you ask me. So where do we go from here? This fourth turning hasn't ended yet and I don't believe that we have seen our great crisis just yet. We are half way through and if you follow the timeline half way is usually when the shit hits the proverbial fan. What could this great crisis be? Could it be another civil war? Maybe another world war but we won't know until we are deep into it as is what happens generally with large scale conflicts. Who knows maybe this will be the cycle that breaks the pattern but I highly doubt that considering the current state of the union. All I can say for certain is that the fourth turning is well under way and things seem to be heating up very fast.