Chillingly astute

There’s a heads up piece in the web-exclusive edition of Newsweek right now on the question of whether baby boomers have sold their souls for a generation of pleasure (which is also a good barometer of how well the generation became or remain acquainted with some literary classics, like Goethe).

Faust was offered a simple form of relief for his confinement: He contracted with Mephistopheles for 24 years of unending novelty, physical gratification and encyclopedic knowledge. The baby boomers didn’t sign any such contract, but as they became adults the most fortunate soon found themselves tasting similar treats: the erosion of sexual restraint, the ability to travel virtually anywhere, magic electronic devices that brought instant knowledge and entertainment even Faust never imagined, and most of all, ever-expanding choice—the freedom to make important life decisions and then unmake them at will: new locations, new spouses, new careers, all subject to endless re-evaluation out of a concern that something more exciting might lie around the corner.

Sound familiar?! That’s the point.