PDF The Mindset Lists of American History: From Typewriters to Text Messages; What Ten Generations of Americans Think Is Normal by Tom McBride; Ron Nief in History

Review

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Gallop through a hundred years of American HistoryBy robert j rayMindset Lists is an astounding book.It is deceptive; perceptive; honest; smooth; far-reaching; easy to read. The book has the power of simplicity; combined with places we have been—home; high school; college; the battlefront; the hospital; dad driving off to work; leaving the suburbs—places that shaped our perceptions and our reflexes. The book reminds us what we watched on TV—The Brady Bunch; The Partridge Family; All in the Family—and offers an insight into how it reflected/created our values at the time.In this book; the authors have captured the voice and the vision of America. On the one hand; there is the Cracker Barrel humor. On the other hand; there is the Learned Seminar—these guys know their subject.For my entry into this book; I jumped to the Class of 1957 chapter—four years away from my high school class of 1953—but still a pictorial landscape of my time; my student days; my perceptions and prejudices and fears. I myself was a card-carrying member of the Silent Generation. We watched Estes Kefauver on TV. Even without visiting the site; my class knew the mythic marketing fame of Disneyland; selling Mickey Mouse in a theme park. We played Scrabble; we drove cars with big fins for fenders.When I was immersed; soaked in my own class; my own lost time; my own sepia memories; I flipped forward to the Class of 2009—I’m writing this detective novel and one of the characters is a 20-something. She entered the story as a walk-on; then worked her way into the dialogue; learned her lines; carried a couple of scenes; and then demanded (lots of characters do this) her own personal Point-of-View. “I want more ink;” she said. “I deserve it.”I had kept her small because she was three generations away; maybe four; I lose count. Saved by Mindlists; I developed enough information (my character loved Buffy the Vampire Slayer; she switched to the female cops on CSI; her mom suffers from OMGD syndrome—Obsessive Male Gender Disorder; she has vowed to be chaste until marriage) and; like a flower opening; the character came alive.At the start of each chapter; there is a Mindset List: 50 generalized statements that build little boxes around each graduating class. A lot of these generalizations contain the words “always” or “never.” Here’s what they see for the Class of 2009:• Fax machines have always been soooo eighties.• They’ve never dialed a telephone.• TVs have always been flat.• They’ve grown up with “friend” as an active verb.• Swiping has always been how you buy something; not how you steal it.• For all they know; Desert Storm is the name of a rock band.Reading this book; illumined by insights; you can see the patterns of America repeating; down through the generations. We’re in a cage; there is no escape.But wait! Using this clever; fulsome book; you realize that Americans around you are seeing through a prism that was shaped by what was happening in their lives before THEY graduated high school! Yikes!McBride and Ron Nief; his co-author; have written this book with a ton of research; a careful hand on the language; and the occasional sly wink. I like that they give a minor drubbing to Reagan the smiling Politico; an actor playing at being American President.This is an amazing book.A whopper message in a tidy package.Congrats from a fellow wordsmith.Robert J. Ray; The Weekend Novelist Guy3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A Book That Gives Some Perspective to the Term "Generation Gap" ...By DACHokieGenerations seem to look at one another through a "grass is always greener" lens; where the current always thinks their parent's and children's' generations has it better of for one reason or another (think of the "I had to walk ten miles in snow to get to school every day" stories). I always thought life was simple for my parents in that I assumed they grew up in a time where people could always get by on less and didn't have as much "stuff" to worry about. Same with my young children ... they have it made because everything in their lives is geared toward instant gratification (where I actually had to GET UP to change the TV channel when I was a kid). With THE MINDSET LISTS O AMERICAN HISTORY; authors Tom McBride and Ron Nief offer some insight on what life was like growing up in America over the past century and clearly illustrates that no generation was void of hardship or perks.The authors give the reader perspective of what life was for successive generations of Americans every thirteen years. Each chapter represents the year that its "class" members would have graduated from high school (from the "class of 1898" to the "class of 2026"). With this format; virtually every reader has some idea of what their parents and grandparents endured during their childhoods. By introducing a list of 50 "mindsets" at the beginning of each chapter; the reader gets a quick glimpse of what was considered "normal" for a particular generation. These 50 mindsets are then thoroughly broken down and explained in a manner that allows the reader to understand how previous generations came of age throughout the past century; as well as projecting what's in store for the latest crop of newborns (Class of 2026). THE MINDSET LIST puts the various generations in perspective and illustrates how relative they are to one another. Each and every generation has dealt with ups and downs (economic growth/turmoil and war/relative peace); as well as being the beneficiary of technological and sociological advancement. It is amazing to realize that certain aspects of everyday life we take for granted now were once considered life-altering not too long ago (like zippers or ready-made; store bought clothing). If anything; the book allows readers to detach themselves from the present and see life through the eyes of those belonging to older and younger generations (how many of those in the class of 1918 lived through the first airplane flight as well as man landing on the moon). Seeing the progression of these generational mindsets illustrate how each generation's great achievements become the ordinary fabric and/or foundations of future generations (to the class of 1918; a typewriter was no less amazing than an iPad is to the latest generation).While the mindset lists of past generations are presented as entertaining and thought-provoking Americana history lessons; an occasional whiff of political opinion taints some of the mindset lists and their explanatory text. For example; I found the book's depiction of the class of 1983 as somewhat suffering under the rule of Reagan a bit off-base. As a member of the class of 1984; the Reagan years represented booming optimism for most everyone I knew in high-school and college ... we no longer feared the threat of the Soviet Union/nuclear war and future opportunity seemed limitless if desire and a little elbow-grease were applied. Additionally; the projected mindset list for the class of 2026 combines some bizarre speculation with a little wishful thinking on behalf of the authors. Somehow environmental issues will dominate the youngest generation's mindset list; even though as the book was being written; the world was steaming toward economic melt-down and maybe even another global war is in the horizon. The books final chapter presents the authors' somewhat sincere rationale/excuse for the bombastic predictions of the class of 2026's mindset list; but I don't buy it.THE MINDSET LIST is an entertaining read with an added dose of nostalgia. For some; the book may explain our parents are so "square" and for others; it may offer reasonable justification for grandma or grandpa's weirdness. While THE MINDSET LIST may still make some people believe life was better in the past or that future generations will have it made; I think most may find themselves realizing the grass is greener right where they are at.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Arnold Who?By John W. PearsonIf your kids or your grandkids are graduating from high school in the Class of 2015; "Arnold Palmer has always been a drink." That's just one of 75 insights from this year's Beloit College Mindset List for the Class of 2015--an annual list created for the faculty (and now the world) at Beloit College; Beloit; Wisconsin; to remind the profs about the "mindset" of freshmen that arrived at college last fall.The mindset list delivers a different way of thinking about the future--and I've been following the list (and recommending it to clients and colleagues) for several years. And now there's this wonderful book (of course). Authors Tom McBride and Ron Nief provide additional color commentary on generational thinking--but it's not professorial dry or dusty; it's fun and quotable.I won't spoil the journey for you with too much information; but you must buy the book and use it in your strategic plan's environmental scan process. The fun part: the authors forecast the mindset of the class of 2026 (those born in 2008 who will graduate from college in 2030. Their classmates might include Tripp Palin-Johnston; Sunday Rose Kidman Urban; Gia Zavala Damon; or the Jolie-Pitt twins. For them; "George Carlin; Charlton Heston; Gerald Ford and Tim Russert have always been dead."Here are some examples from the class of 2026:#1. Their parents claim their lives are contained on those little metallic discs in plastic cases stashed away in the attic; but there is no place to play them anymore.#3. Only Special Home Delivery Priority Mail is delivered to the house.#4. They have always tried to keep track of their parents and grandparents by searching old Facebook accounts that the folks still think are pretty cool.#6. They have never seen a folded paper roadmap; a paper medical record; a printed phonebook; or a check.#8. The only network news program they have ever seen is the NewsHour with Jon Stewart on PBS.#10. Their college textbooks are all online; rented for a semester; and downloaded to their digital readers.#15. When they vote in their first presidential election in 2028; they will have a week in which to vote online.#16. The Cuban economy has been booming ever since U.S. manufacturing jobs began moving to cheaper factories there.#18. Most students entering college will never set foot on the campus from which they will graduate.#25. Declaring it safer than aspirin; doctors have always prescribed marijuana for the slightest pain.#39. Sotheby's has announced it will soon be auctioning off information.#43. Their parents still cannot believe that the Pittsburgh Pirates would actually move to Silicon Valley.#50. They've never seen the Cubs win the World Series.Pretending to look back; the authors said the class of 2026 saw their communities address multicultural problems by passing laws against muezzins' calls to prayers at local mosques "even if it also meant the banning of church bells playing `I Love They Kingdom; Lord.'" They add; "This has led to middle-of-the-night illegal tolling from dissident steeples."Use this book and; among other things; ask what other faith-based issues might face the class of 2026--and how could this affect your organization's products; programs and services in just 14 short years?