x Preface
early 1980s), and they undeniably took conspicuous consumption to an
entirely new level. More recently, boomers have failed to form any kind
of significant coalition to fi ght virulent ageism, instead futilely trying
to hang on to the remnants of their rapidly fading youth. Given their
roots in social activism, this is a lost opportunity, and I urge my fellow
boomers to take on the cause in their third act of life in a way that they
combated racial and gender prejudice and an unjust war in their fi rst and
second acts.
