America in Crisis

A long time has passed since I wrote Generations (1991) and The Fourth Turning (1997) with Bill Strauss. In those books, we pointed out a remarkable pattern in American history, a cycle of recurring eras driven by generational change. Among our predictions of the future was that America would enter a generation-long era of fundamental civic and economic transformation starting around the year 2010 and that the 2020s would be a decade of crisis and climax.

Well, now we’re entering the 2020s. So let’s take a closer look at what we said and why. And let’s take a fresh look at the current outlook. Join Daryl Jones, Director of Research, and I as we talk about everything from the economy and consumer tastes to politics and popular culture.

I get a lot of questions about The Fourth Turning. Readers want to know about “turnings” in history, about generational archetypes, about how the cycle works in various regions of the world. They want to know more about their own generation—its current condition, its future, what it will be remembered for. They want to know about the role of accidents and contingency and “complexity” in a cycle theory.

This show will be mostly dedicated to answering your questions. I’ve already got a long list. But I’m looking for more. So please send your question to qademography@hedgeye.com. Or submit them live to Daryl during the conversation. This should be fun.