Fascinating numbers out of the latest Gallup poll -- they break down people's opinions on the war (mistake vs. not mistake) by age bracket. I have bolded the parts that grabbed me:

Did the United States make a mistake in sending troops to Iraq?

By age:

18-29 Yes - 56% No - 41%
30-39 Yes - 48% No - 50%
40-49 Yes - 52% No - 47%
50-59 Yes - 61% No - 38%
60-69 Yes - 62% No - 37%
70-79 Yes - 70% No - 28%
80+ Yes - 69% No - 26%

Holy shit. This is telling on a couple of levels. First, Attaturk of Rising Hegemon hits the nail right on the head in pointing out that the only age groups which still significantly support the war -- 30-49, basically -- "have no real recollection of Vietnam, and boy does it show." Absolutely. These are people whose formative experiences came in the late 1970s or the 1980s, just past the problems of the 60s and of Vietnam, but before the end of the Cold War and the Great Mellowing that ensued... no, this is the Reagan Generation, whose heyday was bookended by disco on one side and hair-metal on the other, and whose understanding of the world centered around Godless Communism and SDI Defense. These are people whose experience of military conflict boiled down to this:

Do not underestimate the colossal mental deadening that happened in the 1980s. You had to shut off your critical faculties just to survive the fashion, for chrissake, let alone the music. It produced a race of drones, incapable of thinking for themselves or grasping any kind of subtleties. These people still exist, having emerged in a sort of shell-shock; you see them today numbly mowing suburban lawns, mumbling to themselves, their hair gelled and their skin tan behind their hideous Ray-Bans. They still get their news off of shit TV or perhaps listen to Rush Limbaugh, and have no deeper comprehension of today's issues than their infant children. ("Global warming? But it's cold outside! Ha ha ha!") Their interest in anything does not extend beyond themselves and their immediate surroundings. They respond well to "Head On! Apply Directly To The Forehead" commercials. In other words, they are perfect Bush supporters.

(At this point I feel like a Dave Barry quote is in order. "Am I generalizing here? Yes, of course. But as is usually the case when I generalize, I do not care.")

Most of us young people understand fairly intuitively, I think, that these people are our enemy. Yuppies, and the like. Some of us are unfortunate enough to have them as our parents. (Me, I am blessed to have Baby Boomer parents, and the real kind -- Class of '72, with the sign-waving and the long hair and everything. Definitely outside the age bracket in question.) Inasmuch as they continue to blindly, stupidly support a blind, stupid political agenda, they cannot be tolerated; the yuppies MUST BE STOPPED.

----But there is a crucial second factor to be considered here -- the comparatively overwhelming opposition to the war among people 70 and up, normally a soundly conservative demographic. That's right, I'm talking about old folks. They can be very valuable to us.

First, to extend the war-experience frame, consider that everyone in this group experienced WWII (the youngest, this year's 70-year-olds, would have been 8 on V-J Day). I have no doubt that that would color their insights on military conflict, and it lends them great credibility.

Furthermore, this is the Greatest Generation, a group that for as long as we can remember has insisted that it knew the score, dammit, and it wasn't going to take guff from any young punk. That they have come down so firmly against Bush's war, even as he hews quite closely to their political agenda on other fronts, is a testament both to the quality of their judgment and the sheer transparency of Bush's presentation. Sure he might have fooled the yuppies and the dittoheads, and he might have temporarily fooled many of us impressionable youth or dispassionate Gen-Xers, but Grandpa knows better. After all, just because you're going deaf doesn't mean you can't smell bullshit.

There is much to be loved about the 70+ generation. They demonstrate an often-refreshing honesty ("Get a damn haircut, you look like a girl!"). They had fabulous music and fabulous movies. Not only are they capable of enjoying clogging--

--but they can enjoy it unironically. That is a monumental accomplishment.

My point is, we should appreciate our elders for what they are -- potentially valuable allies in the fight against conservatism. Picture Lisa and Abe Simpson on a tag team together; unstoppable. So if you're at home this summer, talk to your grandparents. See how they feel about the war in Iraq. (Also clogging.) You may be pleasantly surprised.

--UPDATE: As if on cue! Over at Daily Kos, meet 93-year-old Bruce, a lifelong Republican and WWII vet, who now refers to the President as "that Bush fellow" and has registered as a Democrat. An excellent sign.