this post was submitted on 03 Oct 2024
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United States | News & Politics
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One of the biggest determining factors of enfranchisement is home ownership. Boomers got to plunder the real estate that prior generations had extracted from the First Nations. That land was commoditized and collateralized such that subsequent generations had to pay an enormous premium to get access to it.
Subsequently, home ownership rates after the Boomer generation plunged. More and more property is monopolized by business conglomerates and simply rented out rather than sold. People move more often, chasing lower housing costs and higher wages. So they never develop a local identity, join a local political party, or invest in the long term interest of the community where they reside.
They don't know who their politicians are or why they should vote for any of them. So they don't participate. And then they leave an area rather than fight to defend it if the political leadership starts fucking the place up, because they don't own any of that land anyway.
The Boomers vote with their ballots.
The Zoomers vote with their feet.