Grumpy Old Men.

An "Oh Word?" Moment of Clarity.


"GET OFF MY LAWN!"

Words.

"What's going on? All along I thought hordes of angry young men posed the greatest threat to society. Experts are always telling us to worry about the social menace from brooding young Turks with too much energy and time on their hands. They commit the lion's share of crimes and terrorist acts. They generally have the least to lose.

But in the last two weeks, we've witnessed an 88-year-old white supremacist allegedly kill a security guard at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and a 51-year-old religious zealot allegedly assassinate a doctor who performed abortions in Wichita, Kan. Have we entered the era of the angry old -- or at least middle-aged -- man?

That's certainly the impression we got during last year's presidential election. The snarling John McCain versus the unflappable Barack Obama is the cartoon sketch of the campaign that remains in my head. On election day, the only age demographic that the at-times apoplectically angry Republican candidate won was voters over 60. Are older Americans mad as hell and not going to take it anymore?"

LOS ANGELES TIMES: Angry Old Men