Professional Documents
Culture Documents
An open letter to
Generation X
GREG IPPOLITO
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THE DEATH OF COOL
COOL.
So along with being difficult to pin down, it’s also one of the most
powerful words in our lexicon. Cool is our culture’s nod of
approval, a ticket for success. The cool person is socially adored;
the cool product sells rapid-fire; and the cool idea creates the latest
buzz. It’s as alluring and seductive as wealth and sex.
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THE DEATH OF COOL
Where did the term come from? What does it really mean (at its
base/core level)? Why is it so desirable?
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THE DEATH OF COOL
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THE DEATH OF COOL
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THE DEATH OF COOL
As Cool evolved, its “Fuck you” edge grew sharper and sharper.
Cool began as a dividing line in the jazz era (Cool 1.0)...put up a
wall in the rock-and-roll era (Cool 2.0)...started shouting over the
wall in the counterculture rock era (Cool 3.0)...started pissing
over the wall in the punk era (Cool 4.0)...and on and on and on.
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At some point during its 3.0 phase, Cool morphed into something else.
Something soulless and toxic.
By the time Gen Xers1 came into the world, Cool had degenerated to a
cancer. And we took it like Mother’s milk, without criticism or debate.
1. The term “Gen Xer” threatens a cultural divide, which I’m not
looking to make. Whether you consider yourself a Gen Xer, a member
of the Hip-Hop Generation, or whatever — if you grew up as a first-
generation Sesame Street fan, if you spent any of your adolescence
with Reagan in the White House, etc., then I’m talking to you.
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THE DEATH OF COOL
Just brilliant. As Homer himself might say, “It’s funny ‘cause it’s
true!” Our penchant for sarcasm, irony and cynacism is so automatic,
we don’t even know we’re doing it. Yet this comprises the Cool lens
through which we see the world.
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Maybe Cool worked for our parents. But how is it serving us?
Maybe the better question is: What is it costing us?
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The quiet audacity of Cool is extinct. What took its place may
have the same name, but it is significantly different animal.
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A FAILURE TO COPE.
This claim seems, at first, a bit reductionist. But at the same time,
doesn’t it ring uncomfortably true? We do use snark as a kind of
insulation against a real and deep consideration of things. We also
use it to shield ourselves from our own genuine emotions.
4. Admit it: you want to make fun of the hat. See? Automatic sneer. Tisk-tisk.
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THE DEATH OF COOL
The truth is, most people carry a quiet sadness with them, a long-
ing for something undefined. (If I’m being really honest, I’m no
different.) Even in our self-defined “forward-thinking age,” where
we’re supposed to have shaken off taboos around emotional
struggles — where we’ve supposedly evolved to a point where we
can be out in the open about the things that keep us up at night —
no one really talks about this stuff.
Few dare to cope — to really cope. Nah, we’re all too busy being
fucking Cool.
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THE DEATH OF COOL
AN IMPOSSIBLE PLEA...
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THE DEATH OF COOL
GET, CONNECT
> To get a free sample download of Zero Station, email:
zsfreedownload@gmail.com
> To share your thoughts on “The Death of Cool,” email:
greg.ippolito@gmail.com
> To read and learn more about the author, visit:
http://gregippolito.net/
> To follow the author on Twitter, visit:
http://twitter.com/gregippolito
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