Trade war, inequality, populist revolt: baby boomers should reflect on their economic legacy this Easter

Andrew Sheng says that instead of decrying populism, the reaction against free trade and the rise of authoritarians, liberals in rich countries should examine how the globalisation process they supported led to a backlash

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Rosary Solimanto, who has multiple sclerosis and fears for her finances, protests outside Trump Tower in New York City over the administration's tax cuts, which many predict will benefit the wealthy at the expense of the poor and middle class. Photo: AFP

Published: 3:00pm, 30 Mar 2018Updated: 4:11pm, 30 Mar 2018

Easter weekend is a time for remembrance of life and death. Millions of Christians around the world remember the crucifixion and return of Jesus Christ for the salvation of all. Similarly, very soon it will be the Ching Ming festival, when the Chinese sweep the graves of their ancestors, not to worship them, but to be grateful for their sacrifices, without which there would be no present generation.

This week, I lost a friend, a soulmate with whom I could share ups and downs, and who could laugh at the world, be modest about his own contributions and who lived life to the fullest. His passing reminded me that the baby boomer generation to which we belong, born at or after the end of the second world war, is fading. The baby boomers created the greatest technological and business model breakthroughs in history, helping to create globalisation and, in the process, making billionaires richer than ever. Those who can afford it are living longer, healthier and richer than any generation in history, under the longest peacetime the world has enjoyed in centuries.

But this generation bequeaths to the next severe environmental deterioration and pollution, massive inequality and the largest debt overhang in history. One baby boomer has his finger on the nuclear trigger, threatening trade war and Armageddon against friend and foe alike.

And like the Rodgers and Hart song, billions today are “bewitched, bothered and bewildered” by what is going on.

The fortnight leading up to Easter has been remarkable for stunning events that dazzled even the most hardened political analysts. In Washington, US President Donald Trump fired his national security adviser and declared trade war, while Russian President Vladimir Putin got re-elected and China’s Two Sessions confirmed a new team under President Xi Jinping. The biggest surprise was North Korean leader Kim Jong-un showing up in Beijing, ahead of his planned meeting with Trump in May.

Will all this confusion end in tears?