On Wendell Berry on Boomers and Stickers

Berry draws the important distinction between two different kinds of people, boomers and stickers. Boomers are mobile, always willing to leave if a better opportunity arises. Stickers tend to be more stationary, desiring to grow roots in a community and meet needs there. According to Berry, the goal is to move from a boomer attitude, which inhabits much of the American psyche, to a sticker attitude. What if we stopped asking primarily, “What do I want?” and started asking a community, “What do you need?” However, people are not simple enough to categorize purely in one category or the other. It is possible to be in a transient, mobile phase of life and have a sticker attitude. According to Dr. Bilbro and Dr. Baker, it all turns on our affections and attitudes.

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