I think this piece should be called "Falling Into the Generation *Trap*." There's no percentage in looking at the world from a generational perspective. If as a Boomer I inveigh against Gen-Xers for one reason or another, I'll just come across as a clueless old coot and do nothing to change their POV anyway. I figure if the left ever comes up with some really terrific ideas, they'll appeal to people of all ages.
I also don't get McLemee's point when he says: "Why is it that young conservatives tend to know who Russell Kirk was, and what Hayek thought, and how Barry Goldwater’s defeat in 1964 prepared the way for Reagan’s victory in 1980?" It's because conservatives practice ancestor worship. That's nothing to emulate. The left isn't going to get anywhere staring in a rear view mirror.
Carl