There have been quite a few stories of late moving past talk of racial divides running the nation's political engines, focusing more on generational demographics - and issues -- being the culprit for current trends. One of the best summaries we've seen of all this came in an opinion piece from Andrea Stone of AOL, of all places.

"As the baby boomers who gave us the term 'generation gap' turn 65, a new divide is opening between young and old over everything from health care to gay rights to the right to get high," Stone writes on November 18. "Republicans and Democrats alike insist it's time to stop piling debt onto future generations, yet political observers say the electoral clout of seniors may prove the biggest obstacle to reining in government spending. And just as in the 1960s, when many older Americans stood on the sidelines of the civil rights and women's movements, polls show seniors are the least enthused about allowing gays to serve openly in the military or get married."

"On social policy, we have a generation that consumes a huge portion of the federal budget yet doesn't approve of other Americans receiving benefits," Stone quotes Julian Zelizer, a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University. "On cultural issues, there is a huge disconnect between retirees and much of the rest of the country."

For the whole piece, click here.