From Roddy Piper to Eminem

I had a unique celebrity experience in my teen years when I was in full throtle of my angst. I was working at my local KFC, just preparing to open for the day when there was a knock at the door from a customer. Even though we were not open yet, I was required to let him in and offer a complimentary drink for his wait, so I did. After that I was obliged to pass the time with conversation, head office suggestion was the weather. I hated the awkwardness that was caused by this topic, so I suggested to the man that we not discuss it and that I had other things to discuss. I told him all about how the authorities, government included propoganded a particular prejudice against my age group. I complained that because we were considered impossible to understand we were treated like enemy aliens, from strangers, teachers, our parents and even from media groups. Often, I found myself defending myself and others from those who tried to use their power and authority to dominate us into submission. It seemed like this lack of understanding led to a fear of our group. We were the dreaded generation X and we had to be squelched.
The man listened. He didn't reproach me. He didn't patronize me. In fact he seemed really interested when I spoke about standing up to people who abused their authority. He laughed when I called myself the lone wolf rebel because others my age were too afraid to stand up for themselves.
Then my cook at the back came out front to get a drink. Immediately, he recognized Roddy Piper. I appologized for not knowing who he was and Roddy said don't worry about it. He was cool.
I became a fan of wrestling of course. And that is where I noticed that people cheer for the underdog who is going up against the establishment. I felt good that at least if people don't want to stand up, secretly they cheer for those that do. And I have continued to stand up for my beliefs and my rights no matter what the cost may be, I'm stubborn that way.
I have watched and cheered those in the entertainment industry who continue to rail against the "evil" man. In particular, two "characters" stand out the most.
The first is Stone Cold Steve Austin. It's no wonder I identified with the character. From battling the boss, to the logo don't trust anybody, I really felt what he was all about. I cheered along with millions, especially when he pretended to be turned by the boss only to get him in the end. I understood his appeal to the masses and celebrated that because I always wondered what my peers thought of my antics and battles.
The second is a little harder to explain. I appreciate Eminem because he points out the flawed outlook of the babyboomers in particular. Take his video for "My name is". The images from how the "perfect family" was portrayed in Leave it to Beaver versus the reality of our world. Then there's the Clinton scandal. It's as if he was saying, "These are the people who were judging us so harshly from such a young age? They thought they were the perfect one's and we couldn't be understood? How dare they be so hypocritical?" It really struck the right cord for me. If anyone wants to understand the Generation X point of view, finally Eminem is telling the world who we are and what we're about.