That didn't happen under Eisenhower when the top tax rate was 92%. Although I think its not a 92% income tax that is needed but a high tax on capital.
"My boy, not at all! What followed was one of the most prosperous times in the country!"
I'm not saying correlation, causation, blah, blah, blah. But such rates not only didn't "destroy a generation", it's a time many look back to fondly (in which case they're probably white and male).