I can’t remember if I’ve mused about this here before, but there’s a thought experiment I keep coming back to when I hear about what Fallen Times we live in. And, trust me, I understand the complaint. The Bad News is relentless. But the news and social media is looking at the world through a fun house mirror. How bad is the reality in comparison to other times? So, the thought experiment is to wonder which previous decade I’d rather live in. For the sake of the argument, I assume that I wouldn’t be living in that time as a heterosexual white man. (The reason for that assumption is to avoid mistaking “better times” for “times that seem better because of the fruits of oppression or discrimination.”)
My conclusion is that things today aren’t much worse than they’ve ever been and, in a lot of respects, are better than they’ve been historically. It doesn’t mean that we can’t aspire to something better, but nostalgia is a helluva drug & the Bad News might have us more depressed than the circumstances really justify.
Without a doubt the 70’s would be my pick, but first the bad events that happened. The first three years the Vietnam War was still ongoing with military involvement ending in 1973 and Nixon was impeached in 1974.
The music was tremendous with Motown and rock music hitting it’s stride in the first five years of the decade. Disco burst on the music scene in 1977 and soul music exploded in the 70’s. Michael Jackson released his first solo album in 1979 that sold 20 million copies.to end the decade. Showtime and HBO started in the 70’s with second rate movies and there was no ESPN till the 80’s.
Sports wise IU and Purdue basketball playing most of their games on channel 4 was always a treat.. Bird and ISU in a magical season and getting to close it out against Magic and Michigan State.to end the 1979 season. IU’s basketball 75 and 76 seasons and IU winning the NCAA championship in the perfect 1976 season. I was extremely lucky to see IU and Purdue when IU destroyed Purdue the headline in the Star was, “IU Toasted – Purdue Roasted”. Viewed the greatest offensive baseball team in modern history the Cincinnati Reds. Rose, Griffey, Morgan, Bench Perez. and George Foster who hit 52 HRs out of the 6th spot in 1977 maybe one of the greatest accomplishments in baseball.
Politics wise Nixon punctured the myth of the Presidency and he was followed by Ford and Carter who were very low key Presidents. The Congress would fight on the floor but both Republicans and Democrats would go out at night and share a meal together.
From a personal viewpoint good jobs were easy to come by, kids could even get a job as paperboys, fast food restaurants were manned by high school and college students. Every city and town still had vibrant newspapers with large staffs.. Inflation was low and buying a new vehicle was in reach of anyone who had a decent job. Small town America was still thriving with businesses, factory’s and shops.
Tickets to concerts and sporting events didn’t cost a arm and a leg. Owning albums was both a visual and musical experience. You listened to both sides of a album often uncovering a hidden gem of a song that may only have meaning to you. To que up a album you owned on a turntable with good speakers you would get (not the perfect sound of digital) such sweet sounds that would make you want to sway and dance.
Enough of the nostalgia, police brutality was a major problem that was swept under the table and it was mostly aimed at minorities and the poor. Homosexuals were making strides to be accepted but they had a long way to go… Racism was present in about every town and city in America.. Corporate America would hire minorities but moving up the ladder was extremely difficult. Women were still being discriminated in the work place..
On the good side, homelessness was mostly made up of the mentally ill, alcoholics and drug addicts. Good paying jobs were available for people who only had high school degrees. Even thou Nixon was impeached and the Democrats held a prime time celebrity variety show to solicit campaign donations, it still never got as crazy as the Trump Presidency.
As I tell my kids whenever the express a wish to have seen something in the not-so-distant past: “it wasn’t that great, everything reeked of cigarette smoke.”
John I’ve been watching a few of the Twilight Zone episodes and Rod Serling usually has a lit cigarette in his hand while he is doing the intro to a episode. He died at fifty and I am sure the three to four packs of cigarettes he smoked daily were a major factor that put him in his grave
Tom Snyder was my favorite talk show host who blew smoke with gusto during a interview.
I lived in Ohio where you could get into a disco or bar at eighteen. When my brothers and I would come home my mom would always say, “Take a shower and put on some fresh clothes you all smell like ashtrays.”.
Did you ever tell your kids they actually had smoking areas for the High School students back in the 70’s. I actually participated in a brief (I never smoked) walkout in 1975 at the High School to advocate for a smoking area for the students. I made sure I didn’t get in the picture that the local papers photographer took since my mom and dad would have killed me if they knew I was skipping class. The next school board meeting the board ok’d a covered area in back of the school as the designated smoking area for the students.
Now all the high school kids vape, not quite as offensive as cigarette smoke since the tobacco (or whatever it is) is flavored.
Wow have times changed! LOL