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WW2 was a long time ago for us, but the experience had an incalulable effect on the psyche of America and the mindset presented in these cartoons is what made America so great... not only for the country as a whole, but for individuals specifically. Once upon a time Americans were a hardy, independent lot; nobody was there to bail them out if things went bad so Americans were ready for anything. Nobody expected pity if they decided to build their house on a flood plain and the floods came or believed the government could protect their families better than they could; common sense was as important for a person to have as clothes and food.
Hell, Americans used to think having a family was the most important thing in the world. Life wasn't all about self-indulgence or constant pleasure seeking... everyone knew the value of "delayed gratification" and thrift. Many, many people knew the great lasting joy of raising a tiny baby to become a successful, independent and productive adult... of being part of the wheel of life and passing through it's seasons with people they loved... and who loved them.
Sure it wasn't perfect... there were plenty of problems, but the core values were solid.
My how the country has changed! Now people who loose their homes in natural disasters expect the government to pay for it, even though they built their home below sea level or right on a river bank or in a hurricane zone.
What about having a family? Screw that! Our money and our lives are for ourselves! And speaking of ourselves, the name of the game is to grab everything we can... and the one who dies with the biggest pile of plastic crap from China wins!
Today independence means wearing a tinfoil hat and hiding in a bunker in the woods; only crazy people keep extra food and fuel around or know how to make their own stuff. How silly is that when Walmart is just down the street?!
Now it's trendy to build your house from straw or sticks and anyone who doesn't deserves to be ridiculed. Likewise, it's suddenly a good idea to disarm and surrender personal freedoms because after all, the Man is friendly and benevolent and promises to take care of us!
This whole thing has happened before, and students of history know what usually happens next. The psyiological template of the basic human being has not changed in tens of thousands of years. Are you really willing to bet everything on the random hope that somehow, someway this time is different?
What are you babbling about? Every heard of the Great Depression and the New Deal? It predates WW2 and involved a switch to Keynesian economic policy and the implementation of a number of social welfare programs (FEMA, Social Security, etc.)
What are you babbling about? Every heard of the Great Depression and the New Deal? It predates WW2 and involved a switch to Keynesian economic policy and the implementation of a number of social welfare programs (FEMA, Social Security, etc.)
And has aided in expediting the military-industrial complex, significantly....Massively funded wars thanks to it.
What are you babbling about? Every heard of the Great Depression and the New Deal? It predates WW2 and involved a switch to Keynesian economic policy and the implementation of a number of social welfare programs (FEMA, Social Security, etc.)
The American mindset was different.
That is another rapidly evaporating American trait. We didn't expect help but we were always willing to give help.
That is a romanticized version of history. They had problems and in spades. You spend a lot of time talking about "family" I think it is important to note at the time divorce was near impossible, domestic violence was treated as a private concern, and job discrimination against women was rampant so often women had no choice, but to marry and if it didn't go well even if a woman could escape a bad marriage she would likely have limited or no means of support. Core values were implemented with a mix of draconian laws, discrimination and looking the other way to problems.
Last edited by Randomstudent; 01-11-2013 at 11:13 AM..
That is a romanticized version of history. They had problems and in spades. You spend a lot of time talking about "family" I think it is important to note at the time divorce was near impossible, domestic violence was treated as a private concern, and job discrimination against women was rampant so often women had no choice, but to marry and if it didn't go well even if a woman could escape a bad marriage she would likely have limited or no means of support. Core values were implement with a mix of draconian laws, discrimination and looking the other way to problems.
Your'e missing the point. Yes it's an ideal... romanticized if you'd rather. Real life never lives up to the ideals held by a civilization 100%.
It's not that every single person was actually living like that... what is important is that people in general were reaching for it and trying to live up to it.
Today, there are no ideals. It is "every man for himself"... all of us cast into the ocean in rowboats with nowhere to row to. The result is lack of consensus on how life should be lived, confusion, selfishness, crime, mental health issues, random school shooters and manipulable people searching for a "Messiah" to lead them back to their former glory.
It's a recipie for disaster.
Last edited by Chango; 01-11-2013 at 11:53 AM..
Reason: spelling
So the tens of millions of Americans who donate money and volunteer their time every single week are figments of someone's imagination?
...for tens of millions of Americans who expect and even demand those people show up at their particular disaster with food, water, generators and blank checks in hand.
I'm not saying we shouldn't be willing to help others... we can and should. What we shouldn't do is go get ourselves into trouble and then expect someone to bail us out. Too much of that will see other's charity evaporate.
Location: Currently I physically reside on the 3rd planet from the sun
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Randomstudent
That is a romanticized version of history. They had problems and in spades. You spend a lot of time talking about "family" I think it is important to note at the time divorce was near impossible, domestic violence was treated as a private concern, and job discrimination against women was rampant so often women had no choice, but to marry and if it didn't go well even if a woman could escape a bad marriage she would likely have limited or no means of support. Core values were implemented with a mix of draconian laws, discrimination and looking the other way to problems.
There were a set of core values that have been lost.
Yes, the past is often romanticized by many, however the past is often demonized by others.
It is what it is and as the OP said, the past has helped shape who we are today both positive and negative.
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