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things aint the way they used to be, and probably never was--Will Rogers
In some ways it is good and in some ways it is bad. There is nothing that would convince me that the 1950's were better. The reason is because I have me to look after at the end of the day. Nothing will convince me that the 50's were good because I have to ask "How does it help ME personally"?
In the 50's practically no jobs were exported. In fact, it was we who sold much to the rest of the world, which was healing from the aftermath of the War. We were lucky that we were not taken over by Hitler nor was our land ravaged by him.
We had a nice tidy little situation with all the resources we needed (almost) available domestically and an eager market overseas. We had a rising, chiefly due to the rise of labor unions, middle class able to purchase so much of what we manufactured.
The bubble was broken when we realized that we had, effectively, serfs. We kept blacks and women dumb and dependent. When they started getting educated and having actual careers, the rest of the world was rebuilt with new factories after the war. They could reproduce goods more efficiently than we.
Nixon visited China and opened up her labor markets to US companies. It did not happen overnight, but certainly got the ball rolling. So, at the very time when there was more competition for white middle class men for jobs there were shrinking job opportunities.
Initially, with increased mechanization and lower labor costs, the domestic blue collar job market melted, but with the proliferation of computers and ease of communication, white collar jobs also disappeared.
So the well being of the 50's could not have possibly lasted. It had nothing to do with religion or the white man being superior in any way. The 50's were just a fortunate fluke of birth for so many.
I, frankly, think there were a lot more unwed pregnancies, drug taking, etc. going on then but so much was swept under the table. You just did not talk/confide about such things then.
When situations like this change, it usually is not because of a change in religious or political attitude as much as it is caused by changes in technology (birth control pill, computers) and/or the financial situation.
So the 50's were next to paradise for white middle class men and when they were kind, good men, for their families - so long as he married a woman who enjoyed her lot. There were a lot fewer choices to be had for women, and if you were black you lived in an entirely different world I would imagine.
One thing living has taught me. THings change. Change is inevitable. If you can also change you are growing. If you cannot adjust, you kind of die a bit. To learn from the past you must be able to see it in a larger perspective and not only from your own narrow view - and adjust - and try to thrive.
In some ways it is good and in some ways it is bad. There is nothing that would convince me that the 1950's were better. The reason is because I have me to look after at the end of the day. Nothing will convince me that the 50's were good because I have to ask "How does it help ME personally"?
I have noticed in this discussion as well as most discussions on this forum, people tend to view things in such stark absolutist terms.
Were the 1950's better or worse, black or white, on or off, this or that, as though only two possibilities to any given topic exist. Perhaps there were some things better about the 1950's and there were some things that were worse about the 1950's, but Americans want things to be reduced to the ultimate simplicity and I mean everything. If it can't be reduced down to two possible answers, usually good or evil, then their heads then get lost in the cognitive dissonance, which generally results in some form of rationalization.
I have noticed in this discussion as well as most discussions on this forum, people tend to view things in such stark absolutist terms.
Were the 1950's better or worse, black or white, on or off, this or that, as though only two possibilities to any given topic exist. Perhaps there were some things better about the 1950's and there were some things that were worse about the 1950's, but Americans want things to be reduced to the ultimate simplicity and I mean everything. If it can't be reduced down to two possible answers, usually good or evil, then their heads then get lost in the cognitive dissonance, which generally results in some form of rationalization.
Well, in some ways it is quite simple. Would I rather have lived in the 1950s or now?
That's a no-brainer. I am SO glad I was not alive during the 1950s because my life would have been hell in so many ways.
Well, in some ways it is quite simple. Would I rather have lived in the 1950s or now?
That's a no-brainer. I am SO glad I was not alive during the 1950s because my life would have been hell in so many ways.
I was alive then, as a child. I am glad I did not have to raise my family as my mother did: no dishwasher (other than me); no clothes dryer, so having to dry clothes in the basement b/c the soot from the coal furnaces and the steel mills made drying them outside, even in summer, impossible; no car, having to take the bus everywhere that wasn't walkable, hauling two kids along; fear of polio every summer in the early years of the decade; etc, etc.
It seems as if the weakening threads of family and the home, rising divorce rates, and massive increase in out of wedlock births, and the increase in government involvement in our society has led to the downfall of our nation.
People then were happier even though we lived in simpler times because people viewed the family as the most important thing in our society, rather than careers or money, or having the latest fashionable clothing.
What has happened to our country???
You left out that whole thing about non-white people being treated horribly. Nothing like a few years to make people forget about segregation. Marriages lasted longer? Spousal abuse was considered a lot more common. Women were seriously limited in the workplace and sexual harassment laws were non-existent. You could drink and drive no problem. Homosexuality was illegal in some jurisdictions. Tax rates on the rich were seriously high.
You also forgot that the country was coming out of a World War and we're not now. People got married early? Of course, you could get a damn good job with only high school. Now you need advanced degrees. Why wouldn't people be getting married later now. In terms of divorce rates, getting one wasn't easy and it wasn't socially accepted. Plenty people stayed in violently abusive relationships as they really didn't have a choice.
People were happier? Based on what data? Family was the most important? There was plenty of keeping up with the Joneses in the 50's. The culture wasn't exactly free from greed. Class was as big back then as it was now. What data do you have to show that they were less focused on economy back then.
Of course, why think of all of those things. I bet if the 50's had Google, they would have researched 1950's vs today instead of making a thread about it.
Well, in some ways it is quite simple. Would I rather have lived in the 1950s or now?
That's a no-brainer. I am SO glad I was not alive during the 1950s because my life would have been hell in so many ways.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Katiana
I was alive then, as a child. I am glad I did not have to raise my family as my mother did: no dishwasher (other than me); no clothes dryer, so having to dry clothes in the basement b/c the soot from the coal furnaces and the steel mills made drying them outside, even in summer, impossible; no car, having to take the bus everywhere that wasn't walkable, hauling two kids along; fear of polio every summer in the early years of the decade; etc, etc.
Well we are judging this comparison from where we stand today. In 1950, people could barely conceive of walking around with a mobile communications device that had more computing power than the emerging space program. In 1950, people waxed about how wonderful things were compared to the Great Depression era that their parents endured, just as we today wax on the 50's and how fifty years from now, people will look back and ponder life during these times. (chuckling) Maybe we should pine for the glorious future?
This is also dependent upon who you were as well, as life wasn't the same for a whites as it was for blacks, or asians or women, etc... so we also color these views from our race, religion and gender.
One thing I do feel was better, or at least more healthy for human beings, was the more intimate nature of human interaction that we are quickly losing today in our world of cyberspace. Social manners and tact that have evolved over the thousands of years are suddenly being turned upside down and the anonymous nature of the internet allows for people to interact without limits or accountability for actions or words. After all, how many people that are so willing to call someone stupid would be as willing to tap a biker in a bar on the shoulder and say, 'you're stupid if you believe that'? It will be interesting to see how this affects our society in the long term.
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