USA - Life Really Was Better Back Then
By JOHN NASH
Of Cabbages and Kings
Published: July 12, 2008
I know, I know! For just about as long as man has recorded history, each generation believes that past times were better than current years: A conclusion generally thought to be based on irrational and incompetent analysis of fact.Well, I'm here to offer irrefutable and overwhelming evidence that the "Greatest Generation" — mid-1940s — had it much better than does the current group — Generation X.Back in the years immediately following World War II, no one had even heard about ADD, yet today it seems that about every other child has some sort of problem with attention, and therefore needs to be chemically treated by some overpaid and unnecessary psychiatrist. Is there really a problem there? Was it caused by fluoride in the drinking water? Was it dreamed up by shrinks looking to make another dishonest buck? Could it simply be a result of careless and irresponsible parenting? Whichever, it didn't exist in the 1940s.There have always been STDs (sexually transmitted diseases), but, in the '40s, they responded well to available treatment, usually being completely cured. Today, HIV is deadly and incurable, and genital herpes is a lifelong companion.That's not an improvement.While we're on the subject of sexual activity, it's appropriate to point out that teens have always made tragic mistakes, but, back in the good times, pregnant girls were never seen in school; indeed, if there were any, we didn't know about them. Today, in many schools, girls with swollen bellies are as common as jocks in football jerseys. I've even read that some schools allow child-mothers to bring their illegitimate babies to class, or at least to a tax-supported, child-care center.That's surely not an improvement in societal conduct.Although I read the newspapers and listened to news broadcasts back in the '40s, there was never a report of a shooting in a school or at the workplace. Today, they seem to be rather routine.That's progress to be proud of.Back in those golden times, school girls wore knee-length skirts, modest blouses and shoes with socks. Today, they come to class in their underwear, nearly barefoot, decorated with disfiguring tattoos and with pieces of metal stuck through various parts of their overfed and underworked bodies. Looks to me like the new generation is moving, sociologically, back to primitive tribal days.And school itself sure isn't what it once was. The "straight-A" record (4.0 average) once had real significance; perhaps 1 percent of a graduating class had achieved that level. Today, it seems that over half of all graduates have that sort of honored status, while many amazingly have even higher ratings — 5 and up — yet many of those "honor students" can't balance a checkbook, write a letter without a disgraceful sprinkling of grammatical and spelling errors, nor find China on a world map.That's not an improvement on prior times.At one time, everyone that could work did work. Today, "work" is a dirty word. Those that are employed are "associated with," rather than "working for" someone. "Work" is reserved for illegal immigrants, while millions of physically able adults watch mind-numbing cable TV, attend meaningless and unproductive sports events and live off undeserved welfare checks.And when we worked, we were an economically sound nation, which produced just about everything we needed. Today, perhaps only a third of our workforce produces anything; the majority is employed in unessential services, so we import a rapidly growing list of things, such as vegetables, fish, steel, cell phones, shoes, automobiles, oil, cotton and copper. Consequently, our increasingly negative balance of payments leads us inexorably toward national bankruptcy.Surely, that's a credit to the last couple of generations.Sixty years back, we enjoyed foods that hadn't been nuked, chemically treated or otherwise rendered safe to consume — if unpalatable. Soft-ripened Camembert cheese was once a delight. Today it's like chewing an eraser. We once could, if we wanted, feel safe eating steak tartar — raw, ground beef. Today we fear that it would kill us. And raw eggs, which could once be blended in a healthful malted milk, or included in a proper Caesar salad dressing, have been determined to be dangerous to our health. We once didn't feel that it was necessary to wash fresh vegetables and fruits with some sort of disinfectant, but now we do. And we now should wear surgical gloves while handling raw chicken.This is progress?Terrorists were unheard of in the '40s, as were those bothersome and expensive security screening facilities in train stations, airports and public buildings. Surely, that is noteworthy progress.Back in the idyllic '40s, courtesy was taught at home and practiced, by most of us, everywhere. Men and boys regularly gave up seats in the bus to women, held open doors for others, and never wore a hat inside — especially at the dinner table. Today, social tradition and customs have been thrown out the window; as a result, our society is more antagonistic than friendly. Just yesterday, two women began arguing about their place in a line at a butcher shop; during the fracas, one bit off the other's finger.Are we moving ahead to reach caveman status?Because of our selfless sacrifice during the World War II, and our generous, humane behavior toward vanquished enemies, along with our undisputed position as the world's dominate industrial and economic power, we were once universally respected and admired. Subsequent generations have managed to turn us into a widely despised, deteriorating, third-rate power.Then there's the "progress made" in popular music since the '40s. Back in those "olden days," vocalists sang in well-modulated voices, where their words could be understood and appreciated. Today, vocalists shriek, shout and scream obscene lyrics that encourage antisocial behavior. Where's the open fire for them to prance around?Next, let's consider what's happened to our beloved family automobiles as time marched on. In the '40s we drove Chevrolets, Chryslers and Fords. Today we proudly own Escalades, Yukons, Hummers and dozens of other, ever-changing labels. These new beauties come with heated and cooled seats that automatically reconfigure themselves for each different driver, global positioning systems, in-seat video and satellite radios, but get about half the gas mileage of a 1950 sedan, and require a visit to an expensive specialist for just about anything other than an oil change. Back in the '40s, most young men could maintain and repair the family car, of which the family had just one, not four or more.Maybe that's progress? Nah!And finally, there's the coming election for president of the nation. It seems as though an inexperienced, dangerously socialistic and racist nominee may be elected, primarily because he's of a minority group (which is fashionable to support), has a catchy name, pop-star status with the media and, most importantly, is not of that "out-of-it" generation represented by his gray-headed opponent.In the '40s there were about a dozen illegal immigrants in the U.S.; most of them were in El Paso. Today, there are uncounted millions of them, and they're everywhere — everywhere! Who wants to take credit for that?I think I'll go get a tattoo on my whatsis, have a silver rod stuck through my thingamabob, color my hair purple and green, get a drum and dance naked around a roaring campfire. Perhaps then I'll be able to understand where the last few generations have gone so far wrong.
John Nash is a freelance journalist and photographer based in Florida. Over the past generation, his works have been published in more than a hundred different places. He welcomes rational comment sent to john@have-eye.com.
Of Cabbages and Kings
Published: July 12, 2008
I know, I know! For just about as long as man has recorded history, each generation believes that past times were better than current years: A conclusion generally thought to be based on irrational and incompetent analysis of fact.Well, I'm here to offer irrefutable and overwhelming evidence that the "Greatest Generation" — mid-1940s — had it much better than does the current group — Generation X.Back in the years immediately following World War II, no one had even heard about ADD, yet today it seems that about every other child has some sort of problem with attention, and therefore needs to be chemically treated by some overpaid and unnecessary psychiatrist. Is there really a problem there? Was it caused by fluoride in the drinking water? Was it dreamed up by shrinks looking to make another dishonest buck? Could it simply be a result of careless and irresponsible parenting? Whichever, it didn't exist in the 1940s.There have always been STDs (sexually transmitted diseases), but, in the '40s, they responded well to available treatment, usually being completely cured. Today, HIV is deadly and incurable, and genital herpes is a lifelong companion.That's not an improvement.While we're on the subject of sexual activity, it's appropriate to point out that teens have always made tragic mistakes, but, back in the good times, pregnant girls were never seen in school; indeed, if there were any, we didn't know about them. Today, in many schools, girls with swollen bellies are as common as jocks in football jerseys. I've even read that some schools allow child-mothers to bring their illegitimate babies to class, or at least to a tax-supported, child-care center.That's surely not an improvement in societal conduct.Although I read the newspapers and listened to news broadcasts back in the '40s, there was never a report of a shooting in a school or at the workplace. Today, they seem to be rather routine.That's progress to be proud of.Back in those golden times, school girls wore knee-length skirts, modest blouses and shoes with socks. Today, they come to class in their underwear, nearly barefoot, decorated with disfiguring tattoos and with pieces of metal stuck through various parts of their overfed and underworked bodies. Looks to me like the new generation is moving, sociologically, back to primitive tribal days.And school itself sure isn't what it once was. The "straight-A" record (4.0 average) once had real significance; perhaps 1 percent of a graduating class had achieved that level. Today, it seems that over half of all graduates have that sort of honored status, while many amazingly have even higher ratings — 5 and up — yet many of those "honor students" can't balance a checkbook, write a letter without a disgraceful sprinkling of grammatical and spelling errors, nor find China on a world map.That's not an improvement on prior times.At one time, everyone that could work did work. Today, "work" is a dirty word. Those that are employed are "associated with," rather than "working for" someone. "Work" is reserved for illegal immigrants, while millions of physically able adults watch mind-numbing cable TV, attend meaningless and unproductive sports events and live off undeserved welfare checks.And when we worked, we were an economically sound nation, which produced just about everything we needed. Today, perhaps only a third of our workforce produces anything; the majority is employed in unessential services, so we import a rapidly growing list of things, such as vegetables, fish, steel, cell phones, shoes, automobiles, oil, cotton and copper. Consequently, our increasingly negative balance of payments leads us inexorably toward national bankruptcy.Surely, that's a credit to the last couple of generations.Sixty years back, we enjoyed foods that hadn't been nuked, chemically treated or otherwise rendered safe to consume — if unpalatable. Soft-ripened Camembert cheese was once a delight. Today it's like chewing an eraser. We once could, if we wanted, feel safe eating steak tartar — raw, ground beef. Today we fear that it would kill us. And raw eggs, which could once be blended in a healthful malted milk, or included in a proper Caesar salad dressing, have been determined to be dangerous to our health. We once didn't feel that it was necessary to wash fresh vegetables and fruits with some sort of disinfectant, but now we do. And we now should wear surgical gloves while handling raw chicken.This is progress?Terrorists were unheard of in the '40s, as were those bothersome and expensive security screening facilities in train stations, airports and public buildings. Surely, that is noteworthy progress.Back in the idyllic '40s, courtesy was taught at home and practiced, by most of us, everywhere. Men and boys regularly gave up seats in the bus to women, held open doors for others, and never wore a hat inside — especially at the dinner table. Today, social tradition and customs have been thrown out the window; as a result, our society is more antagonistic than friendly. Just yesterday, two women began arguing about their place in a line at a butcher shop; during the fracas, one bit off the other's finger.Are we moving ahead to reach caveman status?Because of our selfless sacrifice during the World War II, and our generous, humane behavior toward vanquished enemies, along with our undisputed position as the world's dominate industrial and economic power, we were once universally respected and admired. Subsequent generations have managed to turn us into a widely despised, deteriorating, third-rate power.Then there's the "progress made" in popular music since the '40s. Back in those "olden days," vocalists sang in well-modulated voices, where their words could be understood and appreciated. Today, vocalists shriek, shout and scream obscene lyrics that encourage antisocial behavior. Where's the open fire for them to prance around?Next, let's consider what's happened to our beloved family automobiles as time marched on. In the '40s we drove Chevrolets, Chryslers and Fords. Today we proudly own Escalades, Yukons, Hummers and dozens of other, ever-changing labels. These new beauties come with heated and cooled seats that automatically reconfigure themselves for each different driver, global positioning systems, in-seat video and satellite radios, but get about half the gas mileage of a 1950 sedan, and require a visit to an expensive specialist for just about anything other than an oil change. Back in the '40s, most young men could maintain and repair the family car, of which the family had just one, not four or more.Maybe that's progress? Nah!And finally, there's the coming election for president of the nation. It seems as though an inexperienced, dangerously socialistic and racist nominee may be elected, primarily because he's of a minority group (which is fashionable to support), has a catchy name, pop-star status with the media and, most importantly, is not of that "out-of-it" generation represented by his gray-headed opponent.In the '40s there were about a dozen illegal immigrants in the U.S.; most of them were in El Paso. Today, there are uncounted millions of them, and they're everywhere — everywhere! Who wants to take credit for that?I think I'll go get a tattoo on my whatsis, have a silver rod stuck through my thingamabob, color my hair purple and green, get a drum and dance naked around a roaring campfire. Perhaps then I'll be able to understand where the last few generations have gone so far wrong.
John Nash is a freelance journalist and photographer based in Florida. Over the past generation, his works have been published in more than a hundred different places. He welcomes rational comment sent to john@have-eye.com.
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