Does anybody besides me miss civilization and rationality?
When I was a little girl growing up in the 70s (the old crone said), it seemed like there was a set of ideas that everybody accepted.
- Science is true, whether you like it or not.
- “Natural” things are not necessarily better than human inventions and creations.
- We all have a duty to help those who are worse off than ourselves. “I’ve got mine and the hell with everybody else,” is a depraved, immoral viewpoint.
- Deliberately saying things that you *know* are going to hurt somebody is unacceptable. You *don’t* always have to “speak your mind” or “tell it like it is.” Some things are better kept to yourself.
- Guns are fine if you’re hunting or at a shooting range. You don’t really need them at the grocery store, movie theater, or church.
- Some places and situations are intended for adults and children don’t belong there. Like bars, for instance.
- To quote a même I saw: “Religion is like a p@nis. It’s fine to have one. It’s fine to be proud of it. But you don’t wave it in everybody’s face.”
People practiced their various religions, but they didn’t expect the whole world to live by their rules. And separation of church and state was still taken seriously.
- People dressed better. Today I saw a guy in sweatpants at work. Really? It’s that difficult or painful to wear chinos, or at least non-raggedy jeans?
- People didn’t cuss as much. Now, I am capable of cussing like a sailor myself. But when you use the F-word in every single sentence, you just sound crude and stupid.
——————
OTOH, some things have changed for the better since the 70s:
- More awareness of racism, sexism, heterosexism, etc. (Although the actual situations don’t seem to be improving - but now people don’t have the excuse that they don’t know about it.)
- Some of the things people are doing with kids are better. Back in the day, if you were getting bullied by other kids, you were on your own. Teachers and parents wouldn’t help you hardly at all. At least now, adults are looking at the real problem - the bullies.
- Science is true, whether you like it or not.
- “Natural” things are not necessarily better than human inventions and creations.
- We all have a duty to help those who are worse off than ourselves. “I’ve got mine and the hell with everybody else,” is a depraved, immoral viewpoint.
- Deliberately saying things that you *know* are going to hurt somebody is unacceptable. You *don’t* always have to “speak your mind” or “tell it like it is.” Some things are better kept to yourself.
- Guns are fine if you’re hunting or at a shooting range. You don’t really need them at the grocery store, movie theater, or church.
- Some places and situations are intended for adults and children don’t belong there. Like bars, for instance.
- To quote a même I saw: “Religion is like a p@nis. It’s fine to have one. It’s fine to be proud of it. But you don’t wave it in everybody’s face.”
People practiced their various religions, but they didn’t expect the whole world to live by their rules. And separation of church and state was still taken seriously.
- People dressed better. Today I saw a guy in sweatpants at work. Really? It’s that difficult or painful to wear chinos, or at least non-raggedy jeans?
- People didn’t cuss as much. Now, I am capable of cussing like a sailor myself. But when you use the F-word in every single sentence, you just sound crude and stupid.
——————
OTOH, some things have changed for the better since the 70s:
- More awareness of racism, sexism, heterosexism, etc. (Although the actual situations don’t seem to be improving - but now people don’t have the excuse that they don’t know about it.)
- Some of the things people are doing with kids are better. Back in the day, if you were getting bullied by other kids, you were on your own. Teachers and parents wouldn’t help you hardly at all. At least now, adults are looking at the real problem - the bullies.
