Were They Really the Good Old Days?

[Egbert]

newbury - perhaps we will see a short window of prosperity before it all comes crashing down. A major difference between your reminiscing and today is government. We certainly had corruption in the 70s but today we have the trappings of tyranny. It is difficult to prosper under tyranny.

 

[Industrial Toys]

OLD BALLS. Did you know that was your 1001 post?

One Rifle? How could you possibly get by with just one calibre?

 

[thirdroc17]

In the "Good Old Days", things were made in the USA by AMERICAN workers and craftsman. Those things lasted for decades, and when they did finally break, they were easily fixable and could last more decades.

Now, crap is made in China so a few corporate fat cats can be really rich, the crap breaks down, isn't rebuildable, and has to be replaced, so the fat cat can get richer providing work for the Chinese and to **** with the American worker.

Now you tell me, which is better? Are you American, or are you a fat cat or Chinese worker?

 

[Industrial Toys]

I have found that for decades, Canadian made stuff, made by minimum wage workers was as bad as any.

I don't like the way things have gone. I don't like the global economy. I am not even close to the average consumer. I have not been in a mall for years! But I do have a limited, very limited actually, income, and I can see a lot of things in my life that provide me with service and function, that were made in China, and hence cost me VERY little. The proliferation of chinese products has probably raised our standard of living, all things taken into account!

 

[smstonypoint]

I have found that for decades, Canadian made stuff, made by minimum wage workers was as bad as any.

I don't like the way things have gone. I don't like the global economy. I am not even close to the average consumer. I have not been in a mall for years! But I do have a limited, very limited actually, income, and I can see a lot of things in my life that provide me with service and function, that were made in China, and hence cost me VERY little. The proliferation of chinese products has probably raised our standard of living, all things taken into account!

Without getting into a debate about globalization, here's an interesting comparison of the "time cost" of various household appliances from Sears in 1959, 1973, and 2013. The wage rates are the averages for the respective years. The source is When it comes to the affordability of common household goods, the rich and the poor are both getting richer | AEIdeas.

Assuming 40-hour work weeks and ignoring income taxes, you would have had to work >3 weeks to buy a color TV back in 1959, >2.5 weeks in 1973, but just over 1/2 week in 2013. The 1959 and 1973 TVs would have a lot smaller screens and lower picture quality than do current TVs.


Steve

 

[thirdroc17]

One thing to consider when comparing hours worked to buy something. Working America are no longer working! It's some Chinese kid working for $2 a week.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I was told, that pick up trucks today despite some costing almost 100gs (here in Canada) have never been cheaper. I find this hard to believe.

I once heard that there is a global conspiracy to raise third world living standards at the cost of the living standards of industrialized nations. Seems, this has been accomplished!

 

[MotorSeven]

Y'all can have your opinions. But, when I was a kid, I stayed outside every waking moment I didn't have to be inside...suburbs of New Orleans. I didn't worry about kidnappers, child molesters, or other deviants because I never heard of them...nor did my friends. We camped out, built tree houses, shot BB guns everywhere, roamed pretty much an entire square mile all the way to the Mississippi River. When we did something wrong, we got our arse's whipped, both at school and at home(sometimes both for the same offense)....and I deserved every lick I got. Whipping kept us in line because we feared pain, feared our elders....that fear later turned to respect. Every decent kid I grew up with turned into a responsible adult that has a job, and a family they provide for with no aid from the gubberment. Yes, there were bad kids back then that had no fear and were incorrigible...don't know what happened to them, but prison is a good bet. My point is, back then there was a strict order, it was black or white...no grey area, no time out's, no group discussions about your feelings and most important there was a consequence for your actions. There really is a looser and a winner in every thing we do, and there was no pat on the back or a trophy when a game was lost. Loosing sucks, and that is incentive to try harder, practice, study, train. That is life, whether folks nowadays admit it or not.

I worked 27 years 2 months and 16 days as a public servant, retired, built a house, and continue to work by buying property and houses that need work. It's hands on work, just like my career and I would not change one single thing about my life. For me the good 'ole days were exactly that and I fear the values and standards that {we} as a society have let slide will be the ultimate ruin of us all.

 

[Larro Darro]

My father was born in 1923. Calhoun County Florida is still in the sticks, but when Daddy was a teenager, it was almost without any hard money. The first real money Daddy made was cutting, hewing and carrying cross-ties to the railroad tracks. They paid $0.25 per cross-tie. He could do two a day, so if he worked at it six days a week, he would make $3.00. And that was with him supplying the tree it was hewed from.

Daddy's aunt was born in 1901. She had two children live to adulthood. But she had five die in childhood, or were stillborn.

Mamma was born in 1928. Her Daddy was a veteran of the Spanish American War. Because of that, they got a check for $7.00 a month. Compared to everyone else, they were well off. Mamma's sister was handicapped, and she continued to get a check after their Daddy died. She got a check from the VA until she died two years ago. She was listed as an invalid child of a Spanish American War Veteran. I would be willing to bet she was about the last one in Florida, and maybe the country.

As others have said, the good old days were whenever you were young. To me that would be the 60's and 70's. To paraphrase Mitt Romney, the trees were the right height.

Larro

 

[Industrial Toys]

^^ Motor. They say, if you STOP moving, you die! That simple.

Yesterday I listened to a talk show. Some school in the good Ol US of A, is doing away with the honour role. Heck, I don't really know what that is. Anyway, they don't want the other students to "feel" bad. They want to do away with competition in the school system. Some areas up here (Ontario Canada), I have heard won't let kids keep score at sports games for the same reason.

REAL life is all about competition. Frankly, that has never appealed to me and leaves me feeling uncomfortable to this day, in areas of sports, business or mate procurement. One has only to look at nature, to understand, that's how things actually work!

Who are these people that are constantly and increasingly attempting to destroy our way of life? But maybe of more importance and relevance. How did these people get this power to affect such change, when MOST, it seems to me, are against this kind of thinking?