If You Were Born In The 60s, 70s, or 80s, You Have to Watch This

Born mid 70's and grew up in the 80's and early 90's.

Ahhhh the 80's. Bad hair cuts, bad clothes and fashion sense, and the rise of "pop" music. Which still hasn't apologized to the music world !
Reebok pumps, or Nike Air basketball shoes were all the rage, even though I didn't play basketball ?
The more fluoro colours your T-shirt had, the cooler you were.
Being hit by a 80's mobile phone could kill you because it literally was the size of a brick.
It was where 2 basic dance moves could cover all music of the time. Twerking and krunking had no place in the 80's.
It was a time when we were happy to sit there for an hour while our cassette tape loaded on our Commodore 64's. Instant access was a non-existent term back then.

The 90's for me where all about awesome all-day concerts. It was when people went for the music, rather than what we have today where it seems to be a case of 'let's take our shirts off and show everyone how good the steroids are that we're on'.
The 90's was also a transition decade. By that I mean, it was a decade that was eager to leave the 80's behind, but didn't really know what to expect from 2000 onwards. I often refer to my generation that grew up in the 90's as the 'Lost generation', as in lost in transition. We're also the generation that had the more traditional upbringing, but then had the world of computer technology appear almost over night. Todays younger generation do not know life without this technology. That's not a swipe at that generation, just different mentalities and outlooks due to different upbringings at different times.

We all have a special bond with our own time of growing up. We all probably think that each new generation has it better and easier than the previous. But in all fairness of todays younger generation, they are just products of their parents, and are brought into a system that their parents helped shape. Just as we were. But I actually feel for the younger generation for the fact that they know nothing other than a police state system. Some of the things me and my mates did in the 80's and 90's would be then dismissed as "boys will be boys", but todays youth can actually go to jail for similar things. Imagine growing up and all you have is rule after rule after rule being brought in, and every new rule takes away more of their rights. Now fast forward to the next generation after this one, and many of that generation will never know what rights are. Imagine growing up in that time. I know we all live under the same system, but imagine growing up in it and how you would view the world.

DarksideOz
We all have a special bond with our own time of growing up. We all probably think that each new generation has it better and easier than the previous. But in all fairness of todays younger generation, they are just products of their parents, and are brought into a system that their parents helped shape. Just as we were. But I actually feel for the younger generation for the fact that they know nothing other than a police state system. Some of the things me and my mates did in the 80's and 90's would be then dismissed as "boys will be boys", but todays youth can actually go to jail for similar things. Imagine growing up and all you have is rule after rule after rule being brought in, and every new rule takes away more of their rights. Now fast forward to the next generation after this one, and many of that generation will never know what rights are. Imagine growing up in that time. I know we all live under the same system, but imagine growing up in it and how you would view the world.

I agree with you 100%! My boys are growing up in a fascist nation! I see how many rules they have to follow throughout their daily lives and it infuriates me. These are children who MUST be allowed to "live and learn", with a dichotomy of law and common sense. Political Correctness has gotten completely out of control, along with whatever it is that makes people decide to put these rules and regulatios in place. A lot of us in this thread have commented on today's youth spending more time on their phones and playing video games than they do outside socializing face to face with people... well can we really blame them? Their society has become a place of "damned if you do, damned if you don't", so I can see how it would be easier to just stay at home where you are far more free to be yourself. The issue is then that they don't learn how to properly interact with other human beings in social situations (again, damned if you do, damned if you don't) with manners and appropriate dialogue.

You are incapable of doing something correctly if you never learned how to do it in the first place. It's very much akin to being thrown into a pool and told "sink or swim". Then we compound the issue by living in an instant gratification world where both parents must be out of the house for 40-60 hours each just to provide the basics, hence guilty feelings about the absence leads parents to "buying" their children's affections and good behavior. Children are handed gadgets, things and stuff that they themselves didn't have to work for, they didn't have to earn and that's where this sense of entitlement today's kids have comes from. Affluenza isn't exclusively a wealthy child's disorder. I am honestly afraid for the future of mankind as I can see no way of correcting the situation... aside from a complete system tear down and rebuild. That's a scary thought all on it's own *sigh*.

reply to post by Hillbilly123069


Thanx for the memories brought back again! It was the same here in Germany when I (born 5/28/1958) grew up with my friends...

Ahh yes, the good ole days.

Kick the can, jacks, marbles, banana bikes, Marco polo and let's not forget the classic prank of all pranks --- Ring and Run

SnF ~ thanks for bringing back some good memories.

reply to post by Hillbilly123069


I was born in '85. The last generation not born plugged in to the internet. Last generation without cellphones and everyone being able tobget ahold of you or know where you are at all the time.

Haha, nice video.... although doesn't stand up to ATS nit-pickery I'm afraid.

Best part: @ 1:00 Whatta cry baby


And by the way, cut the crap people... you've ALL got cellphones and internet now so let's try and not go all Davey Crockett and forget ourselves. I believe there are pansies from EVERY generation, and there will be strong backed men and women from the NEXT ones as well.

This is the type of thing that should piss you off. Our lives have been systematically taken from us. We are cattle being led to the slaughterhouse.

Oh, the memories!

Born in the 60's myself, just a short while before Star Trek, and can only wish my own children could see days like we had then!

We were so much more independent as children, while at the same time being so cared for and loved. Summer days were spent outside, unless we got hungry, or needed a bathroom. We would play in the woods, in tree houses, wherever we wanted, and not come in till dusk, when the mercury vapor lights were coming on. No one worried much about strangers, though we all had enough common sense to avoid someone suspicious. We played with pea shooters and crab apples and pine cones and water balloons, in ways that would get a kid throw out of school, or cause a call to a social worker today! Cowboys and Indians, Cops and Robbers, even though we were girls, sliding down a red clay ridge hill on cardboard boxes, balancing on porch railings, riding double on a banana seat on a bike, or on the handlebars, if they were the cool kind, playing in the snow when we got enough, splashing in puddles barefoot every time it rained, walking to the grandparents' house alone, or to a friend's, following the railroad tracks across the bridge to get home from school faster, riding bikes and Big Wheels and whatever with no safety gear, going to the Dime Store with a quarter, and coming out with several new toys, drinking from the hose, shooting a BB gun right in the yard in plain sight( targets, not each other or animals), watching Saturday morning cartoons that were actually GOOD, and so much more! We had three channels on TV, four if you could tune in PBS, but there wasn't much on that to watch. The moon landing was a HUGE big deal (yes, I remember that, though I was really small). At Christmas time, stores downtown would set up these amazing window displays, all animated, and very detailed. Late night horror movies were safe for the kids to watch (LOVED Shock Theater!!). Childhood "celebrities" (we never used that word) were people like Captain Kangaroo, not some sports person or singer. Family dinner was a regular thing, with at least one every weekend with the grandparents. Neighbors knew one another. We felt blessed to have a color television, and my grandfather never owned one. He had a party line on his phone, too! Computers took up entire floors of big office buildings. People actually had real, live conversations, in person and on the phone, and they weren't about silly things like the latest popular FB post or every single silly thing a person did all day. People actually talked about things that matter, and really knew one another. Divorce wasn't common, and promiscuous behavior wasn't seem as "normal and expected". Kids finished school, and were expected to actually learn while there. Schools taught actual subjects, like reading, math, history, and science, and no one expected political views to be pushed within those walls. Most teens weren't out having sex, or getting pregnant, and most didn't use drugs or drink, either. That was behavior seen in the few rare "hippies" that would pass through. The police actually expected people to be able to defend themselves, and didn't bat an eyelash at a person having a gun at home.

There were a few dark spots. Some places had rioting and unrest over racial issues, though we saw literally none of that (in the South....) until mandatory "busing" was instituted. Then, we got to see racism against us for being some of the very few white kids at a mostly black school. We didn't really worry about any nuclear threat. Never even heard it mentioned in school. We did have tornado drills. There were other disasters, like floods, but no one complained that they weren't treated equally. Overall, though, those were better days. We learned what live is really about, and how to think for ourselves, and be strong and independent. We grew up understanding that patriotism was a good thing. I remember the Bicentennial so well! The whole country was excited, and being an American was a big part of all our lives. Freedom was the best thing about it.

We can still teach our own children some of this. Mine don't have their own televisions or computers. Well, the oldest two do, but they are adults, and bought them! The younger don't have cell phones, either. They don't spend their free time on Facebook or Twitter or wherever. The most common activity is actually reading! They LOVE their books, and I love that! We still pray at meals, even when out together, and they all know they are expected to behave themselves. They know how to speak to adults with respect, and can converse with them. Television viewing is controlled, as are movies. Video game and computer time are rewards for good behavior. They can't roam around safely like we did, but they can still learn some of the values.

Excellent thread, and S&F for all the memories alone!

Those were the good ol days.

Summertime the kids in the neighbor hood would play in a field while parents hung out on the porch and talked for hours.
Playing ghost in the grave yard , tag, hide and seek when it was almost dark. Catching fireflys.

Power outages we would all go out and do that as well, couple of familys would pull out some barbeque grills and start cooking for everyone, people would pitch in.

Power goes out now and go out side all you see is the blue hue from phones on peoples faces and bitching that theres no wifi.

I hate to sound like a jaded old fart but, we were healthier, better adjusted, better behaved. There was always a bully, but you fought, got over and moved on. Not clicks picking on one kid until they killed themselves. Parent were allowed to spank their kids or whatever discipline they chose. We were allowed to come home to an empty house, do our chores until our parents came home...we knew responsibility at an early age. Everything is illegal now, and it's made things better? Guns weapons were not a big deal and people were not so paranoid. Yeah, I'd do the 70's over & maybe the 80's but that was the turning point.

Born 1973 ... You don't realize just how good things are until they're gone. Honestly if I could go back and do it again I would ...

reply to post by Hillbilly123069


Thank you for posting this! Made me remember what was so important in life
then and now! To bad the children of today will never have the pleasure of
a real childhood! I remember making up our own games. We had one called
tree bending we would see if we could climb a skinny tree and at the top we
would of coarse try to get it to bend to where our feet would almost touch the
ground before we would let go! I have never had more fun in life then I did
when I was a child all the way up until I became an adult! we did have video
games but would only play with them when there was nothing else we could do!
This would be the case if it was raining or if one of us was in trouble and punished!
I would bring home bruises every day and always fought with friends and rivals but
no one would ever pull a weapon or was ever seriously hurt! Even when we discovered
girls we still would have fun one way or another! Then we gave up on having fun for
responsibility and ego!
It's funny I barely see kids playing in the street! I never hear their moms calling them in.
I know we would never come home until our parents called or came looking for us.
Are the children of today really better off with all the gadgets, social media and the net?
I wonder. . . IMHO I think not. If we keep going the way we are we will all end up
on anti depressants, diet pills and addicted to drugs! My hero when I was a kid was no
stupid actor but a fictional character! Today our children glamorize pathetic whore's
bad singers and sluts! They go to college to party and end up in debt and jobless!
What happened to our beautiful country where we were free to follow our dreams and
they were our own and not some made up nightmare? I hope to God something changes
because if it doesn't we will be in big trouble! TY again for all the sweet memories.
It brought tears of happiness to my eyes! God bless...

i miss 80's cartoons.

FRANCES JALET-CRUZ PAPERS, 1966-1986. 34 ft.

Frances Jalet-Cruz represented Texas inmates in suits against the Texas prison system and became one of the central figures in the Texas prison reform movement during the late 1960's and 1970's. Papers contain correspondence, legal documents, diaries, newspapers, clippings, and printed material, much of which relates to an inmate, Fred Cruz’s, lengthy legal battle with the Texas Department of Corrections over prisoners’ rights.

university of texas / sara clark collection

Of course in this movie the location is changed to Arkansas. Speaking of which, this gives me an idea. A lesson to be extracted from the way media operated back then. Perhaps the tactic remains valid, one could use it to effect change. Change that is actually our idea. If there is a long pattern of financial abuses, then where are all the movies clamoring for reform. Where is the financial reform movement. If we don't like something we reform it right? Or were these 60's and 70's Prison Reform mass media bombardment just the moment that prison movies started scaring boomers into political positions. And as soon as people started having opinions on government, instead of duties to, they became outsiders. People felt repressed by the system back then too. More so than we do now. Supposedly.


Mike Grouchy

Ah yes... the days of wild freedoms, growing up in the 70's.

- Bugs Bunny
- Gilligan's Island
- The Witching Hour comic books
- Penny candy
- Bumper shining on the back of transit buses in the winter

Bumps, scrapes, bruises, broken bones... and we loved every minute of it. Every second house was a Block Parent so if someone got hurt badly, you could run up to any house for help or to call home.

We were outside from morning until the street lights came on. Moms would scream out their front doors for us to come home for supper. The only time we were in the house was to watch Saturday morning cartoons, and then we were out the door.

Entire neighbourhoods of kids would get together to play hide and seek, race our bikes, build forts, building soapbox cars out of scraps we found in the dumpsters, and exploring the great unknown... It didn't matter if it was sunny, raining, blizzard, thunderstorm, or -35 celcius. We were out there having a blast.

My very first chemistry set I got when I was 8 years old had actual real chemicals and acid to experiment with.



And I'm still alive.
... But I have a few aches and pains to remind me of the "good old days".

Great thread!
And we did make it~

Even though we spent our days outside, trying to come up with new and creative ways to accidentally kill ourselves.

But the success of the aforementioned endeavors hinged on having a healthy breakfast.

Which was your daily reminder that society was still in the early stages of recognizing the subtleties of what would later come to be known as “irony”.

I was born 1985, I had a Sega Mega drive but favored playing outside more as I swear the weather was better back then, I got a 9 year old and I worry when she plays out and she cant leave my sight out the front.. there are just too many weirdos around now these days, I think I prefer my little girl to stay in doors on her lap top.. its pretty sad I know considering how much I played out!

What a glorious time in life!

heres a list of reasons the 80s were good for kids tv:

thundercats
transformers
M.A.S.K.
banana man/superted
visionary's
he-man
racoons
trap door
heathcliff
ghostbusters
captian planet
count duckular
dungeons and dragons
voltron
inspector gadget
animaniacs
jetsons
pinky and the brain
simpsons
alvin and the chipmuncks
tom and jerry/donold duck
carebears
real monsters (tho 90s)

and many more that i dont recall the names of