What Era Would You Live in?

[Mercury]

I know some people, along with me, feel like they might of missed there era.

So, I pose this poll asking just out of sheer curiosity to see how many people share similar feelings.

I have a great understanding of current technology, throughout its broad applications, and sorts. So its not that my brain cant handle or comprehend all the "New Fangled" stuff. Although my spelling skills hark back to Cave man days.

[Mercury]

Quee Danny and the Juniors "Rock and Roll is here to Stay"

I would have to say that the 50's was the era that I should of lived through.

I've always been intrigued/fascinated with the 50's. Everything from the cars, to the Korean War.

Just the thought of Wide White Walls on a A-Bone, or 57 Ford Fairlane get my blood flowing. All I listen to, other than classical is 50's oldies. Well, along with some 60's. Even they way people dressed, I love it all.

Perhaps my reasons may be shallow, and superficial for wanting to have lived and been in my prime during the Hoppin 50's. Either way though I think it would of been keen to been around then.

[joe4speed]

I would have liked to have lived in the 60's
Peace, Pot, and Microdot! LOL

[HotRoddin]

Quality of life wise I have to say the 50's There was such prosperity for the middle class ... if you worked hard you made it. There was also a pride in being part of this country, and respect for parents and others, and moral standards that people wouldn't tolerate being sidestepped ... things we seem to have lost lately. If you worked hard you were respected and it didn't matter if you were a brain surgeon or a janitor ... it was not as easy to buy respect, you had to earn it. Today it seems that the almighty buck is the measure to which everything is held up. You get that big house and that fancy car and its ok if you have to crush people into the mud to get it, the fact that you got it is all that matters ... kids have to grow up knowing their baby sitter better than their parents, "oh well, they'll be ok, look at the size of my house!"
The new millennia ... polio and small pox are gone, just a distant memory ... diabetes, cancer, heart disease, we're closing in fast! gotta love that ... polio would sweep through an area and people were terrified, justifiably so ... the cold war for now is gone, enough nukes hanging over your head to destroy the world, and a bunch of guys were sitting at the console with their finger on the button 24/7 and their fingers were twitching !! That was some scary shite!! Everytime that practice drill siren would go off you'd get that knot in your stomach and wonder, is this the end of the world For the moment at least that threat isn't so eminent ...whew !!!
Ahh the 60's ... free love, the Doors, Jimi Hendrix and the horsepower wars ... how could you not like that combo!!!!
All the eras have great things ... to bad we couldn't combine the best of all of them, man wouldn't that be somethin !!!

[Snakeman]

i would prefer to live in the 12th millennium, but that wasn't an option...

i bet in 9000 years things will be pretty interesting. especially for someone of our era.

[Hammer]

My era isn't listed...

Probably some time right after the civil war. (1865-75)
Out somewhere in the west.
I'd probably make one hell of a blacksmith....

[MidNiteBlu 5.0]

I would love to live in the 60's even though i love modern technology greatly hehe.

I would love to live with the musclecars and cheap gas.

Hotroddin made a very good point about the old quality of life too.

[Crazy Horse GT]

well i sarted drive in the mid 70's, so i got the best of both world's muscle car's were just used car's then, i wish i had all my old car's, i would be bloody rich now, lol. otherwise, i woulda like to live in the civil war era, so i could kick some yankee invader azz, lol.

[mustangman65_79]

60's MAN!!!

So I could drive my killer '66 GT-350 and speed down some flower popin hippies.

[tireburner163]

I like right now just fine.

[Mr 5 0]

The 1950's.

Technology wasn't anywhere close to today, obviously, but you had over-the-air TV (no cable) and most of the appliances that make daily life comfortable. Cars were primitive by 2003 standards (carbs, leaf springs, drum brakes all around, skinny bias-ply tires, etc) but like our cars today, far ahead of what folks once drove back in the 1920's. They were reliable, comfortable and some were fast - for the time. They also rusted like crazy and were not nearly as well made as a car of today, so it wasn't all good. You could take a (prop) airliner coast to coast or overseas and long-distance telephone conversations were common, so it's clear that life wasn't totally primitive on all counts during the 1950's, even from a 2003 perspective, even without the 'benefit' of cell phones.

As 'HotRoddin' mentioned, most men, even a factory worker, could support a family (and Mom stayed home to care for the kids, willingly). Taxes were far lower than today, which accounts for most of the earning differences between the '50's and today. Morals were respected as well as upheld and supported by society. Americans had far fewer STD's and abortions as well as far fewer illegitmate births. People got married and if they lived togeter without benefit of marriage, it was sneeringly called: Shackin' Up and not respected. America also had segregation but the church was often the center of many black neighborhoods and the illegimate birth rate was actually lower for blacks ('negros' in the '50's) than for whites back in 1950. You could go to a movie and not have to watch men and women pretending to have sex (in graphic detail and full color) 15 minutes after they meet. TV might have been black-and-white but it was something the whole family could watch and Ricky and Lucy as well as Jackie Gleason and even Milton Berle made all America laugh without one smutty 'joke', sex scene or cursing, if you don't count Berle's cross-dressing gags. Even in real life, everyone didn't feel the need to use the 'F-word' every few seconds. The only people who used hard drugs - or any drugs at all - were jazz musicians and losers. In the 1950's almost half of all Americans smoked cigrarettes and every home had a few ash trays sitting around - even if the owners didn't smoke - guests probably would, and no one really objected, even at the office. Children generally respected parents and people were more civil to each other in public settings. Schools didn't need police patrolling the hallways (and shouldn't need them now - but we do). You could leave your car unlocked in most suburban neighborhoods - and many folks did - with no problems.

1950's citizens didn't have the internet or even home computers nor did they have video games of any kind - but they managed. Everybody had dinner together and they talked to each other. People would actually read for recreation. Imagine that. The public schools were far superior and while a college education was harder to obtain then, you really knew something when you graduated and the college diploma was well-respected because of that. Crime was simply much less, according to the numbers and even driving was probably more fun as we had far fewer people and vehicles using the roads. No CD's (vinyl records only), not even tape, no DVDs or even VCRs but 1950's folks did quite well without them, it seems.

The comparisons are endless, of course, and some things have noticable changed for the better (such as air quality) but on contrast, the 1950's look like a good time to have been alive, especially if you were young - and had a V-8 Ford.

[Crazy Horse GT]

Originally posted by Mr 5 0
The 1950's.

Technology wasn't anywhere close to today, obviously, but you had over-the-air TV (no cable) and most of the appliances that make daily life comfortable. Cars were primitive by 2003 standards (carbs, leaf springs, drum brakes all around, skinny bias-ply tires, etc) but like our cars today, far ahead of what folks once drove back in the 1920's. They were reliable, comfortable and some were fast - for the time. They also rusted like crazy and were not nearly as well made as a car of today, so it wasn't all good. You could take a (prop) airliner coast to coast or overseas and long-distance telephone conversations were common, so it's clear that life wasn't totally primitive on all counts during the 1950's, even from a 2003 perspective, even without the 'benefit' of cell phones.

As 'HotRoddin' mentioned, most men, even a factory worker, could support a family (and Mom stayed home to care for the kids, willingly). Taxes were far lower than today, which accounts for most of the earning differences between the '50's and today. Morals were respected as well as upheld and supported by society. Americans had far fewer STD's and abortions as well as far fewer illegitmate births. People got married and if they lived togeter without benefit of marriage, it was sneeringly called: Shackin' Up and not respected. America also had segregation but the church was often the center of many black neighborhoods and the illegimate birth rate was actually lower for blacks ('negros' in the '50's) than for whites back in 1950. You could go to a movie and not have to watch men and women pretending to have sex (in graphic detail and full color) 15 minutes after they meet. TV might have been black-and-white but it was something the whole family could watch and Ricky and Lucy as well as Jackie Gleason and even Milton Berle made all America laugh without one smutty 'joke', sex scene or cursing, if you don't count Berle's cross-dressing gags. Even in real life, everyone didn't feel the need to use the 'F-word' every few seconds. The only people who used hard drugs - or any drugs at all - were jazz musicians and losers. In the 1950's almost half of all Americans smoked cigrarettes and every home had a few ash trays sitting around - even if the owners didn't smoke - guests probably would, and no one really objected, even at the office. Children generally respected parents and people were more civil to each other in public settings. Schools didn't need police patrolling the hallways (and shouldn't need them now - but we do). You could leave your car unlocked in most suburban neighborhoods - and many folks did - with no problems.

1950's citizens didn't have the internet or even home computers nor did they have video games of any kind - but they managed. Everybody had dinner together and they talked to each other. People would actually read for recreation. Imagine that. The public schools were far superior and while a college education was harder to obtain then, you really knew something when you graduated and the college diploma was well-respected because of that. Crime was simply much less, according to the numbers and even driving was probably more fun as we had far fewer people and vehicles using the roads. No CD's (vinyl records only), not even tape, no DVDs or even VCRs but 1950's folks did quite well without them, it seems.

The comparisons are endless, of course, and some things have noticable changed for the better (such as air quality) but on contrast, the 1950's look like a good time to have been alive, especially if you were young - and had a V-8 Ford.

hell yeah. exactly, then you had those sweet 49 ford's.

[Topless In Texas]

Originally posted by joe4speed
I would have liked to have lived in the 60's
Peace, Pot, and Microdot! LOL

Ditto to Joe...although I was alive in the 60's I was not quite old enough to appreciate it for what it was worth... I could not see myself trippin out on shrooms at 5 years old...although, I might have liked it. lol...
And, unfortunately, I was not quite old enough to enjoy WOODSTOCK or ALTAMONT for what it was worth...I would have LOVED to be at Altamont...Stones ruled back then. I had a crush on Keith Richards for over 25 years now...
TNT

[Topless In Texas]

Originally posted by Mr 5 0
The 1950's.

Technology wasn't anywhere close to today, obviously, but you had over-the-air TV (no cable) and most of the appliances that make daily life comfortable. Cars were primitive by 2003 standards (carbs, leaf springs, drum brakes all around, skinny bias-ply tires, etc) but like our cars today, far ahead of what folks once drove back in the 1920's. They were reliable, comfortable and some were fast - for the time. They also rusted like crazy and were not nearly as well made as a car of today, so it wasn't all good. You could take a (prop) airliner coast to coast or overseas and long-distance telephone conversations were common, so it's clear that life wasn't totally primitive on all counts during the 1950's, even from a 2003 perspective, even without the 'benefit' of cell phones.

As 'HotRoddin' mentioned, most men, even a factory worker, could support a family (and Mom stayed home to care for the kids, willingly). Taxes were far lower than today, which accounts for most of the earning differences between the '50's and today. Morals were respected as well as upheld and supported by society. Americans had far fewer STD's and abortions as well as far fewer illegitmate births. People got married and if they lived togeter without benefit of marriage, it was sneeringly called: Shackin' Up and not respected. America also had segregation but the church was often the center of many black neighborhoods and the illegimate birth rate was actually lower for blacks ('negros' in the '50's) than for whites back in 1950. You could go to a movie and not have to watch men and women pretending to have sex (in graphic detail and full color) 15 minutes after they meet. TV might have been black-and-white but it was something the whole family could watch and Ricky and Lucy as well as Jackie Gleason and even Milton Berle made all America laugh without one smutty 'joke', sex scene or cursing, if you don't count Berle's cross-dressing gags. Even in real life, everyone didn't feel the need to use the 'F-word' every few seconds. The only people who used hard drugs - or any drugs at all - were jazz musicians and losers. In the 1950's almost half of all Americans smoked cigrarettes and every home had a few ash trays sitting around - even if the owners didn't smoke - guests probably would, and no one really objected, even at the office. Children generally respected parents and people were more civil to each other in public settings. Schools didn't need police patrolling the hallways (and shouldn't need them now - but we do). You could leave your car unlocked in most suburban neighborhoods - and many folks did - with no problems.

1950's citizens didn't have the internet or even home computers nor did they have video games of any kind - but they managed. Everybody had dinner together and they talked to each other. People would actually read for recreation. Imagine that. The public schools were far superior and while a college education was harder to obtain then, you really knew something when you graduated and the college diploma was well-respected because of that. Crime was simply much less, according to the numbers and even driving was probably more fun as we had far fewer people and vehicles using the roads. No CD's (vinyl records only), not even tape, no DVDs or even VCRs but 1950's folks did quite well without them, it seems.

The comparisons are endless, of course, and some things have noticable changed for the better (such as air quality) but on contrast, the 1950's look like a good time to have been alive, especially if you were young - and had a V-8 Ford.

Damn, Jim, that was a MOUTHFULL!!!! Hey, great to see you here again!!!!!!
...I dont get on much myself either, and decided to tonight. Hope your doing great. Just wanted you to know it was good to see your post. I always enjoyed reading your outlook on things, and respected your opinions...and I LOVE TV LAND...(Ricky and Lucy) lol...only us 'oldtimers' can appreciate that!
Also...Ive got my collection of Rolling Stones LPS along w/ all my others, (BTO, Grand Funk RailRoad, Badfinger, etc), much less the 45's......ya know whats so WIERD????? prolly MOST of the guys reading this, have never seen or owned an LP or a 45, much less an 8 Track tape! lol... Also...when I would watch "Laugh In" cuz it was 'risque' (Along w/ "Love American Style") lol...I loved that show. Have not seen it in 30 years...
Hope you and your family is doing well...
Keep in touch. Your a classy guy...lol...if thats possible in these 'now' days! Take Care Jim...
TNT

[CobraJet428]

The 1950's would have been awesome. Prosperity, patriotism, the rumblings of Rock and Roll and V-8 Fords. My parents once owned a 1957 Ford Fairlane hardtop conv. withg a 312 V-8 engine (distributor in rear like a chevy engine). I could have seen Senator McCarthy chase alleged communists, watched Elvis rock the world, and enjoyed one of the most prosperous periods in US History.
The pre-Civil War South would have been interesting too. John C.Calhoun's home (which is now part of Clemson University) is 20 minutes from home. I would have loved to have met and even served under the command of General Robert E. Lee. Lee and George S. Patton(WWII) are the 2 greatest American miitary commanders ever IMO.

[KiltedBanshees93GT]

I didnt choose one, because I would see myself as a 50's greaser, living in the muscle car 60s, with a new millenium kinda attitude. (I cant imagine living w/o the net )
If I had to choose , I would probibly choose the 60's, if for no other reason than the music,
But at the same time, I'm a child of the 80's, so the flashy, glam 80's might be fun too
J

[Mass Stang]

I'm a child of the 80's too. I liked growing up in that era. It was a fun time to be a kid. I wouldn't mind seeing what life was like in the 60's, and 70's. Seemed like fun time too. I like the era we live in now, but liked things better when terrorism, and violence really wasn't as much a a factor. VH1 has a series called I love the 70's, and I love the 80's. I love watching it. They show comericails, and products (Pop Rocks) that I had all but forgot about. Maybe I am bias, but it takes me back, to a time that just seemed more relaxed, and fun.

Hey, its the era that gave us Fox Body Mustangs !!!!

[Mr 5 0]

Originally posted by Topless In Texas :

Damn, Jim, that was a MOUTHFULL!!!! Hey, great to see you here again!!!!!!
...I dont get on much myself either, and decided to tonight. Hope your doing great. Just wanted you to know it was good to see your post. I always enjoyed reading your outlook on things, and respected your opinions...and I LOVE TV LAND...(Ricky and Lucy) lol...only us 'oldtimers' can appreciate that!
Also...Ive got my collection of Rolling Stones LPS along w/ all my others, (BTO, Grand Funk RailRoad, Badfinger, etc), much less the 45's......ya know whats so WIERD????? prolly MOST of the guys reading this, have never seen or owned an LP or a 45, much less an 8 Track tape! lol... Also...when I would watch "Laugh In" cuz it was 'risque' (Along w/ "Love American Style") lol...I loved that show. Have not seen it in 30 years...
Hope you and your family is doing well...
Keep in touch. Your a classy guy...lol...if thats possible in these 'now' days! Take Care Jim...
TNT

Thanks for the kind words, Topless. I appreciate your thoughts and yes, 'Love American Style' was kind of risqué. The first time I ever saw an inflatable sex doll was on that show! I had no idea what it was for but a guy making out with what was essentially a balloon - then seeing it suddenly deflate and fly around the room emitting this loud farting sound - was simply hilarious back then, when the world was a bit younger and America was a lot more innocent and even 'risqué' television was still funny, not just smutty and crass. On the other hand, we didn't have the internet to exchange messages on and had to do with either the telephone, with a cord, or actually write a ltter, now a forgotten skill I assume. Ah, the good old days. Well, sort of, I guess.

[DAN-MAN]

I would've loved to have lived in the 60's, with the muscle car wars going on and the drag racing at the time. It would've been cool.