I am sorry your life was so awful-really. Mine was no picnic, with a mean drunk for a father, but when sober was the nicest kindest wisest man on earth-confusing for a kid? You bet! And then he believed in "spare the rod, spoil the child" kind of parenting, as did my mother-so my childhood was not exactly fun and games. Having been born in 1943, I remember the 50's well. With all the negatives, it was the best time to be a kid. You did not have to be afraid to walk down the street, police were there to help, athletes simply played their sport, and said nothing about their politics, nor did they disparage the country that made their fortune and fame possible. I could and did ride my bike all over-anywhere we wanted to go we either walked or biked. If I had asked for a ride from my parents, they would have asked if I broke my leg and was unable to walk. We did not have computers, cell phones or electronic games, so we played outside a lot, ran around, got plenty of exercise, and we actually had to study for an education. Teachers were not afraid to flunk you if you did not do the work, and parents agreed. If you got into trouble at school it was certain you would be in trouble when you got home. Our education included actual math, that we had to work out, and know all the functions and tables of those functions, spelling was important, history was taught separately from geography and no one heard of or cared about "women's studies" or Black History. If you were black and an American, your history was covered in American History, unless of course you were an immigrant. I******s were rare, that we knew of anyway, because it was not so easy or such a political game to be played.

Children may not have had respect for adults, but knew better than to show it-mostly adults pretty much ignored what we had to say-there were some bad things and attitudes in the 50's of course. Women were only supposed to be mothers and homemakers, or if they worked outside or were single, they had the choice of nurse, teacher, or secretary or waitress or maid. Pretty much it-though some women did not care what others thought, and became tax accountants or joined the military. They had to work harder and be better at their jobs to get any respect from their peers or their boss. Sexual harassment and rape were deemed to be the female's fault for dressing provocatively, or walking down the wrong area at the wrong time. So there were some real problems, but nothing like we have now. Some women who were career minded were looked down upon as upstarts, rebels or whores. We believed all the hype about Hollywood and the stars, and it was a more innocent time-polio was about to be eradicated with the Salk v*****e, and later mumps and measles v*****e came out.

We were more free, we looked for a brighter future, thought we could have a better life than our parents, and worked to make it happen. If you were on welfare for life, if you were not disabled, it was a disgrace, sex outside marriage was discouraged, and unwed mothers were looked down on by many. As I said there were some things not so great. Work was expected, frugality was the word of the day because the war was just over, and before that the depression-which most people had lived through back then, so they were glad for the prosperity the war brought. Marriage was between one man and one woman, and living together was met with total rejection. We had morals and standards, and while some needed to be eased, it was a good time to live. When you were old enough, you were expected to get a part time job-to save for college, or to buy and maintain your own vehicle, or your own place to live. So, it was not easy, some of it was grossly unfair-like I would never have felt comfortable telling my teacher or any other adult about my home life-just was not done-you dealt with it whichever way you could. But I learned a great deal, and would not want to be a young person growing up in the US in the 2000's. No thank you.

There may be some t***h to that but a hankering for more civility is not the exclusive preserve of Conservatives (just look around this forum for evidence of that
“Hankering”).
The problem with this stroll down memory lane is that the dark underbelly of the fifties
is conveniently ignored if you lived in the white middle class biosphere. Just like the original Constitution it was great as long as you were white, male and over twenty one.
In other words the fifties were stable, pleasant and prosperous because women, minorities and the poor knew their place.

There may be some t***h to that but a hankering for more civility is not the exclusive preserve of Conservatives (just look around this forum for evidence of that
“Hankering”).
The problem with this stroll down memory lane is that the dark underbelly of the fifties
is conveniently ignored if you lived in the white middle class biosphere. Just like the original Constitution it was great as long as you were white, male and over twenty one.
In other words the fifties were stable, pleasant and prosperous because women, minorities and the poor knew their place.

I am sorry your life was so awful-really. Mine was no picnic, with a mean drunk for a father, but when sober was the nicest kindest wisest man on earth-confusing for a kid? You bet! And then he believed in "spare the rod, spoil the child" kind of parenting, as did my mother-so my childhood was not exactly fun and games. Having been born in 1943, I remember the 50's well. With all the negatives, it was the best time to be a kid. You did not have to be afraid to walk down the street, police were there to help, athletes simply played their sport, and said nothing about their politics, nor did they disparage the country that made their fortune and fame possible. I could and did ride my bike all over-anywhere we wanted to go we either walked or biked. If I had asked for a ride from my parents, they would have asked if I broke my leg and was unable to walk. We did not have computers, cell phones or electronic games, so we played outside a lot, ran around, got plenty of exercise, and we actually had to study for an education. Teachers were not afraid to flunk you if you did not do the work, and parents agreed. If you got into trouble at school it was certain you would be in trouble when you got home. Our education included actual math, that we had to work out, and know all the functions and tables of those functions, spelling was important, history was taught separately from geography and no one heard of or cared about "women's studies" or Black History. If you were black and an American, your history was covered in American History, unless of course you were an immigrant. I******s were rare, that we knew of anyway, because it was not so easy or such a political game to be played.

Children may not have had respect for adults, but knew better than to show it-mostly adults pretty much ignored what we had to say-there were some bad things and attitudes in the 50's of course. Women were only supposed to be mothers and homemakers, or if they worked outside or were single, they had the choice of nurse, teacher, or secretary or waitress or maid. Pretty much it-though some women did not care what others thought, and became tax accountants or joined the military. They had to work harder and be better at their jobs to get any respect from their peers or their boss. Sexual harassment and rape were deemed to be the female's fault for dressing provocatively, or walking down the wrong area at the wrong time. So there were some real problems, but nothing like we have now. Some women who were career minded were looked down upon as upstarts, rebels or whores. We believed all the hype about Hollywood and the stars, and it was a more innocent time-polio was about to be eradicated with the Salk v*****e, and later mumps and measles v*****e came out.

We were more free, we looked for a brighter future, thought we could have a better life than our parents, and worked to make it happen. If you were on welfare for life, if you were not disabled, it was a disgrace, sex outside marriage was discouraged, and unwed mothers were looked down on by many. As I said there were some things not so great. Work was expected, frugality was the word of the day because the war was just over, and before that the depression-which most people had lived through back then, so they were glad for the prosperity the war brought. Marriage was between one man and one woman, and living together was met with total rejection. We had morals and standards, and while some needed to be eased, it was a good time to live. When you were old enough, you were expected to get a part time job-to save for college, or to buy and maintain your own vehicle, or your own place to live. So, it was not easy, some of it was grossly unfair-like I would never have felt comfortable telling my teacher or any other adult about my home life-just was not done-you dealt with it whichever way you could. But I learned a great deal, and would not want to be a young person growing up in the US in the 2000's. No thank you.

I think I might disagree with you about several things today, but I want to say, Well told! The town where I grew up was somewhat like what you describe. Maybe mine was much smaller. We could traverse all the streets and all the alleys of our town on a bicycle in, say, about 20 or 30 minutes. When I was 7, my parents said I was free to go anywhere on my own as long as I didn't cross Main Street, which was the only paved street and also the only street whose name was known by most of the people living on it. Looking back from 60 years later, I have virtually no complaints about my parents; they seem to have been better people than I am (they had the advantage of having each other, whereas most of my life I've been more single or alone). Otherwise, the environment of my childhood seems to have been similar to yours.

It would seldom have occurred to me to ask my parents for a ride to anywhere. They were always busy working, and why would I go anywhere I couldn't reach by bicycle? But when I was 14 and 15, my mom drove me four miles to my summer job. There was no mass t***sit. A few times I commuted by horse. I think four miles each way is a little too far to walk when you've got a ten-hour day to work.

I worked part-time, but mostly just in the summers as a teenager, and not because my parents asked me to. It was just a work ethic, so that I felt I should be working in the summers.

You describe the culture pretty well -- or, at least, the part of it that I was aware of as a child. I was born about ten years later than you were, but my town may have been smaller and further from cities, which can cause a time lag, such that our culture was similar to what you describe.

Reading your post was like a trip down memory lane.

We conservatives have been accused of wanting to turn the clock back to the 1950's or so, for reasons I do not comprehend. Perhaps it is just hyperbole, meant to deflect the general argument on what we should be doing in America to make life better for both the population at large, ourselves and our children. Just another dark angel story to frazzle the soldiers of the light.

Turning back the clock figuratively is of course totally inadvisable, as any fool can understand. Too much has gone by and been absorbed into the minds of the people. Too many d******e ideas have been cemented into the souls of radical-minded citizens in positions of power who are themselves and their ideas of dubious worth.

Change has taken place everywhere all around the world since 1950. Cell phones, computers, TV, jet travel, space ventures, the internet gateway to knowledge, DNA, and many national convolutions in the world mark this last 70 years! Now we have the impact of the C****-** p******c to try to cope with everywhere. We hear of the "Global Reset" movement that wants to unite the world under a single government, manned of course, by c*******ts and their fellow travelers. There is enormous speculation about extraterrestrials contacting us, which would be an extraordinary event!

G*******ts want the US to give up its sovereignty for the "good of the cause". This seems to be in line with the idea that you can take away a lot from the rich and give it to the poor, all for fairness and harmony!

For me, the only rational thing to do is to hearken back to the 1950's and mine the good of that era, and to merge them into our society, instead of trying to level things now in America the hard way.

Preserving the good is a conservative mantra!

Thank you. Sounds like we old geezers had a better life for the most part than any kid today. And that is too bad, I think. I remember shoveling walks and driveways with my next door neighbor for extra money if we wanted to do something not covered by the small allowance we received. We would shovel after a snowfall, and some people would pay us in cookies and hot chocolate, some would give us cash, and some a big "thank you"-it was all OK. In the summer, we mowed lawns or swept sidewalks or perhaps ran errands. Again, some people gave us cash, some cookies and Kool Aid or Lemonade or even Iced Tea. It never occurred to us to "charge" neighbors for shoveling or mowing-we were expected to help. My first real job was bean picking when I was around 8 or 9, I think. 1.5 cents a lb for wax or yellow beans, and 2 cents for green. That lasted pretty much throughout June, when beans were ready to be harvested. We worked from early morning till around 5:00 - amazing how much you can make picking beans. I saved some money for extra school clothes beyond what my mom would spend, and some for the County Fair in August for the carnival. I would save up to buy Nancy Drew Mysteries as they came out-85 cents at the Book and Gift store in Manitowoc, WI.

We had about 12 kids around the same age in our neighborhood, boys and girls, so there was never a lack of things to do or some one to do them with. We never just walked into a friend's house, but rather stood outside and asked if they could come outside. We had chores to do, piano or other instruments to practice, and homework. I didn't have a lot of homework in grade school, because my classes were doubled, like 1st and 2nd in the same room and so forth, so while the teacher was tending to the other grade, we could work on our homework-usually got it finished before the end of the school day. Ran around like fools at recess, and were hungry when we got home. My mother worked outside the home, so when I got home from school, when I was old enough, I had to peel potatoes, make sure wh**ever meat Mom was cooking was fine, and choose the veggie. Set the table, practice piano, and only after supper and dishes did I go outside to play-usually something like red light green light, or something. Played until dark, or one of the parents would call their kid inside.

Week ends were spent sometimes at my grandparents-both sets were dairy farmers-and we kids were expected to help with milking and in the spring, picking stones out of the fields in order to get ready for plowing and planting and stuff. So we worked hard, played hard, and never thought we had it terrible, had respect for adults, but knew our place as kids-it was not ideal by any means, but it was a great time to grow up-we could still be kids till we were adults. Today's children seem not to be allowed to be kids-loads of pressure we did not have. Thus, I do not understand this generation at all-but then, I have nothing in common with them. They baffle me sometimes-even and perhaps especially my own kids now in their 50's. Egad, I AM getting old! Wow.

We read a few Nancy Drew mysteries and enjoyed them but we liked the The Dana Girls mysteries more (they're by the same author) and Hardy Boys most of all.

I think you worked more than I did. We didn't do chores much. We mowed lawns and always got paid for that unless it was our own lawn. Our parents had a store and we worked there occasionally, I think usually not getting paid for that. My dad later said that I paid for my own college education entirely; I thought it was an exaggeration, but maybe it really was true; all the jobs, loan, grant, and scholarship may have added up to that. But my parents were there to support all of their kids financially all the way through four years of college if we needed the money.

We, too, played outside until dark or until mom called us home. 2nd and 3rd grades were doubled; 4th and 5th were doubled.

My kids had better schools and were also better students than I was. And they did have more pressure to achieve academically than I did; pressure not from me, but from their mom or just because that's the kind of scholarship that was expected among their friends and their teachers. My main role was to be supportive of what they wanted to do, and then, eventually, to try to not get in the way. My parents and my children have all been wonderful; I'm in the middle generation that was a little less wonderful but I'm not done yet.