A question for the older tokers

[Dr.Feelgood]

Were things "this bad" back in the 60's, 70's, and 80's?

I'm not very old, so I only remember the 90's being a very progressive and relatively peaceful time. Now we have Israel invading Gaza & Lebanon, the USA in Iraq, Iran trying to enrich more & more uranium, genocide in Africa, North Korea developing very long-range nuclear-capable missiles, the USA economy is for $hit, the USA government seems to be headed straight towards fascism (if it isn't there already), USA healthcare is for $hit, poverty is up, corporate executive wages are WAY up, our (Americans) civil rights are being trampled, etc, etc, etc

Have things always been this bad? Because it seems as though Rome is falling; corporatism seems to have taken its toll.

Thanks!

 

[Guest]

^^^^Take two Wellbutrine and call me in the morning.

 

[Guest]

Well yes;Began- Israel, Regan/Marines/Iran, Pallistine, Lebanon, North Korea, Russia, China all 70-80 problems.
Yes, we just have more media now.
Peace I hope
MOD

 

[Dr.Feelgood]

haha

I think you guys may have the wrong impression. It's just tough to get a good perspective on the severity of current problems compared to past problems when you've only lived through X amount of years.

I suppose one thought I've been having is that things such as the Civil Rights Act and FISA were made law in the past. Yet now we have a bunch of clowns trying to amend the constitution to their liking and violating the parts they do not like. In the past, America had a large roll in positive international law decisions. Now the USA violates international law as it pleases.

Do you see what I mean? Am I missing something or have things changed quite a bit? And isn't there some point at which, after all your past sins come home to roost, the country might reach some type of constitutional/economic/political tipping point? It has happened in the past to other countries.

Maybe it sounds as though I need some Midol. But I'm just trying to possibly glean some insight from all of the old wise stoners who's pasts were (hopefully) not lost in all the bong smoke.

P.S. I don't watch tv. I'd say that my exposure to the traditional media is very limited.

 

[minds_I]

bUAHAHAHAA

Cuba has nuclear missles

Early 1960's abd before -civil rights are being trampled
1967

The US is in Viet Nam.

Isreal invades the gaza strip during the Six Days war.

Early 1970's
The US economy is for shit.
The Us government is heading for facism.
US health care is for shit.

Buahahahaha. pretty much the status quo.


Same shit- differnt day!

minds_I

 

[Verite]

Its all what you make it. Problems that didnt impact my ability to party and have a good time seldom dwindled in my mind, unless we were at a good party high outta our gourds talking about it. But seeing how 75% of all our conversations consisted of what happened on last weeks Charlies Angels episode world politics didnt get much airplay.

 

[motaco]

I wasn't there either but they've always had this kinda shit.

the dust bowl. depression, prohibition, WW2, cuba missle crisis, vietnam, the draft, etc. etc.

 

[DoctorSax]

I think you have a point Dr.Feelgood, the world is different today. In some ways, it is the same problems in a different time, but never before in history have humans come to this point. Modern life now has the capacity to effect the world on a huge scale, and its getting out of control in some areas. We need to start thinking about the consequences of the lifestyle, the politics, the mindset that is the 21st century.

 

[Guest]

We seem to be missing the anti-war protest marches of the 60's & early 70's.
I think if the guys in Iraq were there as a result of a draft (in the US) things might be different.

Bh

 

[Guest]

With all these STD's these days not many people are coining the phase "Make Love not War."
And Woodstock. Wouldn't it be great to get that many people together again to party and show love to one another? No violence at all. This world has too much violence in it today. We should give All the world leaders a joint or blunt and tell them to chill the fuck out.

 

[minds_I]

We seem to be missing the anti-war protest marches of the 60's & early 70's.
.....

The US deathtoll is nowhere near what is was during Viet Nam.

In the 12+ years we were in Viet Nam, we lost 55,000 US soldiers.

As of the other day it was over 2500 in Iraq.

IMHO.

minds_I

 

[Guest]

The US deathtoll is nowhere near what is was during Viet Nam.

In the 12+ years we were in Viet Nam, we lost 55,000 US soldiers.

As of the other day it was over 2500 in Iraq.

IMHO.

minds_I

I wonder how much life insurance the U.S. has paid out to those soilders families?

 

[Gunny]

SGLI = Servicemens Group Life Insurance is $250K regardless whether you are killed in a car accident, snowmobiling accident or war....

 

[akornpatch]

Build a bridge and get over it.

 

[Guest]

SGLI = Servicemens Group Life Insurance is $250K regardless whether you are killed in a car accident, snowmobiling accident or war....

Wow, it was only 100k when I was in the military.

 

[Roaddog]

same stuff, differant day

RD

 

[Guest]

Don't think much has changed really, apart from the US turning more and more into a fascist state, the constitution has been a joke for a long time though, Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement exposed that, America is such a contradiction, the constitution calls for freedom, liberty and justice for all, but the us denies those basic frights to so many ender various excuss like "the war on drugs" and "the war on terrorism", I would never live in a country that enacted a law like the Patriot Act, or elected an imbecile whos really a puppet for sinister groups of mega-rich as president.

I don't hate Americans, but I hate what America has become, the US seems to think it has some moral high ground, well so did the British Empire a century ago and that all ended in tears. The big worry is that the Islamic world aren't going to forgive or forget for a long time.

 

[ShroomDr]

$250K is pathedic. Thats less than two years of pay for a congressmen.

Nice to see what the govt thinks life is really worth.

 

[Guest]

*sigh* when I served, it was only 50K and wasn't payable if your death happened in the direct result of war (KIA). It was sort of an accidental death policy, but void if death resulted in the "act of war" clause. I remember reading that on the policy papers and thinking....I'm a soldier, anything that could possibly happen to me would be a result or related to war.

On that note, I know of many thousands of soldiers not coming home, but know of none who's families were paid anything from their SGLI policies. When I stopped wearing "Uncle Sam Ain't Released Me Yet" tab over my breast pocket, I carried mine over to VGLI (Veteran's Group Life Insurance) - I wonder if my family would get paid when I choke to death on that last bong hit of life.

 

[naga_sadu]

Were things "this bad" back in the 60's, 70's, and 80's?

Back then you had "Crazy Ivan" as a superpower. At least for us in South Asia that meant that we didn't have to endorse bogus policies such as war on drugs, puttin a price tag on H20 etc to avail of international financial aid. I dunno about the US in those times but South Asia in the 70s was far superior then all 'round. The 80s started getting crappier, though.

But yes, as far as war went, it done at a proxy level bet. two super-powers USSR and US such as Vietnam and Afghanistan. Today, the wars are still there but mostly, they've changed the tone from a proxy war bet. two physical superpowers to wars between a physical superpower assuming the stance of a global policeman and a bunch of fabricated "worldwide" threats, such as war on drugs, war on terror etc, etc...which in my view is far more dangerous. I feel the present times are more dangerous because when you had 2 superpowers, one would always check the other. Not anymore.

But living conditions and quality of life was seriously better then, at least in East Europe and South Asia (I dunno 'bout Pakistan tho). We didn't have skyscrapers like today and have intl. fastfood joints and levis jeans but I could tell nobody would commit suicide out of economic plight in those days. Man, you got me thinking, I want the 70s back in South Asia I just miss the days when u could walk into a convenience store and walk off w/ a few grams of ganja...which was as legal as babies' diapers.

As far as Eastern Europe went, Chechnya used to be a model of a modern "mega village" for Europe. Now, it's a post apocalyptic hellhole. I've been to Kazastan in the 80s- 1985 to be exact. In places like Chu, I could score hash w/o any problems whatsoever. The Soviet authorities just turned a blind eye to drug use. This wasn't the case in Moscow though. But now, in Kazastan, quality has gone down considerably and supplies are MUCH harder to find. As the post Soviet govt. in Kazastan endorsed a war on drugs. Still the "change" was not as crappy as in Uzbekistan.

The saddest story is Uzbekistan. In Termez, near the Afghan border, you could EASILY find charas (hash) as well as opium w/o ANY difficulty whatsoever. People would be selling their wares right in full view of Soviet troops. But nobody gave a shit. And the best part is, if u bought charas u also got a full complementary meal! Now, it's a disaster. The govt. has embraced the war on drugs to mammoth proportions now. The sight of ol' goofy lookin' dudes smoking opium by their balconies and tents as well as the thriving charas market is long, long gone and modern day Uzbekistan i NOTHING like the 80s. If u travelled from Karshi to Termez in the 80s, you'd see wild ganja plants en route along strips of arable/ fertile soil (Uzbekistan is more or less semi arid). Now, they've been replaced by UN advertisements calling for "crop substitution" progs and ads of MNCs claiming to be the saviour of the poor ex-communist Republic...It was surprisingly pretty "laid back" in the 80s considering there was a full blown war going on not too far down south (Afghanistan).

Yugoslavia was a bit tricky. Not too sure 'bouts the "scene" 'coz I was a bit too young when I visited. But my older bro had no probs finding score under Josip Broz Tito's Yugoslavia. My grandpa used to go there for hunting holidays + we accopanied him. But I dunno much more 'bouts Yugo. But I can certify that the living standards were much better. Now, parts of Yugoslavia such as Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia are still trying to restore their infra which has destroyed in their massive secretarian strifes and/or NATO bombing of the 90s. But, from some Serb posters who've written on ICMAG, I hear that the pot scene is OK...

Strange as it may sound, Iran is a strange one, where bud laws have actually improved recently. I hate to say this, but the quality of life and standard of living is better now than it was during the Shah's rule.

I dunno, I can vouch for East Europe to some extent and surely South Asia. The 70s, and 80s were better, to answer your question plainly.