So What Happened to America?

Townhall.com ^ | August 12, 2013 | Roger Schlesinger

[Kaslin]

I was out in the desert this weekend at our second home, where, borrowing the words from an old song "nothing is heard of a discouraging word" except if someone is discussing their round of golf. While waking my dogs for their morning ride in my golf cart I got to 'thinking of what's going on in this country and all I could think of was What Happened? And when did it happen?

Let me start in the middle of this discussion to try to illustrate my point. This part of my essay should be subtitled: “me and the Presidents” or for the English majors “the Presidents and I.” When I was under 10, and that is a close as I can pin it down, my father took us to the desert, which was Palm Springs and some interesting places surrounding Palm Springs. One of them was the La Quinta Resort which I guess was in Indio at that time and we stopped for some food or drinks.

We went into a big room and my father said after looking across the room, “that's Eisenhower.” I can't remember whether he said President or General but I do remember the name. The rest is much clearer than that.

1. In the mid to late 50's I saw President Truman at a Rams game in Los Angeles walking up the aisle as everyone was yelling "Give them hell, Harry".

2. In 1967 I believe, I got off the plane from Los Angeles to New York and went to the baggage claim and there was former Vice President & Governor Richard Nixon waiting with some people for his luggage. He had flown first class and I obviously didn't.

3. In the early 1990's my son and I were going to an office in Century City and as we turned the corner in the lobby my son walked into Ronald Reagan. The security guys with him laughed as my son said he was sorry.

4. In the mid 2000's I went to a luncheon in Century City which was attended by Jimmy Carter. When I parked in the building I had to open my trunk for an inspection. I met him and had a picture taken with him as my company had built a house for Habitat for Humanity.

5. In the middle 2000's Bill Clinton was the honored guest at a house in my gate guarded community and as I drove by the house he was going in so, I honked and waived and he waived back. I bring this up because none of it was a big deal. Today, however, when the President travels, streets are closed, Freeways in Los Angeles are closed, sections of downtowns are closed. WHY?

I grew up in the 50's and knew nobody who did drugs, smoked the funny stuff and basically didn't have respect. In high school if you were in the hall during school hours without a written pass you were in for a bad day. You might be suspended, given an invitation to spend an hour or two after school or on a weekend or maybe even paddled. Do I need to mention what most high schools look like now all day long?

In college our drug of choice was Beer. That's right, beer. There was some hard liquor around but very few drank it. The only birth control we had was abstinence, condoms, rhythm or good luck. I didn't know but a handful of girls who got in trouble (hersay) and I am not sure any of it was true. There obviously were some rush marriages, then and now.

What really changed America, in my opinion, began with the Vietnam War. To say that it was unpopular was a real understatement. I was too young for Korea and had already been drafted and deferred during the German crisis, when Russia surrounded Berlin, so Vietnam didn't impact me. But it did a lot to this country starting with the resistance to the draft, huge rallies and marches and the peace movement, although I am not sure I spelled it right.

The above mentioned war gave us the militant crowds of both men and women. With the advent of new forms of birth control we started expansion of the moral code and the rewriting of the America we knew. From then to now things started going downhill. Maybe it wasn't much different than earlier days, decades and centuries but we found out about what was going on with the evening news. Do you think we are all better off now?

It seems to me that what we lost is much dearer to the average American than what we gained. Losers include

1. Fun

2. Respect

3. Our Constitution

4. Faith in God

5. The American Dream

6. COMMON SENSE!

It doesn't seem worth it to me and it doesn't seem to be getting better. We all need to become vocal, start voting for the person, not the party, and stand up for your beliefs. It's much easier for things to keep going the way they are unless a massive effort is put forth to change it.

[Elsie]

We have NO power to stop it.

SURE we do!

But...

...do we have the BALLS?

[Elsie]

We walked away from God.

No!

You HAVE to be kidding!!

Are you still killing your unborn?

-- GOD

 

[x]

It started with the beatnik movement ...

Maybe. Those first generation beats like Kerouac and Ginsberg grew up in the Depression when there really wasn't much work and people were jumping on to freight cars or loading all their belongings on to a truck and setting off. I wonder if they weren't trying to prolong that restless, nomadic period.

The second generation beatniks and hippies were children of postwar affluence which they thought would never end. There's a tradition of rebels against adulthood and adult responsibilities going back to the Lost Generation of the 1920s, the Greenwich Village bohemians of the 1910s. Maybe you could trace that back to the Transcendentalists of the 19th century. As the country grew richer more people thought they could afford such a lifestyle.

[Elsie]

Pres. Wilson could walk out of the White House, alone, and take an evening stroll on the street.

Now, if you're FAMOUS! and a person in Switzerland fails to recognize you when you walk into their shop at closing time...

[riri]

Culture degradation.

Funny, I was half watching the movie The Temptations (the singing group) that my husband was watching yesterday morning. I was listening to the wonderful innocence of not only the lyrics but the music as well. Even their movements.

I asked, "How did (black) musicians go from that to Fiddy Cent, Drake and far, far worse in four or five short decades? How?

Culture degradation. And we are right behind them and gaining steam.

[Elsie]

Immigration has ruined our country.

No; abortion has.

The 55,000,000 missing AMERICANs could have easily overwhelmed 13,000,000 illegals.

[Elsie]

DDT almost ruined our precious symbol.

I'd like to thank the United States Government for protecting me and my kind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You see, 40 years ago, my odds of making it out of the egg, alive, were very poor; about 80% of us died. 

 (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=rachel-carson-silent-spring-1972-ddt-ban-birds-thrive)

 

 

But a lady discovered our plight and wrote a book that addressed our problem,

and, in 1972, a law was ammended protecting us even further. (http://www.fws.gov/midwest/eagle/protect/laws.html)

 

 

 

 

 

 

What I find strange is that the same government passed a law the very next year that allowed for killing

of unborn, and apparently unwanted, humans.  Little ones still nestled safely in their Mother's womb.

Around 25% of them are dying before birth - on average nearly 3,300 - every day of the year.

 

 

I hear that by now, somewhere around 55 MILLION of them have perished.

Wouldn't that kind of mess up the humans plans for growth, and welfare, and

retirement?

 

 

 

 

 

Strange birds; these Homo Sapiens.  Perhaps they'll come to their senses

before they are ALL dead!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'd like to thank the United States Government for protecting me and my kind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You see, 40 years ago, my odds of making it out of the egg, alive, were very poor; about 80% of us died. 

 (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=rachel-carson-silent-spring-1972-ddt-ban-birds-thrive)

 

 

But a lady discovered our plight and wrote a book that addressed our problem,

and, in 1972, a law was ammended protecting us even further. (http://www.fws.gov/midwest/eagle/protect/laws.html)

 

 

 

 

 

 

What I find strange is that the same government passed a law the very next year that allowed for killing

of unborn, and apparently unwanted, humans.  Little ones still nestled safely in their Mother's womb.

Around 25% of them are dying before birth - on average nearly 3,300 - every day of the year.

 

 

I hear that by now, somewhere around 55 MILLION of them have perished.

Wouldn't that kind of mess up the humans plans for growth, and welfare, and

retirement?

 

 

 

 

 

Strange birds; these Homo Sapiens.  Perhaps they'll come to their senses

before they are ALL dead!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Elsie]

Because now everybody wants a piece of us.

They'd want MORE if we just QUIT giving it to them!

---

Let 'em want in one hand...

[Elsie]

Have we forgotten BUSING?

THAT little endeavor totally ruined the major cities in this country!

[lentulusgracchus]

If we just leave them one hand, like the Mohammedans do, that might work for us.

[stephenjohnbanker]

Busing was the very worst. Good point.

[rdb3]

Sublimation.

Conservatives feel that posting will fix the nation.

Since conservative sites started has the US gotten better or worse?

Very good point.

[ClaytonP]

I've often said that conservatives dominate talk radio because thats all they ever do.

The liberals are busy making things happen their way.

[lone star annie]

I always say that the theft of the 1960 election was the worst thing that ever happened to the US. Just name the ramifications. Govt. unions, immigration reform, welfare state, Viet Nam, Watergate, etc.