The Age of Obnoxiousness-A New Millennium by Dr.T
Chapter 2
SEX, DRUGS AND ROCK N ROLL
While the 50s were a gentler time, every era has its flashpoint. The baby boomers were teenagers in the 1960s and the combination of youth and a build up of resentment of the status quo was surfacing. As I said earlier the 50s, though they were better in my opinion than now, were certainly not perfect. Racial discrimination was commonplace, must notably in the South. It was a huge black eye on the country and momentum was building. The Rosa Parks incident was a flashpoint, the time of blacks sitting in the "back of the bus" was coming to an end. The time of black students being denied equal access to education was coming to an end. These changes were turbulent, willful and violent. The dawn of the 60s brought civil unrest to the streets. Dr. Martin Luther King, who had long preached integration through peaceful protest was brutally assassinated. Young people felt compelled to take a stand and let their voices be heard. Running parallel to civil rights activism was a growing anti-war movement, born of dissension to the Vietnam war. Prior to this decade the populace as a whole was united in their thinking on our involvement in war. With very few exceptions, people rallied behind the country and supported the military. As stated earlier, citizens felt it was their duty to serve. Not so in the radical 1960s. Anti-war protests and rallies were commonplace and often led to violence. Most notably the riots outside the 1968 Democratic convention. All of this violent turmoil served as a backdrop while the nightly news gave body counts and the nation watched a man walk on the moon. The whole decade seemed surreal.
But without a doubt I would have to say that our culture war truly began on one particular day. It was November 22,1963. Our beloved President Kennedy was assassinated and America's innocence died with him. All the things I mentioned above came on the heels of his death. It was as if a dam broke loose and nothing would ever be the same. The tide was turning away from conventional mores, it was the decade of "free love", of drugs to "open the mind", and an "everything goes" mentality. It was the equivalent of the younger generation flipping the bird to the elders... big time.
When moral values start to decline, so then goes society in general. The famous "slippery slope" began in the 60s. In fact we are reaping today what was sowed back then. Remember, trends and societal changes evolve, they don't happen overnight. Changes usually happen incrementally, and folks are often too busy to notice; then one day there is a rude awakening. This is what I believe is happening in our country today. Little by little a damaging mindset was taking hold in the 60s. Michael Savage, the nationally syndicated radio host and author, sums it up perfectly. "Liberalism.....a mental disorder". Yes friends,liberalism was born in the 60s and we as a nation have been held in its grip ever since.
But how did this evolution happen? (to be continued)
SEX, DRUGS AND ROCK N ROLL
While the 50s were a gentler time, every era has its flashpoint. The baby boomers were teenagers in the 1960s and the combination of youth and a build up of resentment of the status quo was surfacing. As I said earlier the 50s, though they were better in my opinion than now, were certainly not perfect. Racial discrimination was commonplace, must notably in the South. It was a huge black eye on the country and momentum was building. The Rosa Parks incident was a flashpoint, the time of blacks sitting in the "back of the bus" was coming to an end. The time of black students being denied equal access to education was coming to an end. These changes were turbulent, willful and violent. The dawn of the 60s brought civil unrest to the streets. Dr. Martin Luther King, who had long preached integration through peaceful protest was brutally assassinated. Young people felt compelled to take a stand and let their voices be heard. Running parallel to civil rights activism was a growing anti-war movement, born of dissension to the Vietnam war. Prior to this decade the populace as a whole was united in their thinking on our involvement in war. With very few exceptions, people rallied behind the country and supported the military. As stated earlier, citizens felt it was their duty to serve. Not so in the radical 1960s. Anti-war protests and rallies were commonplace and often led to violence. Most notably the riots outside the 1968 Democratic convention. All of this violent turmoil served as a backdrop while the nightly news gave body counts and the nation watched a man walk on the moon. The whole decade seemed surreal.
But without a doubt I would have to say that our culture war truly began on one particular day. It was November 22,1963. Our beloved President Kennedy was assassinated and America's innocence died with him. All the things I mentioned above came on the heels of his death. It was as if a dam broke loose and nothing would ever be the same. The tide was turning away from conventional mores, it was the decade of "free love", of drugs to "open the mind", and an "everything goes" mentality. It was the equivalent of the younger generation flipping the bird to the elders... big time.
When moral values start to decline, so then goes society in general. The famous "slippery slope" began in the 60s. In fact we are reaping today what was sowed back then. Remember, trends and societal changes evolve, they don't happen overnight. Changes usually happen incrementally, and folks are often too busy to notice; then one day there is a rude awakening. This is what I believe is happening in our country today. Little by little a damaging mindset was taking hold in the 60s. Michael Savage, the nationally syndicated radio host and author, sums it up perfectly. "Liberalism.....a mental disorder". Yes friends,liberalism was born in the 60s and we as a nation have been held in its grip ever since.
But how did this evolution happen? (to be continued)
posted by Dr. T at 5/25/2005 07:34:00 PM
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