Kids in the 60's 70's and 80's?

Question

According to todays regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 60's 70's and 80's probably shouldn't have survives, because
Our baby cots were covered with brightly coloured lead-based paint that was promptly chewed and licked. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, or latches on doors or cabinets and it was fine to play with pans. When we rode bikes, we wore no helmets, just flip flops and fluorescent "clackers" on our wheels (I think you will find they were known as spokey dokeys -some old git wrote this!)
As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or airbags and riding in the passenger seat was a treat. We drank from the garden hose and not from the bottle, and it tasted the same. We ate chips, bread and butter pudding and drank fizzy pop with sugar it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing. We shared one drink with four friends, from one bottle or can and no one ever died from this.

.We would spend hours building go-carts out of scraps and then went top speed down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into stinging nettles a few times, we learned to solve the problem. We would leave home in the morning and could play all day, as long as we were back before it got dark. No one was able to reach us and no one minded. We did not have play stations and X-Boxes, no video games at all. No 99 channels on our TV, no videotape movies, no surround sound, no mobile phones, no personal computers, and no Internet chat rooms. We had friends we went outside and made them. We played elastics and street rounders, and sometimes that ball really hurt. We fell out of trees, got cut and broken bones but there were no lawsuits. We had full on fistfights but no prosecution followed from other parents. We played knock-down-ginger and were afraid of the owners catching us. We walked to friends’ homes. We also, believe it or not, WALKED to school:

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls, we rode bikes in packs of 7 and wore our coats only by the hood. The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law. This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers and problem solvers and inventors ever. The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learnt how to deal with it all. And you're one of them, Congratulations! For those of you who aren’t old enough, thought you might like to read about us. This my friends, is surprisingly frightening.....and might put a smile on your face

The majority of students in universities today were born in 1983....they call this youth. They have never heard of We are the World, We are the children, and the Uptown Girl they know is by Westlife not Billy Joel. They have never heard of Rick Astley, Banarama, Nena and Belinda Carlisle. For them, there has always been only one Germany and one Vietnam. AIDS has existed since they were born Cd's have existed since they were born Michael Jackson has always been white To them John Travolta has always been round in shape and they cant imagine how this fat guy could be god of dance They believe that Charlie's Angels and Mission Impossible are films from last year They can never imagine life without computers They'll never have pretended to be the A Team, Red Hang Gang or the Famous Five They'll never have applied to be on Jim'll Fix It or Why Don't You,

, They can't believe a black and white television ever existed and don't know how to switch one on without a remote control and they will never understand how we could leave the house without a mobile phone.

Answer 1

Amazing.... i'm almost tempted to say that you are from the caribbean.....
Your words are so true! I'm a 70's baby... and on behalf of the 70's generation... Thank you for making us feel ole'.... :)

Answer 2

90s

Answer 3

I was born in 89, and i have heard of all these artists, i however agree competely with that its saying. My little sister, never plays out, plays on her computer/ps2, watches tv etc. even i played out til dark every day, cuts and bruises are nothing...

The "youth" of today...

Answer 4

Food for thought!

We are often telling our kids how good the 'old' days were, but without modern technology I wouldn't be able to sit here messing about on Yahoo and if my daughter (born in the 80's) hadn't helped me understand it in the first place.
:-)

Answer 5

Wow a lovely trip down memory lane thanx - born 73

Answer 6

THAT WAS FANTASTIC, ALL TRUE.
Now welcome to progress and welcome to the NANNY STATE. You missed out scrumping ,curbs, marbales, conkers, leap, frog, tin can ally. Now it seems boys are girls and girls are now the new boys
We all got in a good punch up but did not go out to put each other in hospital or in the ground
Im 51 born 1956 so i came through 60, 70, 80s i fill sorry for kids today .
*

Answer 7

God bless you, I was born in '79, but I do remember most of those things in my childhood too. I recently killed my 'myspace' profile and other nonsense online crap and low and behold I have REAL friends who I call and hang out with (right here in the real world). It's nice and its better than anything you'll find on the end of any Ethernet cable for sure, thanks for sharing.

Answer 8

Brings back memories of sliding down basement stairs (open on one side) on a piece of paneling (taken off said open side), and jumping off the roof.

Answer 9

love it
from child of the 70`s

Answer 10

Wow, that was a good read. Dunno what your up to but i feel really nostalgic now and very proud of My generation. Kids today just are not made of the same stuff. I feel only pity from them now..xxxx