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Were we better off 40 years ago?
- Thread starter Gwylan
- Start date
Mmmmmm. I cannot think why my eyes paused on these particular words.
As for music, look a little further, and beyond the top 40, and you'll find heaps of stuff. I've got some excellent and recent stuff on my CD player right now.
Weekly WageHC Deb 01 July 1971 vol 820 c562 562
§ 10. Mr. J. H. Osborn asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is now the average weekly wage for men and women; and what has been the increase in each case over the past six,. 12, and 18 months.
§ The Minister of State, Department of Employment (Mr. Paul Bryan) In October, 1970, the average weekly earnings of full-time manual men were £28.05, which was an increase of 13 per cent. over the previous 12 months and 17.3 per cent. over the previous 18 months. The corresponding figures for women were £13.99, 15.5 per cent. and 19.3 per cent. respectively.
§ 10. Mr. J. H. Osborn asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is now the average weekly wage for men and women; and what has been the increase in each case over the past six,. 12, and 18 months.
§ The Minister of State, Department of Employment (Mr. Paul Bryan) In October, 1970, the average weekly earnings of full-time manual men were £28.05, which was an increase of 13 per cent. over the previous 12 months and 17.3 per cent. over the previous 18 months. The corresponding figures for women were £13.99, 15.5 per cent. and 19.3 per cent. respectively.
NMH
Banned
Racism was becoming a source of ridicule, comedic. Alf Garnett seems shocking with the free use of racist epithets but there were black actors playing in the same show. Playing for laughs just the same.
Skinheads thought everyone should be like them, or get a kicking.
Without id, I was drinking and smoking at 15, and thought it was a bit odd that some didn't like sharing second hand smoke. So ingrained and indoctrinated into our world were cigarettes that a pall of smoke lay at head height in every pub.
Football was affordable for anyone going out to work, but that hasn't changed. If a young person does a part-time job they can get into football now too. Basically, 2 hours of work should equal entry into a league game imo.
With human rights, exploitation is at least being examined and reduced. I don't want us to compete with sweatshop businesses for prices - competition in business ought to be on a level field in that respect. A working woman should make the same as a man doing the same job.
The political parties would argue that they weren't screwing the country and the workers like unions were. The unions would argue that the political parties were screwing the workers. Either way, the country was getting screwed. People complained then ...perhaps even more than now.
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NMH
Banned
My father said to me around 40 years ago; "you should stay at a job, be loyal to one company and work your way up"
Phew! No thanks - first choice is to work for myself, and if not that, then have a personal skill that will be desired by many companies - get headhunted and move up the financial ladder by going to the highest bidder or best compensating company. Do not sell 8 of the best hours of your day to be unhappy or discomforted. I will not have an employer dangling my retirement 'destiny' over me because I'm only due their pension if I toe their lines for years. That is tantamount to slavery.
Phew! No thanks - first choice is to work for myself, and if not that, then have a personal skill that will be desired by many companies - get headhunted and move up the financial ladder by going to the highest bidder or best compensating company. Do not sell 8 of the best hours of your day to be unhappy or discomforted. I will not have an employer dangling my retirement 'destiny' over me because I'm only due their pension if I toe their lines for years. That is tantamount to slavery.
bhaexpress
New member
I think people complain more now for the very simple reason that they have far greater access to information. Society is no better or worse it's just moved on.
Something I do miss are those white coated blokes who used to cruise the pubs with wicker baskets selling rubber seafood.
Difficult to say if music is better or worse...probably about the same. Although I do believe that the democratisation of music has led to a lot of poor and mediocre stuff floating around. Pretty much anyone with a computer can make and sell music these days. One good thing about record companies was that they provided some quality control and filtered out a lot of rubbish. If you want an example of how the democratisation of the arts has led to a lot of shoddy work getting attention just pop along to one of the Brighton Artists Open Houses.
Difficult to say if music is better or worse...probably about the same. Although I do believe that the democratisation of music has led to a lot of poor and mediocre stuff floating around. Pretty much anyone with a computer can make and sell music these days. One good thing about record companies was that they provided some quality control and filtered out a lot of rubbish. If you want an example of how the democratisation of the arts has led to a lot of shoddy work getting attention just pop along to one of the Brighton Artists Open Houses.
bhaexpress
New member
Just under forty years ago we had punk, people then could hardly play any instrument and still have a hit. I really don't like much music from the 50s and 60s yet I was born in the former.
gully is my god
New member
Ummmm. You still have milk delivered to the door... and they still do coffee ice cream at morroccos. Go to a greengrocers if you want friendly service, the man at the top of my road is lovely and throws in a few bananas - non of which are packaged in plastic by the way.
Just becuase you dont find these things for yourself doesnt mean they arent still there. If you want them to stay, support them with your business rather than moaning.
Most of your points are correct IMHO but this certainly isn't. witness the dumbing down on TV of everything to do with education from "University Challenge" downwards.
This is why our kids will find it very hard to compete in a world market with countries like India and China - and even in Africa - where education standards are targetted to give kids REAL jobs, not to encourage them to believe they can all win "X Factor" or failing that, the National Lottery.
I started out in 1968 (age 19) at £725 a year.
By 1976 I had gone up briefly (sadly) to £11,000+ - a lot of moola in those days.
brakespear
Doctor Worm
This. I can always remember having to go to bed in the living room with the rest of the family and a couple of candles in jars and being jolted awake when the power came back on because nobody ever remembered to turn the TV set off when the power went out
chimneys
Well-known member
- Jun 11, 2007
- 3,605
oh how i remember those saturday mornings when i was about 6 or 7 , mum and dad at work , big brother supposed to be looking after me but upstairs , noisily banging his attractive welsh tart jillian , partially incinerating the kitchen making myself the mother of all bacon sandwiches ( bacon doesn't taste the same these days) stretching out on the sofa like little lord fontleroy, fantasising over maggie philbin's cleavage (and later on sally james). legging it across the road in my blue dressing gown to the sweet shop after rifling my mum's spare coat for change , mintolas , curly wurlies , texans, walnut whips , outer spacers (pickled onion flavoured , the ones that used to make you wince) jim the butcher jokingly waving his razor sharp cleaver at me from the shop doorway"you wait till i tell your dad you little bastard " he would joyfully shout after me. coming back through the front door to see jillians massive ginger minge disappearing back up the stairs ( minge , there is no minge any more !! not that i'm complaining , i personally f***ing despise the stuff ) i would hang around at the bottom of the stairs hoping for another eyeful only to be moved along by a shoe or boot lovingly hurled down the stairs by my brother..........why don't you turn off your tv set and go and do something more interesting instead....only in the school holidays though. every now and then one of the junkies above the launderette would od and an ambulance would come and bring them round and take them away on a stretcher whilst being abused to f*** as the narcan kicked in , foreign student causing a stir by sunbathing , topless on worthing beach..........so many happy memories
it is an interesting fact that the youth suicide figures in australia and america are alarmingly high.......and this , in what are the two most prosperous countries on the planet. less is definitely more and i think people just generally have too much of everthing these days.....!!!
Enjoyed your post Sydney!
On the sweet front-Spangles, chocolate cigarettes, Toffos.
chimneys
Well-known member
- Jun 11, 2007
- 3,605
Pedant alert! Grandstand-Wrestling- I dont think so! You would have had to have got off the sofa, changed channel on the set (no remote control), and watch World of Sport!!
Mark Rollerball Rocko, Kendo Nagasaki, Johnny Saint!!
Greeting grapple fans!!
And after that it would have been Wonder Woman or The Six Million Dollar Man!!
And after the Wrestling.... Cliff Diving from Acupulco. When I was 9 I actually thought what they showed on World of Sport was real sport.
Dentistry was free then, for a start. And I'm not sure dentists are any better today than they were in 1971.
40 years ago you'd have had contracts and come to the Amex to mend our workstations and HEWGE computer!
I wasn't paid in cash. My £45 a month was paid into my bank. But, I had an Access card, with which I bought my Sony stereo system.