I wish I had known

[Skeptic1]

I grew up in North Carolina through the 80s and 90s. I wish I had known what I was living through. We had no idea that we were the last ones. I wish I had managed my time better but we were just to young to know. I miss watching Michael Jordan and many other things.

 

[mosin46]

said it before. i grew up in paradise,or close in 50s-70s. had no clue til much later on.

 

[Arc Light]

I get you. I was commenting to my wife the other day how we lived in the last great period this country had, the 1970s-90s. Basically up to 9/11, it's been all downhill since. No internet, no fucking cell phones, Americans were Patriotic, transgender mental illness wasn't celebrated, and the middle class could still afford a car and a house.

 

[TheHorta]

70’s - 80’s here.

I guess Prince was right — we all really should’ve partied like it was 1999.

 

[mrtoyz]

Remember when playing outside till dark, making forts in the woods, riding bikes all over the damn place was totally normal and acceptable…

 

[mosin46]

as said 50s-60s for me. no fears about child rapists,kidnappings (we were not rich enough),pets were safe,get permission to fish most anywhere,bike all over,neighborhood fights were done and over win or lose,play football in most any empty lot,girls were a mystery. BTW they still are.

 

[Bradu]

Remember when playing outside till dark, making forts in the woods, riding bikes all over the damn place was totally normal and acceptable…

What I would give to go back to simpler times. I remember being pissed off that my parents wouldn't let me get the original Nintendo when all my friends had them. Now that I'm older, I'm so glad they didn't. I spent most of my time either walking around the neighbor's property with my 22 or fishing and my lab followed me everywhere.

 

[wildcats]

I miss street racing in California in the late 70s and thru the 80s,those were some good old days ,even though i lost my drivers license a couple of times.

 

[chevy_man]

I let my kids run.

They have phones so I can call them for dinner. That means they may be 15 miles away on their bikes with the dog, but I let them do their thing and I don't sit and watch the GPS.

The past sucked, we only had slow twist barrels!

 

[wvfarrier]

My wife and I jist had this same discussion last week. I said that while I love our children, I am terrified for the world they are growing up in. I grew up in the 80s and it seemed like a different world compared to now

 

[Northfl]

Remember when playing outside till dark, making forts in the woods, riding bikes all over the damn place was totally normal and acceptable…

Bb gun wars, you forgot the bb gun wars

 

[Rthur]

70's, 80's and early 90's were purdy damned good.

R

 

[37L1]

You know who longs for this kind of stuff?

Old Sumbitches who only remember the good things.

 

[ironman56]

Grew up in the 60's , both parents worked ,so we were left to our own devices, had the run of the neighborhood, walked to school or rode our bikes , no bus or car rides like now , every time I happen to be near a school at let out time I'm amazed at the line of cars waiting to pick up kids , but who can trust to let their kids walk the streets these days , hell we weren't even allowed in the house except to eat and sleep, I never had children so hard for me to judge, but it does seem today's kids are spoiled, but I'm sure our grandparents said the same about us.

 

[Milf Dots]

Throwing Jarts lawn darts at each other while using metal trash can lids as shields... shooting arrows into the air to see where they'd come down around us... sword fights with 4ft fluorescent tubes...

 

[fpgt72]

Bb gun wars, you forgot the bb gun wars

This would be roughly 1976 or so. Buddy and me are walking down the street with our BB guns. A fairly busy street in the city. Cop car passes us, does a quick U turn and comes back and stops us.

Where are you kids going.........Ahhh down to the creek to shoot some frogs......ok kids be careful.

That was all there was to that. Guessing 13 or so years old give or take.

It was a different time, the last of the good days. We could get there again, and it would be fairly easy to do.

 

[Skeptic1]

Throwing Jarts lawn darts at each other while using metal trash can lids as shields... shooting arrows into the air to see where they'd come down around us... sword fights with 4ft fluorescent tubes...

Don't forget shooting bottle rockets at each other and aiming for the head. I hit my cousin in the head once with a bottle rocket. He was close enough that it bounced off his head and hit the ground before it went boom. It definitely could have hurt him. I think about it still some times and it was almost 40 years ago.

This would be roughly 1976 or so. Buddy and me are walking down the street with our BB guns. A fairly busy street in the city. Cop car passes us, does a quick U turn and comes back and stops us.

Where are you kids going.........Ahhh down to the creek to shoot some frogs......ok kids be careful.

That was all there was to that. Guessing 13 or so years old give or take.

It was a different time, the last of the good days. We could get there again, and it would be fairly easy to do.

A whole lot of people would have to die.
I pray every day that it doesn't come to that. Hopefully Jesus comes back before that happens.

 

[wvfarrier]

Don't forget shooting bottle rockets at each other and aiming for the head. I hit my cousin in the head once with a bottle rocket. He was close enough that it bounced off his head and hit the ground before it went boom. It definitely could have hurt him. I think about it still some times and it was almost 40 years ago.

A whole lot of people would have to die.
I pray every day that it doesn't come to that. Hopefully Jesus comes back before that happens.

We played cowboys and indians with Pellet rifles and Lil Indians bows with 357 mag casing glued to the end of the shaft. I still have a couple of those damn pellets stuck under my skim

 

[fpgt72]

Don't forget shooting bottle rockets at each other and aiming for the head. I hit my cousin in the head once with a bottle rocket. He was close enough that it bounced off his head and hit the ground before it went boom. It definitely could have hurt him. I think about it still some times and it was almost 40 years ago.

A whole lot of people would have to die.
I pray every day that it doesn't come to that. Hopefully Jesus comes back before that happens.

Just the people that need to die. If the laws got followed and correct punishment given out this would all go away.

 

[Green461]

As soon as cell phones and internet took over shit went to hell. I graduated in 94 and the movie Dazed and Confused came out around then.. when it came out it seemed so cool and different how it was in the movie (set in the 70's) but now I watched it a big ago again and compared to today, 94 was the exact same as the movie except we had shittier cars.

 

[NCHillbilly]

Remember when playing outside till dark, making forts in the woods, riding bikes all over the damn place was totally normal and acceptable…

and safe (at least from 2-legged predators).

 

[Jigstick]

Bb gun wars, you forgot the bb gun wars

Any buckeye fights. God the amount of black eyes I got from getting pelted in the face during buckeye wars

 

[912173]

9/11 screwed everything up but I also noticed a big difference around 2010 that I attribute to smart phones putting social media in everyone's hands 24/7. Before that you could only be so addicted to it because you needed an actual computer. This made top-down social engineering (brainwashing) much easier and now here we are.

 

[sandhiller]

Hell, even in the 90's and early 00's when our kids were growing up
Neighbors would all go to town on Saturday night, parents would go to the only bar and do adult stuff while the kids played in the park
When it was time, just holler and everyone would get in the pickup and go home.
Not anymore
The rats have left the main interstate sewer and are now traveling the smaller highways.
I hate to admit it but I even lock my pickup in town if I'm going to be away from it for awhile.
At least my kids still have those memories.
Sad to say the grandkids won't

 

[Ronws]

I was a kid in the 60s and 70s. We rode bikes without pads and helmets and jumped the ramping part of driveways. In fact, I got water on the knee from a spill off of my bike.

We drank water out of the garden hose.

Sat in the back seat without a seat belt.

I learned how to swim without floaties.

There was order in the universe.

I think the evil of people moves in cycles. However, I also think the modern tech age has removed the insulation we had from the crazies. We see all the bad things, now.

And, of course, deciding that mental illness is normal. When you have no standards, you have no standards.

 

[mrtoyz]

I was a kid in the 60s and 70s. We rode bikes without pads and helmets and jumped the ramping part of driveways. In fact, I got water on the knee from a spill off of my bike.

We drank water out of the garden hose.

Sat in the back seat without a seat belt.

I learned how to swim without floaties.

There was order in the universe.

I think the evil of people moves in cycles. However, I also think the modern tech age has removed the insulation we had from the crazies. We see all the bad things, now.

And, of course, deciding that mental illness is normal. When you have no standards, you have no standards.

100%
Add to that the complete lack of accountability, and responsibility enabled by the ability to be anonymous behind a keyboard and we have today’s society…

 

[chevy_man]

I was a kid in the 60s and 70s. We rode bikes without pads and helmets and jumped the ramping part of driveways. In fact, I got water on the knee from a spill off of my bike.

We drank water out of the garden hose.

Sat in the back seat without a seat belt.

I learned how to swim without floaties.

There was order in the universe.

I think the evil of people moves in cycles. However, I also think the modern tech age has removed the insulation we had from the crazies. We see all the bad things, now.

And, of course, deciding that mental illness is normal. When you have no standards, you have no standards.

Crime rates haven't gotten any worse most places. We just have 24/7 news to tell us about it.

Used to be missing kids and people in general had to be significant to get a spot in the 1 or 2 hours of news. They just didn't have time to cover it all.

Doesn't help that they're sensationalizing everything now to get a few more minutes of something on the news.

 

[zeroz]

70’s - 80’s here.

I guess Prince was right — we all really should’ve partied like it was 1999.

Wait, you didn't?

Bb gun wars, you forgot the bb gun wars

I had just got the Red Ryder, my second BB gun. The first was the shitty crosssman pistol where you cocked the spring by hitting the lever and pulling back the rear lever (which I could barely do at 7) then tip the nose to load. My cousin being 5 years older somehow convinced me that he should use the rifle and I could dual wield the inferior pistols. We are in the alley and I stick my head out from behind the dumpster, SMACK, I get hit right below the eye. I drop the guns and run to the house with my hand over my eye. He quickly ushers me into the bathroom and shuts the door. Just starts repeating, dont tell your mom, dont tell your mom. As if she isn't going to notice the broken skin and big ass welt under my eye. We told her it was a rock so we could get back out and back at it. We did start wearing glasses after that. Good times.

 

[mi650]

I was a kid in the 60s and 70s. We rode bikes without pads and helmets and jumped the ramping part of driveways. In fact, I got water on the knee from a spill off of my bike.

We drank water out of the garden hose.

Sat in the back seat without a seat belt.

I learned how to swim without floaties.

There was order in the universe.

I think the evil of people moves in cycles. However, I also think the modern tech age has removed the insulation we had from the crazies. We see all the bad things, now.

And, of course, deciding that mental illness is normal. When you have no standards, you have no standards.

'70s & '80s, rode around in the back of pickup trucks.

 

[steve123]

Yeah life seemed more simple back then in the 60 to mid 80's.

The problem nowadays is the decent deeper into rebellion thus getting farther away spiritually from the Father in heaven and the optimal way He designed how it should be.

Mom and Dad didn't believe, I was taught that way, and I was basically raised by the TV. The rules were stay out of trouble which I found impossible.

I remember moving to a new school, 8 or so years old, and I guess I wanted to make friends bad because during lunch I was talking to the kid next to me when the principal told us all to be quiet, which I must have ignored, and a teacher literally picked me up by the arm and spanked me in front of the whole school.

When we moved again I was in a fight not 10 minutes from going through the school door. I was just defending myself against a bully and I then became prejudiced against a certain race. I got over that but it took years to do.

Moved to another school a year later and got in other fight/s. Though another bully had burned a kid with a bunsen burner and I stuck up for him.

So I was drinking and doing milder drugs by 14 and got my first DUI by 16 when I totalled my mother's car racing a friend on a rainy night.

Lost my virginity not long after that and found out about STD's because I was using females for sex without the thought of marrying them and bascially becoming a serial fornicator. That's a form of abuse BTW. Lust can ruin peoples lives.

Moved in with 3 other high school friends after graduation in the big city and it was a huge fall into depravity as well as more fights, another DUI, and all kinds of trouble happened including almost getting some jail time for two highly illegal things I got invovled with.
I knew jail was where I was going to end up so I went back to live with my parents.
Oddly I was the least out of control of this group of kids I was hanging out with?!

Shortly after a new friend invited me to church and I gave my life to Christ and things got much better for many years but I took my life back about 15 years later. It was mostly that I became so self centered that I backslid partially into my old ways. Not near as bad as before but it had consequences nonetheless. It cost me a lot.

So what I'm getting at is "I wish I had loved the Lord with all my heart and my neighbor as myself" from the day of accountability onwards. My life would have been so much better.

My 3 kids were raised in church, knew about Him, and are pretty good people so they avoided the suffering I wasn't able to. Two are commited believers and we all are praying for the last one who is very successful financially and also very full of himself.
I hope my one Grandson does better than me by loving Him and living right!

Would I want to grow up nowadays, no way, but there's a reason things are the way they are now.

If you haven't then ask the Father to draw you to Him ASAP, if you left then come back ASAP, because time is running out fast.

 

[cas6969]

It's like with gun crimes, cable TV and the internet with its insatiable need to views and agendas has made what were once local stories into national news. There were just as many murders and pedophiles when you were a kid.

 

[Ronws]

@steve123 ^^^Excellent.

I wanted to add a thing. People will question God about why bad things happen.

That is because of free will. We all have the free will to do right and wrong. And it could not be any other way. Love stemming from free will is everything. No free will means no real love.

Even Lucifer has free will. He and the other fallen angels chose to rebel. It is a choice, free will.

But if you use your free will to Love God and His blessing, it means everything.

 

[Skeptic1]

Man ...... I ain't holding it together to good. I need a couple clicks and a couple nights

 

[Northfl]

Wait, you didn't?

I had just got the Red Ryder, my second BB gun. The first was the shitty crosssman pistol where you cocked the spring by hitting the lever and pulling back the rear lever (which I could barely do at 7) then tip the nose to load. My cousin being 5 years older somehow convinced me that he should use the rifle and I could dual wield the inferior pistols. We are in the alley and I stick my head out from behind the dumpster, SMACK, I get hit right below the eye. I drop the guns and run to the house with my hand over my eye. He quickly ushers me into the bathroom and shuts the door. Just starts repeating, dont tell your mom, dont tell your mom. As if she isn't going to notice the broken skin and big ass welt under my eye. We told her it was a rock so we could get back out and back at it. We did start wearing glasses after that. Good times.

One of the neighbor guys ( still to this day not a very bright fella) sent one into the corner of his lil brothers eye. Somehow the damn bb wound up behind his eyebrow. He could push it back under there to hide it from his folks. Was funny as shit after the fact.

 

[Skeptic1]

Hard to breath sometimes.... yano?

 

[mvphilly]

For me from 1965-1995 was the best 30 year period ever!! Wish there was a time machine cause i would be back there in a nano second.

 

[Skeptic1]

I can't do it anymore bro..........

 

[Ronws]

I can't do it anymore bro..........

Call 988

 

[MarshallDodge]

Do you know what the problem with today is? Instant information, good or bad at your fingertips.

The world has always been in a state of decline but I have it way better than my parents, and their parents ever did.

 

[Skeptic1]

Fuck 988.
I'm good. Just a rough night.
Thanks though

 

[M4orturnate]

What I would give to go back to simpler times. I remember being pissed off that my parents wouldn't let me get the original Nintendo when all my friends had them. Now that I'm older, I'm so glad they didn't. I spent most of my time either walking around the neighbor's property with my 22 or fishing and my lab followed me everywhere.

I had one pretty early on. It was something for sleepovers and rainy days. Playing outside was always the first choice. Born in 82 we were the last generation to grow up in America and we had no idea how good we had it. I can still remember going to carnivals to pick up girls and hanging out on the railroad tracks after. Walking around in huge groups as preteens just enjoying life. It was a totally different world.

 

[OldSalty2]

Finding the deepest hole in the creek to go swimming during hot summer days....

 

[1AvgMarksman]

Bb gun wars, you forgot the bb gun wars

Now that sent me on a trip down memory lane… One day I said to my buddy, if BB’s don’t hurt from a distance, a pellet gun shouldn’t be that bad?? Apparently, by my buddies reaction , it was, it really really was..