LOST CULTURE, LOST FREEDOMS, page 1

I'm pushing fifty and mourn for much of what's been lost during the last five decades. Some would argue that many of these changes were in our best interest, that's debatable.

Now for the sake of the younger generation, here's how life used to be.

I remember when mothers didn't have to work to make ends meet.

I remember before the concept of "quality time," when mother's didn't feel guilt or heartbreak from leaving their little ones at daycare.

I remember when there weren't many "latch key kids" coming home from school to empty houses, unsupervised and getting in trouble.

I remember when mother's cooked nutritious meals instead of relying on fast food and other precooked conveniences.

I remember when a large percentage of kids weren't obese from eating fat laden low quality food.

I remember when it was perfectly safe for kids to walk to their schools, and even younger children could roam the neighborhood safely.

I remember when kids played outside long and hard coming home dirty and tired out, instead of holed up in their rooms playing "conquer and destroy" video games.

I remember when families had full social life's with plenty of time for family and friends even on weekdays.

I remember when the average person had two or three weeks paid vacation every year and actually went somewhere.

I remember before today's booming foreclosure industry, when the guideline for a mortgage required a clean credit report and payments were no higher then a third of your income.

I remember when one dollar bought enough gas for around town.

I remember before the days of "droughts" when the entire neighborhood watered their grass and kept there yards up nicely.

I remember the high academic standards of the public school system before it's current "dumbing down" status.

I remember when Jr. and Sr. high schools actually had hot water so perspiring adolescents could shower after PE.

I remember when schools didn't require grief counselors for the peers of murder victims.

I remember before hormones were added to our food supply, when teenage girls weren't overdeveloped and breast cancer wasn't running rampant.

I remember when having sex was more then recreational sport and abortions weren't used as a means of birth control by the irresponsible.

I remember when fathers were made accountable for the children they brought into the world and it wasn't socially acceptable to be an unwed mother living on welfare.

I remember when a pregnant women could have a cup of coffee, a soda and even an occasionally glass of wine without being considered negligent. We can blame all the druggies who screwed up their kids for this one.

I Remember when couples tried harder to make their marriages work instead of moving on to greener pastures at the first sign of boredom.

I remember when seat belts, motorcycle helmets and even car seats were optional. You could even ride in the back of a truck once upon a time.

I remember when smokers weren't stigmatized and looked down on by their peers.

I remember when you could have more then one drink per hour without being legally too drunk to drive and sobriety check points randomly pulling over drivers for interrogation were rare.

I remember when children died in a freak accidents and their parents weren't charged with neglect.

I remember when women weren't driven to look like movie stars, seeking breast implants, collagen shots, liposuction, dieting obsessively and exercise compulsively, only to still feel inadequate.

I remember when the differences between the sexes were acknowledged and celebrated. Back then home makers weren't required to pull their weight and a man's appreciative whistle at a pretty girl, wasn't sexual harassment.

I remember when immigrants came to America to become Americans, instead of for exploitation, both there's and ours. Today, too many refuse to observe our laws or even speak the national language.

And sadly, I remember when the white man wasn't made scapegoat for all the injustice of the world.

Do you see now how our freedoms are vanishing? What do you miss that's been stolen from yesterday?