We defied danger on a daily basis. We never knew that we were doing risky things, of course; we just thought that we were having fun. Nonetheless, we spent our days immersed in activities that we’d never for a second allow our children or grandchildren to do...More at the link. I'll affirm that almost all of those applied to my childhood.
For most parents, the notion of baby-proofing a home was to close the cellar door so the kids wouldn’t fall down the stairs... Cover unused electrical outlets?... And why would anyone but a masochist put medicine into bottles that you couldn’t open...
We hurled lawn darts with reckless abandon... We also played with wood-burning kits... And there was a line of electric toy irons, including a model that, the ads assured, heated up to “only 250 degrees”...
Not only did we not wear helmets, we’d never even heard of them. Bikes came with a single reflector on the back, but it broke off and rarely was replaced... There were no bike paths or lanes offering a buffer from traffic...
We rode our bikes (helmetless) down busy streets, zipping from one friend’s house to another, never telling anyone where we were going next (as if we knew). We went swimming, climbed trees and played with firecrackers without so much as a casual glance in our direction by an adult...
We crowded into cars that had no seat belts... The concept [of secondhand smoke] didn’t exist yet. We just figured that smoke was part of the atmosphere — and it was in most homes... [Sunblock] was worn only by lifeguards...
16 April 2015
The dangerous childhoods of today's "baby boomers"
From an only-slightly-tongue-in-cheek op-ed piece in the StarTribune:
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One vote for bench front seats. Trying to make out in bucket seats was damn nigh impossible.
ReplyDeleteLurker111
Relevant:
Deletehttp://tywkiwdbi.blogspot.com/2013/01/they-dont-make-em-like-they-used-to.html
growing up dangerous was part of the fun of being a kid.
Deletep.s. my verification was to select the all the coffee images.
I-)
also relevant:
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPF4fBGNK0U 2009 Chevy Malibu vs 1959 Bel Air Crash Test
I-)
Or as George Carlin said about swimming in the Hudson river as a child: "We were tempered in raw shit"
ReplyDeleteMy daughters and I have discussed this. The older two didn't worry about electrical outlets, but the youngest did. The middle one proudly calls herself a Slacker Mother because her boys were allowed much more freedom (and responsibility) than their peers. The youngest lives in Pittsburgh, where there are no fences between yards--just like when I was a kid. The kids play street hockey, too, and they even walk to and from school. I really feel sorry for the kids of Helicopter Parents.
ReplyDeleteNot to be a downer here but how about a voice of reason. These braggart claims about our living through (and being better for it!) the dangerousness of our childhoods ignores the very obvious logical flaw in the argument. The only ones here to comment are the ones who survived. Many, many children didn't. Many, many children were maimed or died (hence the reason for today's safety measures.)
ReplyDeleteI would have one more uncle if there had been bike helmets back then.
DeleteThe biggest killer of American children is car wrecks, and most car crashes are single vehicle. If you care about your kid's safety, then drive sober and hang up the phone.
Delete