When were the halcyon days of British family life when society was so good?

[ruby27]

Yesterday papers "Family life is in 'meltdown': Judge launches devastating attack on our fractured society"

Usual culprits "youth crime, child abuse, drug addiction and binge-drinking"

When was society so great like we all lived in some sort of Hovis advert idyll? Also if it was so good, why did the British abandon this wonderful life or has it been stolen.

[ruby27]

As far as I can recall it wasn't the:-

80's these were Thatcher's years when materialism become the new religion and all that was important was making vast amounts of money and then partying. Oh and social work 'discovered' child sexual abuse

70's well I remember this decade well, as I was busy indulging in under age alcohol and sex, latterly being punk and trying out anarchy

60's too young to remember but wasn't this about sexual permissiveness and free love and it was still legitimate for teachers to hit children with wooden implements

50's. Terribly repressed when racism, sexism and homophobia was rife and destroying peoples lives

[Velvetee]

Today in the snow, I saw children playing, making snowmen and throwing snowballs at each other. They all looked so happy and carefree. It took me back to the days when children were children and life was more simple.

Things were different back then, but child abuse still happened, there were druggies and binge drinkers. My own father was drunk most days. It was all just less public and concealed better. I do feel though, things have become worse over the last 10 years.

[shaneystar2]

There have always been these elements in society . Even in Victorian times there were drug addicts ,crime was rife , they sent boys up chimneys and people were gin raddled .
I can see his point though .I grew up in the 1950's . Most mothers stayed at home and I had a good carefree childhood and education .My parents word was law until I discovered the swinging sixties ! But even then I knew the boundaries .
I think people have lost sight of family values and just chase money and then wonder why things go wrong and little Johnny starts taking drugs and binge drinking because they have been to busy to pay attention to what he is actually up to .
.On the other hand If some have no money the government gives it to them taking away any incentive to actually work for it .
I don't know what the answer is Ruby ..it's a completely different world out there now to the one I grew up in

[Whickerman]

There's a guy I work with who hits retirrment age later this year, and his stance is simple - very few people go hungry in Europe, very few are cold, destitute, unemployed or without hope. In his eyes and in his words, "these are the good old days".

[shaneystar2]

He must live in cloud cuckoo land then or a little world were he can see no further than our shores..
There are still cold ,hungry, poor , destitute people in Europe ...
lots of Europeans are still suffering from the Communist regimes they were forced to live under .There are poor ,cold people here too ..they are called pensioners who turn the heating off because they can't afford the bills

[Theland1]

I remember from my childhood in Liverpool in the 50's and 60's, that despite the perennial problems that still plague us today, there was a much greater sense of community, and respect for all forms of authority, parents, teachers, police.
It was safer for all, whether walking the streets at night, or kids worrying about the school bully.
I can say categorically that my childhood was happier than my own kids experience. despite material comforts.
So the 50's and 60's get my vote.

[ruby27]

I think Velvetee's point about the problems remaining in the private domain rather than the public has validity. With the massive media attention paid to problem youth drinking (which does seem worse than in my day, oh god I sound like my grandfather), it is hard to imagine that a young person could go out without getting bladdered as they are constantly bombarded with images portraying that is how youths behave. To not do so would appear too terribly square or whatever the equivalent is nowadays.

The issue of safety is so often distorted by the press isn't it. Most violent crime is committed by young men on young men, so most of who are not are relatively safe. Athought I have never had to remonstrate with someone outside my house I have thought I could have done so. But I must admit it does appear that to do so now would probably prove to be fatal. Still not sure how much is due to an increase in danger.

Shaneystar2 I certainly don't have the answer either, not sure how we can go back to thinking there is more to life than buying the latest and biggest whatever. I think the society on the whole is a much better place to live but not without faults.

[shaneystar2]

Thing is Ruby so much of what goes on in respect of this binge drinking ,druggie culture is down to peer pressure and the media . It was the same in my youth ..if you didn't drink ,smoke ,sleep around or walk about in a haze you were thought of as "uncool" .Luckily I had good parents who kept me on the fairly straight and narrow .What goes around comes around . I do think that in my day we had more respect for people in authority . I wouldn't want to go back to the days of the outside lav and only a cold tap and am grateful for what modern life affords me but I think we should all sometimes take a step back and look at things that matter ..like family,friends and and others less fortunate .

[Theland1]

In the 50's and 60's if you wanted to go and get bladdered, it was very difficult, as access to alcohol was very restricted. Teenagers drinking on street corners is not one of my memories.

[shaneystar2]

Oh ....come on Theland !
It was easy to get drunk and out of your face in the sixties if you wanted to ! OK you didn't seem to have that street corner culture and the sale of alcohol was restricted ....it was all clubs and dives and parties where anything went !.
There was plenty of debauchery if you knew where to find it !

[Lonnie]

Hi ruby,
I can only speak from a personal perspective, and for me, and my memory, groeing up in the fifties, families sat down together for the main meal of the day, and believe it or not, we used to have singsongs while my father played the piano.

Children call adults Mr, Mrs, Uncle or Aunt, nevr by their forenames.
Adults had a certain idea how they should behave and speak around children.
Chidren were controlled, and knew their boundaries.

We didn't have much, but we were happy, we used to play family games like Monopoly and Snakes and Ladders.

And my Family wasn't alone, most in my area, (Dagenham) behaved like that.

For me, they were the Halycon Days.

[ladyalex]

I think Ovid in his Metamorphoses wrote wistfully of a Golden Age when all was well with the world, when people worked hard and youths were respectful of their elders. And was it Cicero who said 'o tempora o mores' (oh the times, oh the morals) ?
There's nothing new under the sun and that includes complaining about the values of today and comparing them unfavourably with some halcyon past when everything was truly wonderful.

[jno]

interesting question... I suppose most people are comparing the present with their own childhood, when things were simpler (as they always are for children). I can certainly say the 1950s are much underrated; nobody was extremely poor or rich - on the one hand, few people owned cars, which meant less mobility; on the other hand, it was safe to play in the streets all day. The fact that there weren't a lot of consumer goods, and not a lot of money to spend on them anyway, meant life was less competitive; no designer gear you just had to have. There was a lot of postwar migration so my school was full of kids from all over the world, and I don't remember any prejudice against any of them whatever their colour or origin. I think the war had taught a lot of people tolerance.

But it's harder to say how my parents must have found it. My mother, busy raising kids, didn't get out much; she didn't have the independence, or the income, that women expect today. My father didn't earn a lot. Would they have been any happier with two cars, internet access and a plasma screen TV? I suspect not - but I could be wrong.

I'm not talking about Britain, incidentally.

[weggiewabbit]

I have to agree wholeheartedly with everything Theland said � the late 50s and early 60s were so different from today. The standard of living was lower then, but drugs were virtually unheard of. There was a much greater respect for the law.

The late 60s and early 70s were also good � I was in my early twenties then, so it�s only natural that I remember them fondly � but the fact is that you could go out at night even in a city centre and feel safe.

[Theland1]

Shany - I stand by what I said, if you wanted to get smashed, it was a mission, and the streets were alcohol free.

[rojash]

I never thought I'd find myself agreeing with Theland, but he's right that there was a much stronger sense of community - and when you feel part of a community you are more likely to give and receive support, and you are less likely to behave in a way that might embarrass yourself or cause offence to those around you.