# Who remembers public opinion of Reagan in the early '80s? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 18, 2012, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079 "2012-09-18T16:44:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![moldmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ee59a6/32.png) [@moldmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moldmonkey)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2012, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/41 "2012-09-20T04:59:50Z")
I remember lots of jokes about Nancy being the real power & brains, voodoo economics, and him having dementia. Something that really sticks in my head is that during Iran-contra, he claimed not to have known about it and my Gramdpa going off about he didn’t know which was worse. Reagan knowing and lying or him being the ultimate authority and not knowing of a operation of that magnitude. My Dad (a rancher, the 80s were bad times for agriculture) made jokes about still waiting for the trickle-down effect to trickle down to him well into the 2000s. It baffles me that he has turned into such a mythological figure and how his record is misremembered. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2012, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/42 "2012-09-20T07:40:15Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > You said “jives” when I think you meant “jibes.” > > [Wiktionary](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/jibe#Verb) entry. Aha! So I did. But then it both jived and jibed. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2012, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/43 "2012-09-20T08:17:52Z")
> [@shiftless](#): > > Yes, but the public perception was that HE got them out. Not a bad way to start out your term. Those evil Iranians who thumbed their noses at Carter were falling all over themselves to appease Reagan, all the had to do was be sworn in. Plus he told Gorby to tear down the wall, and he did! He was like a stern but fair dad, arriving home and setting the messes to right. If you believe in that kind of stuff. That may be public perception, and I’ve heard Romney credit Reagan for solving the hostage crisis, but it’s not true. The hostage takers hated Carter, and deliberately held up the release until he was out of office. But the agreement to release them was done by the Carter administration. Reagan had nothing to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2012, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/44 "2012-09-20T15:17:44Z")
My memories of Reagan in the early 1980s was that many people disliked him because of the economy. They spoke dismissively about Reaganomics and how he didn’t care about the working man. Many thought all he cared about were rich people and that the american dream was over. His handling of the PATCO strike was evidence that he did not care about average folk. When he was shot, many people admired the way he handled his recovery and the witty remarks he gave while in the hospital. Also his decision to invade Grenada was very popular and was contrasted with the failure of the hostage rescue under Carter. When the economy started turning around, perceptions started turning around too. People stopped calling it Reaganomics, the PATCO strike became evidence of his strength and decisiveness, and the Grenada invasion was evidence that America was strong and confident again. There were alot of people who still hated him, but he was popular in a way no president has been since. They may like Obama or have thought Clinton was a good president, but Reagan was liked, admired and respected both personally and as a president. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/45 "2012-09-21T06:32:17Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > …and the Grenada invasion was evidence that America was strong and confident again… I don’t remember people thinking it took strength and confidence to beat up such a pitiful adversary. We (I and my half-dozen friends) thought it made RR look like an insecure bully. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/46 "2012-09-21T09:00:43Z")
Yes, the Grenada “war” was a pitiful event designed to make Reagan look like a tuff guy. Crappy eyesight kept him out of harm’s way in WWII & he never got over it… ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/47 "2012-09-21T11:07:40Z")
I don’t remember Reagan getting the hate, generally speaking, that US politicians now see. None of the Hitler comparisons, for instance, that I’ve seen with both Bush II and Obama. None of the conspiracy crap that Reagan killed some staffer like I saw aimed at Clinton, either. Somebody blamed Rush (Limbaugh) for this change; I think the internet has something to do with it. That’s where I saw all that. The web has removed some of the filters that used to be in place. It’s sort of like the Klan and Pol Pot have been given segments on the evening news. One group that really seemed to hate Reagan was punk rock bands. The Dead Kennedys had two songs that mentioned him, there was a band called Reagan Youth, and I remember an interview (can’t remember the subject) where the guy said he started a band because he didn’t like the music that was popular and he didn’t like Reagan. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/48 "2012-09-21T11:46:02Z")
Of course, because of Reagan, the [Fairness Doctrine](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairness_Doctrine) was revoked, making Limbaugh, Fox “News,” and all the others possible in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/49 "2012-09-21T11:52:33Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Um … okay. it’s riffing from **Airplane**. ---
**Author:** ![Sigene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df788c/32.png) [@Sigene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigene)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/50 "2012-09-21T12:54:36Z")
based on most of the comment here, you would think that very few people liked him or his policies. But the fact of the matter is, he won in a HUGE landslide in 1984 and his Vice-President won the next one (has that EVER happened before?). So, even though public opinion may have changed now, the fact is he was very, very popular, and a great majority of the voters thought he was leading the country in the correct direction. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/51 "2012-09-21T13:51:48Z")
> [@Sigene](#): > > When he won the election, I remember small children crying because they didn’t want to die in the inevitable nuclear war that he was going to lead us into. I find this impossible to believe. Small children generally have little specific understanding or awareness of politics; I have one, and she and her little friends do not follow who’s running for public office. At my child’s age (7) they probably don’t even know what a “President” is. Kids generally don’t start to become aware of that until 9-10, and most children don’t really begin to develop an awareness of the issues and whatnot until after they have developed an awareness of the civics. So the claim that “small children” were crying over Reagan’s re-election - and therefore not only were aware of his being re-elected to the Presidency, but had specific understanding of his reputation for being a hawk, understood the USA’s rivalry with the Soviet Union, and understood the concept of global nuclear war and believed Reagan would start one - is, frankly, pretty darned unlikely. Unless by “small children” you mean teenagers. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/52 "2012-09-21T15:41:57Z")
> [@Sigene](#): > > based on most of the comment here, you would think that very few people liked him or his policies. > > But the fact of the matter is, he won in a HUGE landslide in 1984 and his Vice-President won the next one (has that EVER happened before?). > > So, even though public opinion may have changed now, the fact is he was very, very popular, and a great majority of the voters thought he was leading the country in the correct direction. This is indeed very true. We critics were most definitely a small minority then and probably remain so today, at least among those who are old enough to be in a position to judge. ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/53 "2012-09-21T17:03:15Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > I find this impossible to believe. Small children generally have little specific understanding or awareness of politics; I have one, and she and her little friends do not follow who’s running for public office. At my child’s age (7) they probably don’t even know what a “President” is. Kids generally don’t start to become aware of that until 9-10, and most children don’t really begin to develop an awareness of the issues and whatnot until after they have developed an awareness of the civics. > > So the claim that “small children” were crying over Reagan’s re-election - and therefore not only were aware of his being re-elected to the Presidency, but had specific understanding of his reputation for being a hawk, understood the USA’s rivalry with the Soviet Union, and understood the concept of global nuclear war and believed Reagan would start one - is, frankly, pretty darned unlikely. Unless by “small children” you mean teenagers. I was a teenager and I remember hearing a lot about nuclear issues – Three Mile Island, _The China Syndrome_, _The Day After_ – everything from nuclear power being unsafe to the inevitable nuclear war, and I remember being fairly depressed about growing up in a world with such issues. We need more bombs! We need more bombs! No, we don’t. Russians are people, too. They’re not evil, you stupid old coot. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/54 "2012-09-21T18:30:29Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > I don’t remember people thinking it took strength and confidence to beat up such a pitiful adversary. We (I and my half-dozen friends) thought it made RR look like an insecure bully. More to the point, that after years of post-Vietnam and Cuba decline, America was willing to take direct action (cf Britain and the Falklands) instead of trying to wage wars by proxy ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/55 "2012-09-21T18:59:45Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > I was a teenager and I remember hearing a lot about nuclear issues – Three Mile Island, _The China Syndrome_, _The Day After_ – everything from nuclear power being unsafe to the inevitable nuclear war, and I remember being fairly depressed about growing up in a world with such issues. We need more bombs! We need more bombs! No, we don’t. Russians are people, too. They’re not evil, you stupid old coot. Teenagers aren’t small children, though. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/56 "2012-09-21T19:00:59Z")
Dave Hartwick: > [@](#): > > One group that really seemed to hate Reagan was punk rock bands. I don’t believe it was limited to the punk genre. Genesis’s “Land of Confusion” and Don Henley’s “End of the Innocence,” to give two examples that come to mind immediately, were anti-Reagan songs as well. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/57 "2012-09-21T21:04:22Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > More to the point, that after years of post-Vietnam and Cuba decline, America was willing to take direct action… by stepping on an anthill. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2012, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/58 "2012-09-22T02:33:20Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > it’s riffing from **Airplane**. Finally caught it. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2012, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/59 "2012-09-22T02:54:08Z")
I grew up in the '80s in Australia, and I remember the adults around me typically discussing their perceptions of Reagan as follows: [ul] [li]he was a crazy old actor who thought this was all just an action movie[/li][li]he wanted things to come to a head with the Soviets, even though this would result in global nuclear annihilation[/li][/ul] I was genuinely afraid of Reagan triggering a nuclear holocaust. Looking back at non-American political satire from the time reinforces my memory: the U.S. under Reagan was perceived as a dangerous and powerful bully being run by an imbecile. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079/60 "2012-10-10T21:15:40Z")
> [@Dave\_Hartwick](#): > > One group that really seemed to hate Reagan was punk rock bands. The Dead Kennedys had two songs that mentioned him, there was a band called Reagan Youth, and I remember an interview (can’t remember the subject) where the guy said he started a band because he didn’t like the music that was popular and he didn’t like Reagan. You forgot _Bonzo Goes to Bitburg_, by The Ramones, the greatest of all punk bands. It was really Joey’s song though. Johnny Ramone was very conservative, and refused to perform the song once he realized it was about Reagan. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-remembers-public-opinion-of-reagan-in-the-early-80s/635079.md?page=4)