# Would people in the 50s be disappointed in "the future"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 1, 2009, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588 "2009-12-01T15:23:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![palindromemordnilap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@palindromemordnilap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palindromemordnilap)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2009, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/61 "2009-12-04T22:09:24Z")
If you told them a black man would be President they’d wonder whether you were kidding them. If you told them Ronald Reagan would be President they’d KNOW you were kidding. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2009, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/62 "2009-12-05T01:12:55Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > And if they’re still standing, tell them he’s a black Democrat from someplace that isn’t even a state yet (depending exactly what time in the '50s our victim is plucked from). “Hawaii? And I suppose the Secretary of Defense is German!” ---
**Author:** ![luv2draw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/46a35a/32.png) [@luv2draw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/luv2draw)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2009, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/63 "2009-12-05T01:33:54Z")
> [@Shirley\_Ujest](#): > > I think I would enjoy seeing a 50’s guy see a Victoria Secret’s catalog. Especially since in the 50s if there were a commercial on TV for bras you would see them on either a mannequin or a live model but they were on over a t-neck sweater, not directly on human skin or the mannequin–I don’t remember anymore which… But it must have been against censorship laws or something to show bras actually on the human body. Not to mention commercials for feminine hygiene products. Commercials for specific prescription drugs. Or even someone actually drinking alcohol. You could hold the drink in your hand but you couldn’t drink. Anyone else remember all that? Oh yeah and married couples on TV like “I Love Lucy” had twin beds and one foot had to be on the floor… We’ve come a long way, baby… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2009, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/64 "2009-12-05T02:48:34Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > “Hawaii? And I suppose the Secretary of Defense is German!” Secretary of State. Good line, though. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2009, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/65 "2009-12-05T03:10:39Z")
Huh? I picked a Cabinet position at random. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2009, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/66 "2009-12-05T04:13:28Z")
> [@palindromemordnilap](#): > > If you told them a black man would be President they’d wonder whether you were kidding them. If you told them Ronald Reagan would be President they’d KNOW you were kidding. And if you told them Richard Nixon’s dirty tricks would make him the first President forced to resign from office, they would have yawned and asked for some REAL news. ---
**Author:** ![echowit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/59ef9b/32.png) [@echowit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echowit)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2009, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/67 "2009-12-05T21:25:17Z")
Yes, we are disappointed. Sure, the technology is great, but not greater than imagined, the social changes are great (on the surface) but not as great as hoped for. The economy, all in all, seems about the same, at least for this middle class buyer. That based on a rather simple rule of thumb - how long do you work to purchase a given item. I think those of us nurtured post WW II looked for a scope of change the same as or better than that experienced in the 1st half of the 19th Century. I haven’t seen it. Of course, the grass is always greener … And maybe cars will fly someday. ---
**Author:** ![alexandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@alexandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alexandra)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2009, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/68 "2009-12-06T12:24:46Z")
Western/Northern Europeans would probably be baffled by the modern-day concept of the EU but pleasantly surprised at how relatively peaceful most of the continent has remained. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2009, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/69 "2009-12-06T16:19:11Z")
> [@alexandra](#): > > Western/Northern Europeans would probably be baffled by the modern-day concept of the EU . . . That would be odd, since the concept was invented in the 50s: the European Coal and Steel Community was established in 1951 and the European Economic Community (the Common Market) was established in 1958. ---
**Author:** ![alexandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@alexandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alexandra)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2009, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/70 "2009-12-06T16:45:07Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > That would be odd, since the concept was invented in the 50s: the European Coal and Steel Community was established in 1951 and the European Economic Community (the Common Market) was established in 1958. :rolleyes: That’d be why I specified the modern-day concept. The EU has changed an awful lot over the decades. The direct election of MEPs for example. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2009, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/71 "2009-12-06T18:29:06Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Huh? I picked a Cabinet position at random. I thought you were making a reference to Henry Kissinger. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2009, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/72 "2009-12-06T19:03:43Z")
> [@alexandra](#): > > :rolleyes: That’d be why I specified the modern-day concept. The EU has changed an awful lot over the decades. The direct election of MEPs for example. There’s also stuff like the Euro and Eastern European countries like Poland or Romania being members. Or serious talk of allowing _Turkey_ to join. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/73 "2009-12-07T01:38:26Z")
> [@LouisB](#): > > I’m lived through the 1950s and I’m not disappointed at all. Most of the imaginary stuff predicted in the 1950s was pure speculation and I don’t think anyone ever really believed we would all have flying cars or personal helicopters. What we now see in the real world is exciting enough. I don’t remember any SciFi stuff about personal computers, cell phones (other than Dick Tracy’s wrist radio and wrist TV); what we actually have is a lot more practical that most of the stuff that was predicted. Yes we did, I am really disappointed to not have a personal helicopter at my house. There is nothing else that we didnt already have, jets, computers, telephones, television, air conditioning, etc were all there back in the 1950’s, there is nothing new today that we didnt have then. I and really and totally disappointed and disgusted with the overpopulation, too many people, too many crowds, too much traffic, too many lines, too much pollution, too much energy and water being used, too many farms and fields being destroyed, too much waiting for service, etc. and I have not a clue as to why we continue to immigrate millions more people each year to make it even more crowded and polluted. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/74 "2009-12-07T01:50:49Z")
You had computers in the 1950s? Were you the Department of Defense? ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/75 "2009-12-07T01:54:16Z")
Count me in as another person who is surprised to hear that there is nothing we have now that they did not also have in the 1950s. I will have to ask my grandma about her 1950s-era cell phone and wireless Internet, and how her kids handled their measles and mumps vaccinations. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/76 "2009-12-07T02:25:08Z")
Too many people on my lawn, dadnabit! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/77 "2009-12-07T14:48:20Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > I and really and totally disappointed and disgusted with the overpopulation, too many people, too many crowds, too much traffic, too many lines, too much pollution, too much energy and water being used, too many farms and fields being destroyed, too much waiting for service, etc. and I have not a clue as to why we continue to immigrate millions more people each year to make it even more crowded and polluted. The US is one of the most sparsely populated developed countries on earth - and most of the less-crowded developed countries (Argentina, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Russia) contain large swathes of land that are effectively uninhabitable. God knows why you think “too many farms and fields are being destroyed”. More of the land area of the country is under cultivation now than at any point in history. Farms and fields aren’t being destroyed - they’re being expanded. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/78 "2009-12-08T01:21:32Z")
In fact, the amount of land that is forested in the U.S. is larger now than it was in the 1920’s. As farming has become more efficient and transportation became cheaper over the past century or so, many fields that weren’t very good for cultivation have been left to return to forest. This is particularly true in New England, where in the nineteenth century it was necessary to have a lot of farm land to grow food for the population there even though some of the fields were on hilly, rocky land. Now much of that food is shipped from large farms in the Midwest, so the land has returned to forest. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/79 "2009-12-08T04:04:35Z")
We had flying cars and nobody wanted them. The last 2 I saw flying together are now in museums. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588/80 "2009-12-08T04:05:23Z")
I remember a list of these somewhere: things people from the 50’s would find outrageous today: 1. Paying $4 for a cup of coffee, and they don’t even pour it for you. 2. Satellites that don’t have death rays or do anything at all, they’re just there for bouncing stuff off. 3. The only drinkable water comes in a bottle. 4. Smoking is bad for you now. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-people-in-the-50s-be-disappointed-in-the-future/519588.md?page=5)