History The greatest time to have lived in America?

I consider myself lucky to have grown up in the '50 & '60, it was a wondrous time. My parents were old enough to be my Grandparents so I got a little different slant on things that my peers didn't. My Mom got me started on Sci-Fi, she loved the old StarTrek. She once told me that the past wasn't so wonderful, and she always looked toward the future. My Dad was born in a log cabin on a homestead in Kilgore Idaho. At that time (1906) Kilgore was just a general store with a Post office, a blacksmith and a few other buildings, and when the river was running high you couldn't even get there, so you had to take care of yourself. I see a lot less of that kind of pioneering spirit, now. A lot less ethics and honor all around. I'm afraid for what is going to happen to my children and grandchildren in the coming years. My folks went through the Depression and we seem to be headed for a lot worse, imho. Yeah, my folks saw the eradication of most diseases in their lifetimes, but there was a measure of freedom then, that we are loosing now, that let people fail, then pick themselves up and learn from it. In the future only the very rich, powerful, oneworld types are going to be having a life, and it's going to be "MadMax" for the rest of us. There are many localities that are advising that they aren't able to send out the cops on homicide calls now, let's all enjoy our hobby as long as we are able, someone is going to have to know how to build those MadMax cars, huh?

 

Now is the greatest time!

 

wow my post was deleted 2 times already .....i guess i cant speak my mind ..or have a opinion on this subject..have a good day

 

Of course I can only speak from experience but I think the greatest time to live in America would have to be from the mid '50s to the present.

Don't want to hurt anyone's feelings but I have had one helluva good time while I have been on this planet and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

I think I bought weed off this guy in '78.....

 

^^^ Dude was drummed outta Sierra Madre...tarred, feathered and run out on a rail.
(politics is a nasty bizz.)

 

I think the greatest time to live in america is different for everbody. i think it depends on if you are happy in your job and your home life and you have your health. if all of these arent met then a person wouldnt enjoy life no matter how good everything was around him. My life personally is better now than it has ever been. I am sixty five but my house is paid for, i have a steady decent paying job, i have two hot rods - my kids all live close by- my wife talks to me cooks for me and lets me buy hot rod parts. she even payed for the room at the hamb drags! life is good.... long live the early part of this century!!

 

quite happy with right now, and the next 60 years or so to come. i plan on making a bit of history.

 

Haven't you seen Back to the Future??? All's you need is a flux capacitor!

 

Hotroders are the Jesse James of the 1800's area, we just chose to work for a living.
But there were some days when there was no law, and it sure would be nice to take a few wastes of skin bags and oxygen out.
You put all the Hotrodders/Car guys into one group, well outnumber any other group out there except China's military.

 

If I could figure out a way to do it I'd move to O.C. in 1962.

 

The old Hudson's building was demolished around 5 years ago..

 

Born in the "good" year---1932, a long time before most of you,---But survived the depression & to see the WWII thru, then most of us guys graduated in 1950 went right into Korea, the "forgotten war" & dreaming of building a hot rod after coming home.
In hi school 1946-1950, those of you that thought this would be the time to have grown up in,---Really was not all that great!, even if gas was only 15 cents a gallon.
Back then the cars were running on 6 volt systems, & if you had your girl out at night, smooching & listening to your favorite DJ, you had better be parked on a hill, cause the battery wouldn't crank the motor!!---Same thing when parked at school, always park on a hill!
Of course in those days, the local police would ticket you for excessive noise if they spotted 2 pipes under the rear bumper, not to be outdone, we hacksawed the pipes 10inches back from the bumpers! Times have sure changed! (for the best).
Returning vets from WWII were a big source of info & used their war time experiences to incorporate some fast flathead cars, mostly at the lakes, before drag strips were formed in the So Cal area.
At school after a weekend of Lakes racing, all the guys were ablaze in commenting how fast so & so went this week end.----etc.
Pumping gas & lubing cars at the local gas station, usually paid 75 cents to 1 dollar an hour--IF you could get the job!!
We could not afford real white wall tires, so we used to go to Pep Boys & buy "Varsity" white wall paint & apply weekly before taking your date out for the evening on Sat.
Still got my same "date" for 59 years!!!!!!

 

I love stories like this!

 

My 66 years have been the best time ever. To have experienced the fabled 50's and 60's first hand was amazing although we didn't know it at the time and it wasn't exactly like you kiddies imagine it either.

My Grandfather lived from 1893-1990, so that era was also interesting. In his 97 years he went from riding a horse to school and no cars, radio, planes, to witnessing the moon landing.

 

When was the best time to live in America? Never, we all know Australia is better.....then and now.........

Doc.

 

Well, you must mean that rodders are the Jesse James of the 2000's.
And there have always been laws against murdering people.

 

You better be glad for and fight for what you have now. We already have control freaks in our government that would love to take us back to the stone age.

Maybe you haven't heard about them wanting to reduce our energy consumption/production to the 90's...then what? The 80's?

Just think of the technology from a hospital alone in the early 90's compared to now...Energy hog MRI's and other life saving electronic devices weren't much more than a dream then.

Will Obamacare deny MRI service because of excessive energy consumption?...Who could say?

 

there was another post on here about "what have you learned on the HAMB"... I learned not to post stuff like this except in the HAMB political social group

 

Ha Ha!

 

In America? I'd pick the 50's.

In the world? There's a guy I would have liked to have met about 2000 years ago.....

 

I'm a couple of years younger than mazooma and from a little farther north but it appears that we have lived pretty much the same life.

I really wish every day that I would have been born after Jonas Saulk perfected the vaccine. But such is life.

I really liked the '60s best and a good part of the '70s were fun. But to tell you the truth unless you already lived through it I couldn't suggest it to anyone. It was our time and everyone else has theirs. I sure wouldn't want to go back and do it all again.

Today is the best time to be in America, times are a little rough but if you go back to our time this is what you have to look forward to may as well get it under your belt and make the it the best of times.

 

Stone age. Didn't have to go to work.. Hunt and fish all day.. pull your ol' lady around by the hair.. what's not to like? Oh wait.. NO COFFEE!!!! OK, forget it... right now.. you have access to all periods of cars, newer technology... and the big plus.. Huge choice of BEER!!!!

 

Hey ya know why cavemen drug their women by the hair and not the ankle?

Oh never mind that is probably considered not PC.

Mazooma and I didn't mention we didn't have politically correct in our era.

 

I would say the late 40's & 50's were the best time to live in IMO. I realize that the material things of this world is not where it is "at" or why we are here on this Earth but, the music today SUCKS, the movies today SUCK, the cars today SUCK, the rate of inflation today SUCKS, the way people dress and act today SUCKS. At least the 50's had good music, most people had manners, the cars were real metal cars, there were drive-in's / diners. And, Most people seemed proud of America. I wish i could say the same for today's times.

 

Zack old buddy,,,Tell em about it while I pat my foot..
100% correct.

 

That is a Tim McGraw song , title I can't remember at the moment ? Best time - 60's definitely !

 

LOL, How's going Bob? I hope your doing well. Still planning on getting by to see ya sometime soon.

 

1960-1963 I was in high school in southern California. My high school parking lot had a lot of cars that looked better than half the stuff in contemporary car shows.
You could build just about anything you wanted to (at home in your spare time or in auto shop) and you sure didn't have to smog it or put up with other bureacratic BS. And that was just Redlands, there musta been hella places that were much cooler to live but I am glad I was there then. Life was sweet and gas was cheap and the cops didn't mess with you unless you were being really stupid.
Oh yeah, running Model As (bunches of them) were going for anywhere from around $75 for beaters to maybe $500 for something really nice.

 

I've always thought that 1957 was a good period in history . We were between wars , everything good was "made in America" , Chevrolet had'nt screwed up there cars , everyone worked , most familys were intact ,and the worst thing you could get was the clap !!