What was it like growing up in the 80's.

[Castiel]

Well to be honest I haven't grown up with paedo paranoia because I have always known there in no more now than there was when I was a child but it wasn't reported in my day.
In the old days you always knew not to go near that bloke who lives down that street.

It's not paedos I am paranoid about....my boys not daft enough to go about with strangers etc, I am paranoid about the drug and gang scenes.....which is totally irrational as I live in a place where that simply doesn't exist to any real extent, but my own childhood feeds that paranoia. It doesn't manifest itself very much though because the wife just tells me to quit being stupid I don't live in the ghetto anymore....she is right.

All the nanny stuff and surveillance does do my head in though.......

 

[Freefaller]

I'm actually glad I wasn't brought up where computers, 100s of tv channels and amazing technology existed. I worry that a lot of children these days are either getting de-sensitised to things, or are losing out on a lot of core social skills - this is a generalisation so I can concede that it may be totally inaccurate.

However, that being said, you spent more time with your friends doing "things". Like building a den, going to play outside and being physically active, playing board games, or making up our own games. Playing with actual toys and having to use one's imagination.

Mobile phone didn't even exist either so there was never a need for another gadget.

I think they were more innocent times, kids could be kids without any hidden agenda and were still ignorant to the world which I think is important. I know certainly when I have kids, they won't be getting a pc or tv in their room until they're significantly older and encourage interest in books and social interaction rather than relying on TV and computers for stimulus. To be honest moving away from London and moving into a small little village-like area would be even better, or even abroad, somewhere where kids can be active and develop hobbies that doesn't involve being glued in front of a computer screen.

 

[rz30]

 

[Castiel]

Freefaller, that is exactly why we moved to Salisbury to raise our Son, it is the perfect place, it gives him huge amounts of countryside to explore, is relatively safe, good schools, fresh air and he responds to that.

He still spends time on his PC/Xbox, but he also goes out all day on his Bike, goes to clubs like his unicycling circus club and movie making club......built his own treehouse, spent months with a microscope looking at bugs in the fields around our home when he was younger......And so on

Environment plays a huge part in how kids are.

 

[Freefaller]

Sounds like you've also done a fantastic job as a parent too

 

[Castiel]

Sounds like you've also done a fantastic job as a parent too

Thankyou, We try, it is definitely a joint effort. It definitely has it's moments. For me it is about ensuring that he has the childhood that I craved, so it's a little bit of a vicarious pleasure watching and helping him grow up. The wife is the controller who stops us going daft.....

 

[Freefaller]

haha - that's all you can do, strive to be the best you can be.

 

[ThundyCat]

Freefaller, that is exactly why we moved to Salisbury to raise our Son, it is the perfect place, it gives him huge amounts of countryside to explore, is relatively safe, good schools, fresh air and he responds to that.

He still spends time on his PC/Xbox, but he also goes out all day on his Bike, goes to clubs like his unicycling circus club and movie making club......built his own treehouse, spent months with a microscope looking at bugs in the fields around our home when he was younger......And so on

Environment plays a huge part in how kids are.

You live in Salisbury then Castiel? I lived there from 81 to 92. Lovely City.

 

[Castiel]

You live in Salisbury then Castiel? I lived there from 81 to 92. Lovely City.

Yeah, just on the outskirts of the city near Winterbourne Gunner. It is a beautiful city and a great place to live. The standard of living is high, if a little expensive (but not as bad as London).

And the Queen is coming tomorrow.....

 

[Kazz]

White dog poo paved the streets.

Old men clipped cheeky kids around the back of the head without fear that they'd be in court the following week.

Address books existed in physical forms and contained your mates telephone numbers. Dialling them took an eternity before touch tone phones.

Skid-marks on y-fronts.

 

[FTM]

I think the main problem for kids these days is nothing is new..there are no massive new things to get excited about

I was born in 1970 so the 80's was a time of great discovery..the birth of home computing and hand held games, it gave small boys everywhere something to get genuinely excited about

 

[Jonny69]

Blues Brothers
The Breakfast Club
Risky Business
Summer School

That's why the 80s were awesome.

How could you forget Porky's, The Terminator and Robocop? Every kid got to see those 18's too

 

[robgmun]

I think the main problem for kids these days is nothing is new..there are no massive new things to get excited about

I was born in 1970 so the 80's was a time of great discovery..the birth of home computing and hand held games, it gave small boys everywhere something to get genuinely excited about

So so true, even through it's wrong to think like this, there's a sense of 'everything has been invented' so there's nothing small scale for the home left to look forward to, just improvements of what we already have. It's been like this since the mid-90's

 

[w3bbo]

White dog poo was because dogs ate more bones back then. Only posh people fed dogs biscuits and dry food.

My dogs had a bone each the other weekend. End result: White dog poo. Ahhh, the memories lol!

 

[[FnG]magnolia]

My dogs had a bone each the other weekend. End result: White dog poo. Ahhh, the memories lol!

Is this pron for furries?

 

[Bubo]

I'd swap the IRA for Al Queda any day of the week. In the 80's we had proper terrorists who had a well defined, if still mental, agenda, gave actual warnings more often than not, and didn't seem particularly keen on taking themselves out along with their target. And a plane hijacking usually meant some dodgy middle east lads just wanted to go somewhere else, usually another airport, rather than into the nearest building. You knew where you were with your 80's terrorists.

 

[[FnG]magnolia]

Jesus Christ.

 

[FTM]

So so true, even through it's wrong to think like this, there's a sense of 'everything has been invented' so there's nothing small scale for the home left to look forward to, just improvements of what we already have. It's been like this since the mid-90's

just remember back to when we got a 4th tv channel..it was such a big deal


now kids have instant access to loads, same with phones

there is nothing for them to be amazed or wowed by...

I am lucky I can take my nephew out walking or fishing..thankfully he is amazed by things I found fascinating as a small boy..so frogspawn, birds of prey and wierd bugs...if I didnt take him I suspect my sister wouldnt, but I am glad he can experience things a lot of kids dont these days..but perhaps it is the wow factor in this case and it is stuff he wouldnt normally see, its differnt and new for him

hopefully he will prefer outdoors hobbies to watching the tv all day

 

[rz30]

I found a bit of a cliquey attitude at university, maybe i was just a bit young and naive and easily annoyed(which i was) but there seemed to be this attitude of 'knowledge is power'(which it can be). Nowadays that's out the window as we have the internet.

So the internet was probably the big changer in front of everything else, instant knowledge, communication and buying power? at your fingertips. That's such a massive change that it's indescribable really.

The 80's were ordinary, people didn't have big expectations, sitting in front of the TV eating a fry up watching the A-team on a Saturday evening was what we looked forward too. Well at a certain age. Interesting discussion though. And often the TV picture quality was rubbish. Quite often we would have to get the ladder out and adjust the aerial which was already on a massive pole, the picture could have lines, fuzziness, quite laughable really compared to digital TV, that's also depends on where you live i.e are geography, mountains etc.

I guess 9/11 changed the attitudes around the world incredibly and then all the architects of the new world order and globalisation make the 80s look pretty stagnant really.

 

[Bubo]

Jesus Christ.

I believe Jesus had something to do with it as well. (tongue in cheek detector failure on your part I guess)