The Rat Pack

I agree with you Bick and will take it a step further.

We (our society) no longer has any common decency or respect for much of anything.

Abortion proves a complete lack of respect for life. Today's "motto" is "If it feels good do it".

I mostly blame the politicians as they were the ones led and encouraged the decline.

I am glad I am old as what I see on a daily basis makes me very sad. I feel bad for my grandchildren and great children as they do not know what was, only what is.....

Politicians and the media reflect who we are. We elect and consume both, and they adapt to OUR tastes, or they wouldn't exist...assuming you believe in the notion of demand and supply.

I want to think this movement away from being classy began to change back in the 60's with the hippie movement. There was something very appealing about that "mind expanding" era, and all that came with it. Some of it was very necessary - namely civil rights. Some of it was very damaging that appealed to our id - namely the loosening of our mores regarding sex.

The Rat Pack had influences throughout for a very long time. It seemed there were piano lounges pretty much everywhere. I remember nearly every bowling alley having that type of bar. Going out to dinner meant you dressed up, opened the door for ladies, etc. There's something very appealing about class and romance that I think guys our age can impart on those we can influence.

I would suggest the media would be more at fault than the politicians.  Andrew Brietbart once said "politics is downstream from culture" and I agree with that statement.  The media are the ones who glamorized the counter culture of the 1960's, influencing millions of baby boomers into thinking that was the way to live.  Had the media been less biased in its reporting, there may not have been the culture shift that there was.  Politicians, with rare exceptions such as Reagan, are typically followers, bandwagon jumpers who will say what is popular now in order to get elected.

I was fortunate to join the grandfather brigade 3 months ago and while I have lost hope for Orange County & California as a whole, I still see a positive future for our country.  i believe the biggest difference between now and previous generations is the existence of the internet.  For all of the potential negatives, the internet allows individuals a platform to get information out to the public without having to depend on media companies to do it.  President Trumps tweets, for good or bad, are an example of this.  The medias influence on culture is slipping and will continue to drop.  There are & will continue to be new influencers, but those can be called out fairly quickly if they become biased or corrupt. 

The internet can be used to balance those with disingenuous agendas.  Heck, look at the formation of this forum as a great example of the biased & controlling being left out in the cold.

We don't really elect politicians we elect the lies they spew. It is only after the election we find out what really got stuck with. The cable news stations are a joke as they are mostly the propaganda arm (as is the public school system) of the left. 

Today's news is mostly dogma. 

I agree, the difference I was talking about was the availability of information and an outlet for ones voice.

I tend to send a Letter to the Register about 4 or 5 times a year.  Prior to their sale, the Registers libertarian-based editorial board printed about 80% of my letters.  The current liberal-based editorial board prints none, they have a group of about 50 contributors that they only print from (including the Wabashian Ed Pyle).  This shutting down of my voice would bother me if I didn't have an outlet like this forum to vent & give my opinion.

Like any other business, they're supplying what's being demanded by their customers. When the stop supplying what you want, you'll go elsewhere. I'm guessing some of us used to watch CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC without much regard in the early going. But as they began appealing to a different set of values, most of us turned the channel. Remember, Jerry Springer used to be popular until they jumped the shark in its quest for supplying the outrageous, and completely lost credibility. CNN in its quest for supplying what seems to be an endless demand for anti-GOP vitriol is about at the end of their rope as well, if you believe the ratings posted here on occasion.

Point is, I disagree that the media is doing anything more than supplying what's being demanded. They know better than anyone how easy it is to change the channel.