I think most of that is true, (born in 1959 myself), but I'm not remembering them being such happy days. Maybe less well informed days would be a better way to put it; before we had instant news of every bad thing happening, we lived in a kind of blissful ignorance.
Everyone on earth is racist, make no mistake. It's hardwired into our brains to see other certain groups of people as lesser or less deserving. Maybe it's a holdover from primitive times, we're not that far out from having been cave-people, maybe being tribal was a way of protecting ourselves. At any rate, everyone has some racism and/or phobia about others inside themselves.
The thing that's "hardwired" is tribalism.
A modern tribe is a class, or race, or people from a certain country, or even fans of a different sports team.... It's far more complex now. Each of these tribes are seen differently by each person, both within the "tribe" and external to the tribe. Eg, an American sees other Americans differently than a European sees Americans. Different clarifications and qualifiers are put on who is "in" the tribe and who isn't. Where one individual may see "Americans" as anyone with a valid American citizenship, and another may see it as "only God fearing white Christians living in America are really Americans".... Kind of thing.
Personally, I see all peoples of all races and nationalities, who live on earth as part of the tribe of humans. I am a part of that tribe and all other tribal tenancies or definitions are irrelevant for me. So I'm not excluding someone because of what they believe, how much they make, or what their heritage might be.
In the before times, tribal mentalities were very useful, ensuring your tribe and your family survive. If that means taking all you can from another tribe, then that is what needs to happen. The tribe is of paramount importance. Even if you are killed, the tribe will help raise your offspring and the survival of your genetics is ensured.
It was a very greedy and selfish mindset which was required to ensure survival back then.
In the modern era, tribalism only creates division among the population. Whether this takes form as racism or nationalism or a religious crusade, it's no longer required and only sews dissonance between you and your neighbors.
You have a choice to make over who is "in" your tribe and who isn't. I would argue that drawing that line based on race is possibly one of the worst ways to choose your tribe. We no longer need to fight over resources to survive. We do not need to divide ourselves over these petty things.
Maybe less well informed days would be a better way to put it; before we had instant news of every bad thing happening, we lived in a kind of blissful ignorance.
Wasn't uncensored violent footage of, for instance, the Vietnam War or civil rights conflicts readily broadcast on national news in the 60s? This was always my impression of the previous era as someone who graduated high school in the relatively sanitized 90s.
I think most of that is true, (born in 1959 myself), but I'm not remembering them being such happy days. Maybe less well informed days would be a better way to put it; before we had instant news of every bad thing happening, we lived in a kind of blissful ignorance.
Everyone on earth is racist, make no mistake. It's hardwired into our brains to see other certain groups of people as lesser or less deserving. Maybe it's a holdover from primitive times, we're not that far out from having been cave-people, maybe being tribal was a way of protecting ourselves. At any rate, everyone has some racism and/or phobia about others inside themselves.
The thing that's "hardwired" is tribalism.
A modern tribe is a class, or race, or people from a certain country, or even fans of a different sports team.... It's far more complex now. Each of these tribes are seen differently by each person, both within the "tribe" and external to the tribe. Eg, an American sees other Americans differently than a European sees Americans. Different clarifications and qualifiers are put on who is "in" the tribe and who isn't. Where one individual may see "Americans" as anyone with a valid American citizenship, and another may see it as "only God fearing white Christians living in America are really Americans".... Kind of thing.
Personally, I see all peoples of all races and nationalities, who live on earth as part of the tribe of humans. I am a part of that tribe and all other tribal tenancies or definitions are irrelevant for me. So I'm not excluding someone because of what they believe, how much they make, or what their heritage might be.
In the before times, tribal mentalities were very useful, ensuring your tribe and your family survive. If that means taking all you can from another tribe, then that is what needs to happen. The tribe is of paramount importance. Even if you are killed, the tribe will help raise your offspring and the survival of your genetics is ensured.
It was a very greedy and selfish mindset which was required to ensure survival back then.
In the modern era, tribalism only creates division among the population. Whether this takes form as racism or nationalism or a religious crusade, it's no longer required and only sews dissonance between you and your neighbors.
You have a choice to make over who is "in" your tribe and who isn't. I would argue that drawing that line based on race is possibly one of the worst ways to choose your tribe. We no longer need to fight over resources to survive. We do not need to divide ourselves over these petty things.
Wasn't uncensored violent footage of, for instance, the Vietnam War or civil rights conflicts readily broadcast on national news in the 60s? This was always my impression of the previous era as someone who graduated high school in the relatively sanitized 90s.