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"Living standards" is such a weaselly term here. Yeah maybe you can afford a dishwasher and a car and nice clothes, but what about when you step outside your do

by _dain_ 4y ago

"Living standards" is such a weaselly term here. Yeah maybe you can afford a dishwasher and a car and nice clothes, but what about when you step outside your door? Being in a city with interesting things to do is an intangible good that many people like, compared to being in a smaller town with fewer amenities (nevermind well-paid jobs). It used to be affordable, now it's expensive. That's a regression no matter how you slice it. Most of the wage growth in big cities goes straight into landlords' pockets. It's no way to run a civilization. And at any rate, you can't even live the 60s life if you wanted to. It's either impossible or illegal.

ch4s3 4y ago
I see where you're coming from, but talking to my father-in-law who grew up in Queens in the 60s and he remembers something quite different. The city was a dangerous mess and they never went to Manhattan, they essentially never left Astoria. They didn't take vacations, have A/C, his room was basically a walk in closet with a window, they ate awful food most fo the time, and went to a low cost catholic school. He has nothing romantic or nostalgic to say about it at all. My own parents at the same time were farmers, and I certainly wouldn't want to do what they had to do as children. If you want to stuff 4 people into two bedrooms with no A/C and never take vacations you can do it today in most cities in the US for the wage you'd earn at 1 corporate job. It won't be comfortable, but that isn't new.
- malandrew 4y ago
  Came here to say the same. The cities boomers grew up with are not the cities of 2022. Most of the interesting things that exist today in cities either didn’t exist for boomers when they were our age or was incredibly scarce and only within the reach of extremely wealthy. If you want the boomer city experience, you need to go pick a city today that compares to a NYC, LA, Miami or SF in the 1960s and 1970s. Nothing like 2022 NYC, LA, Miami or SF existed in the 1960s and 1970s.
  - ch4s3 4y ago
    Yeah, for sure. I think people REALLY underestimate how shitty food was in the 60s and 70s too. My mother-in-law told me she didn't really encounter food made with fresh vegetables until the late 80s, and my own father who grew up on a farm told me that he was so sick of mac and cheese and frozen fish sticks by late Winter(when they were running out of preserved food) that he would eat with his eyes closed.
- steve76 4y ago
  [dead]
poulsbohemian 4y ago
> Being in a city with interesting things to do is an intangible good that many people like, compared to being in a smaller town with fewer amenities (nevermind well-paid jobs). As someone who lives in a small town in the middle of nowhere, I'd argue that the well-paid jobs part is our biggest struggle. We might be somewhat unique compared to some other small towns, but we have a lot going on - theater, live music, civic groups, outdoor recreation, surprisingly good restaurants - there's plenty to do here, but there's also no question that our largest growing demographic group is people who made their money elsewhere. As both you and the poster below you comment though - neither the big city nor small towns offer much of a refuge for people these days; our system is squeezing every bit of "value" out of workers, to our detriment

by _dain_ 4y ago

ch4s3 4y ago

I see where you're coming from, but talking to my father-in-law who grew up in Queens in the 60s and he remembers something quite different. The city was a dangerous mess and they never went to Manhattan, they essentially never left Astoria. They didn't take vacations, have A/C, his room was basically a walk in closet with a window, they ate awful food most fo the time, and went to a low cost catholic school. He has nothing romantic or nostalgic to say about it at all. My own parents at the same time were farmers, and I certainly wouldn't want to do what they had to do as children. If you want to stuff 4 people into two bedrooms with no A/C and never take vacations you can do it today in most cities in the US for the wage you'd earn at 1 corporate job. It won't be comfortable, but that isn't new.

malandrew 4y ago
Came here to say the same. The cities boomers grew up with are not the cities of 2022. Most of the interesting things that exist today in cities either didn’t exist for boomers when they were our age or was incredibly scarce and only within the reach of extremely wealthy. If you want the boomer city experience, you need to go pick a city today that compares to a NYC, LA, Miami or SF in the 1960s and 1970s. Nothing like 2022 NYC, LA, Miami or SF existed in the 1960s and 1970s.
- ch4s3 4y ago
  Yeah, for sure. I think people REALLY underestimate how shitty food was in the 60s and 70s too. My mother-in-law told me she didn't really encounter food made with fresh vegetables until the late 80s, and my own father who grew up on a farm told me that he was so sick of mac and cheese and frozen fish sticks by late Winter(when they were running out of preserved food) that he would eat with his eyes closed.
steve76 4y ago
[dead]

poulsbohemian 4y ago

> Being in a city with interesting things to do is an intangible good that many people like, compared to being in a smaller town with fewer amenities (nevermind well-paid jobs). As someone who lives in a small town in the middle of nowhere, I'd argue that the well-paid jobs part is our biggest struggle. We might be somewhat unique compared to some other small towns, but we have a lot going on - theater, live music, civic groups, outdoor recreation, surprisingly good restaurants - there's plenty to do here, but there's also no question that our largest growing demographic group is people who made their money elsewhere. As both you and the poster below you comment though - neither the big city nor small towns offer much of a refuge for people these days; our system is squeezing every bit of "value" out of workers, to our detriment