The Way We Were, 1968 (dial uppers: 343 KB graphic)

[Undercurrent]

A Times editorial on Aug. 1, 1968, declared: "Public opinion polls possess the fascination inherent in any attempt to read the future. But in fact they are a reasonably trustworthy guide only to the past." With this in mind, we look back four decades to the opinion polls of 1968 - a year dominated by an unpopular war, racial tensions, economic unease and a presidential election upon which much would hang. Sound familiar?
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/12/20/opinion/20081220opchart_ready.html

[Deja Q]

1. Is "petting" like what an owner does to his dog?

:confused:

[lapfog_1]

2. More like their cat - n/t

[TahitiNut]

4. R U sirius?

There was a 2x2 'taxonomy' for petting. Outside or inside clothing and above or below the waist. Got it?

:rofl:

[TahitiNut]

3. Interesting trip down Memory Lane.

Thanks. :hi:

It must seem a bit bizarre to those who weren't out of diapers or even born then.

Good.

[TomInTib]

6. I cannot even remember what I thought in '68.

I was dating Owsley Stanley's niece and doing acid every day.

We had an endless supply of Purple and we started on New Years Day and didn't stop until New Years Eve.

[Kansas Wyatt]

8. You stopped on my birth date.

I came in wearing purple... The cord was wrapped around my neck and turned my head purple for my entrance.

[Cattledog]

9. I salute you!

[TahitiNut]

10. Well, I'd finished Basic at Ft. Leonard Wood, was stationed at Ft. Sam Houston ...

... and knew I'd be in Viet Nam before long. At Ft. Sam in the HQ company for the Fourth Army, we had off-post passes for all off-duty hours. I spent a LOT of time at the Hemisfair (later designated as a full World's Fair) and along the River Walk (which was recently completed) with occasioal trips to the Pearl Brewery (lousy beer but always better at the brewery itself).

We were at the trailing edge of the "Sandra Dee Generation" (Gidget) and the leading edge of the "Flower Power Generation" ... and all "Regular Army types" referred to civilians under 25-30 as "hippies." Jane hadn't fucked up yet and was still an object of lust: Barbarella came out in 1968.



Folks should also remember that "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner" came out in 1967. It marked a major attitude change.

[TomInTib]

11. Damn! You're old.

But, wait a minute....

Let's see.....

Oh, never mind, I forgot what I was thinking.

[alfredo]

5. Racial attitudes have changed some. Not enough though

[lamp_shade]

7. This is Great! Bookmarked.

[leftofthedial]

12. "28% would refuse to be seen by a Negro doctor"

I think we found george the bushturd's approval rating!

[Hardrada]

13. I was busy organizing students for the SDS

and otherwise working for the antiwar movement. Was phasing out pot etc. since it was detrimental to a good political image (most students still quite conservative).
We worked with potheads and acid heads, however, but found speed freaks to be worthless for our purposes.

[Undercurrent]

14. Thanks for the posts, guys.

It's always nice to hear people's personal history stories and perspectives.

In 1968 I had returned to the Pacific Northwest from living in Haight-Ashbury (my hippie period). I lived for a few months in Portland, then hitched a ride with a truly gonzo character to Northern New Mexico where I lived for 7 years in a small town across the valley from Taos. It was the beginning of my first artistic period which ended with the birth of my first child, and a hard scrabble that followed.

Although socially I was rather isolated, 1968 was an important year for me. It was the year of my beginning to wrestle with my personal demons. Of course, eating peyote, and other organic hallucinogens can have that effect.