Is it just me or was America around 1970-1979 a corrupt, drug drenched, dirty, sleazy nation? Maybe it was just New York. Political corruption at every level--from Federal (Nixon/Watergate) even down to local (Serpico)--more so than today. Morals were being thrown out the window and things which would've been met with gasps and shunning (like porn movies) were now, in the 70s, national events (Deep Throat, to which both celebrities and even the average American went to see), as never before. Drug use wasn't really a concern among the youth anymore--It was just a fact of life. In NYC, Off Tracking Betting opened in 1971, basically a societal acceptance or encouragement of gambling. Basically everything considered immoral just two decades before was now normal.
And it was important politically--In 1972, in my opinion, we see the birth of the modern GOP (with Nixon destroying the New Deal Coalition and creating the Great Silent Majority which has served the GOP in every election since), and the death of or beginning of the end of the New Deal era. It was a watershed year politically--Watergate, Nixon going to China, Detente and ending with Nixon winning in a landslide. It was almost, at least for the moment, a vindication for all the conservative folks and a devastating blow to the Hippies and anti-war people--That here, the man they hated, Nixon was re-elected overwhelmingly. 1972 marks in my opinion the end of the Hippie/Anti war movement as a major force in society, with many of the Hippie elements (long hair, facial hair) just being absorbed by the mainstream culture.
The war was winding down, and by 1975-1976 after the war, it seems America was set in party mode, with the Discos, Studio 54--decadence on a level not seen since.
It seems like in all those years there was this dull, sort of jaded sense of ''this is how life is'' (Like the cynicism of the 90s) but mixed with this wild urge to party and take everything to excess and go to hell with everything--all mixed together to create a sort of land of the rough and tough, moreso than before. The '80s are called the Decade of Excess but I think that belongs more to the '70s, particularly 1972.
The grit, sleaziness and general attitude of the 70s is summed up for me by the song "Rocks Off" by The Rolling Stones, from Exile on Main St. That album is for me an exploration of America in 1972 at least, or of this very corrupt and dirtied sense of Americana.
Republicans simply became more conservative and this shift is based off my observation that right wing think tanks got more conservative. Think tanks that tried to stay moderate were overthrown and taken over by even more conservative members. Someone could simply say that the rise in think tanks does not directly correlate with the election of conservative legislators,but these think tanks provide important talking points and policy.
In an ideal world strong minded individuals like me would have the opportunity to openly confront individuals at CATO and Heritage every day. Unfortunately, These morons/hacks and failed professors will rarely change their minds when confronted with heavily researched facts.
