From the equality of rights springs identity of our highest interests; you cannot subvert your neighbor's rights without striking a dangerous blow at your own. Carl Schurz

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Longing for a simpler time


 Wellington County Poorhouse -- near Fergus Ontario


Ah those halcyon days when life was simple and everyone knew their designated role in society. Blacks knew their place was the back of the bus, women contented themselves with domestic chores and were just literally dying to bear children by the dozen. Fun times when fathers could take their drunken rages out on their kids with impunity.Those days when pregnant teens moved into luxurious homes for unwed mothers and kindly gave their first born to some barren rich couple.

You know a time of moral certainty when child molesters were severely punished by being moved from community to community, spreading the love around if you will.  When a copper could deal with crooks appropriately by cracking a few skulls. Charitable days when destitute women and children got to live out their days in work houses saving them from lives of misery.

A simpler more equitable time when your boss kindly provided you and your family a home to live in and credit at his store. Family was important then, so important you were encouraged to bring your children along to work beside you. just try that today.

Well anyways you get the drift. That may be a Conservative's wet dream and sadly they have to a great extent succeeded in engineering a return to those simpler times, however if that is what it means to live a simpler life then I'd much prefer a messy and complicated one thank you.

4 comments:

  1. Don't forget that gays were given harsh jail sentences if found to have committed sodomy. Good old days...

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    1. Hi Beijing Yes that too among many others. When most people pine for the good old days they are longing for a world that did not exist except through the lens of their childhood. Then there are those who know full well what they are wishing for and we call them the Conservative Party of Canada

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  2. Mind you, I must say that there Wellington County Poorhouse looks a lot better built than most modern middle class housing. Socially, things were pretty crappy back then. But economically, in some ways the market had not penetrated and ruined as thoroughly in them thar days. Before planned obsolescence was king . . . I have a waffle iron that's a good 70 years old, makes better waffles than modern waffle irons you can get that die in probly like 5 years.

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  3. Hi PLG, What that picture doesn't show is that once deposited at it's doors typically the only way out was to be buried in the graveyard out back, but yeah they made stuff to last in those days

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