Quote Originally Posted by N2NH View Post
Looks can be deceiving. There was an ocean of Horse crap and an army of sanitary workers with push brooms working to keep them as clean as possible. There was diseases that we don't even see anymore, coal was at a premium, if you got sick and had no family, you died. Read "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" and you'll get an idea of what life was like back then. Without the smells, heat/cold and noise.
True, they did have some bad problems back in those days. But its also a trade-off. We have many problems these days that they didn't have back then. And there was also a lot of good things back then that has vanished nowadays. I remember as a kid there were so many small stores run by independent families and you could find anything you wanted. No, they weren't going to get rich running a little candy store or hardware store but, they could stay afloat and make and save enough money to keep a roof over their heads, food on the table, educate their kids, etc. We have advanced a lot, particularly with regards to technology and medicine. But we have also lost a lot of great stuff and great qualities from days gone by. And we are turning into a nation of whining wimps.. In general I think I would have preferred living in the old days.