created by Professional-Pick360 on 25/01/2025 at 22:27 UTC
18 upvotes, 99 top-level comments (showing 25)
Comment by AutoModerator at 25/01/2025 at 22:27 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Please do not comment directly to this post unless you are Gen X or older (born 1980 or before). See this post[1], the rules, and the sidebar for details. Thank you for your submission, Professional-Pick360.
2: /message/compose/?to=/r/AskOldPeople
Comment by DrunkStoleATank at 25/01/2025 at 22:29 UTC
95 upvotes, 7 direct replies
Ozone layer.
Comment by Sufficient-Union-456 at 25/01/2025 at 22:31 UTC
64 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Acid rain.
Comment by SageObserver at 25/01/2025 at 22:35 UTC
20 upvotes, 3 direct replies
Roadside litter.
Comment by Rightbuthumble at 25/01/2025 at 22:33 UTC
13 upvotes, 3 direct replies
In our area it was the effects of coal mines was having, especially the water coal mining where they just ripped the land to shreds. Also, because of all the blasting and such, a lot of water sources were contaminated. Rabies, too, was a big deal. Polio was a huge deal and as a polio survivor, I can say it's still a big deal in my family.
Comment by FunDivertissement at 25/01/2025 at 22:48 UTC
10 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Smog
Comment by Nightgasm at 25/01/2025 at 22:40 UTC
17 upvotes, 5 direct replies
I like most Gen Xers grew up expecting quicksand to be a common and real danger. For those too young to get it, quicksand was a very common thing in the cartoons we grew up on.
Comment by Substantial-Power871 at 25/01/2025 at 22:29 UTC
7 upvotes, 1 direct replies
nuclear winter?
Comment by BillPlastic3759 at 25/01/2025 at 22:45 UTC
8 upvotes, 2 direct replies
The dangers of nuclear power. Prompted by 3 Mile Island back in the day.
Comment by Artimusjones88 at 25/01/2025 at 22:45 UTC
7 upvotes, 2 direct replies
Love Canal. Rivers catching fire
Comment by pfmason at 25/01/2025 at 22:53 UTC
6 upvotes, 1 direct replies
In the 70s we were told to prepare for the next ice age.
Comment by elucify at 25/01/2025 at 22:40 UTC
12 upvotes, 4 direct replies
I'm in my 60s, and when I was really little, back in the 1960s, there was a lot of publicity about littering. "Don't be a litterbug", everyone knew that saying.
People can still be trash sometimes, but there's not trash all over the place like they used to be. It used to be common for people to use their car windows as trash cans. You don't see that much like you used to.
Also, acid rain and the ozone hole. Those problems were mostly solved thanks to regulation. You can expect to see them return soon, thanks to the recent political success of the asshole-American community.
Comment by MindingMine at 25/01/2025 at 22:32 UTC
5 upvotes, 0 direct replies
The hole in the ozone layer.
Comment by floridianreader at 25/01/2025 at 22:39 UTC
5 upvotes, 1 direct replies
The hole in the ozone layer, which was apparently caused by certain gases, like Freon, and whatever gas used to be used in hairspray cans. (I'm probably misremembering things).
Comment by dunwerking at 25/01/2025 at 23:14 UTC
6 upvotes, 1 direct replies
As a kid I was told california was going to fall into the ocean. Like to the point I didnt ever want to travel there.
Comment by Sluggo55 at 25/01/2025 at 22:43 UTC
9 upvotes, 1 direct replies
“Zero Population Growth” — overcrowding the planet with humans
Comment by arar55 at 25/01/2025 at 22:32 UTC
4 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Acid rain. The ozone hole.
Comment by WonderfulHunt2570 at 26/01/2025 at 01:53 UTC
3 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Leaded fuel
Comment by Difficult_Pirate_782 at 25/01/2025 at 22:40 UTC
6 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Greenpeace used to knock on the door saving the whales
Comment by Sledgehammer925 at 25/01/2025 at 22:46 UTC
9 upvotes, 1 direct replies
I remember when the “science was in” in the 1970’s that we were in for a global ice age, probably by the 1990’s.
Comment by 788mica at 26/01/2025 at 06:57 UTC
3 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Littering
Comment by Fit_Lawfulness_3147 at 25/01/2025 at 22:39 UTC
6 upvotes, 0 direct replies
The coming ice age
Comment by EnvironmentalRip7043 at 25/01/2025 at 22:43 UTC
2 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Nuclear power plants.
Comment by lucylucylane at 25/01/2025 at 22:59 UTC
2 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Acid rain
Comment by Key_Read_1174 at 25/01/2025 at 23:24 UTC
2 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Lady Byrd Johnson's "Litterbug/Beautify America Campaign" during the Johnson administration was for years highly & visibly effective for a cleaner environment. During the Carter Administration, the home heating energy crisis caused by the Arab OPEC Embargo spurred innovative energy efficient technologies as well as conservation of gas/fuel. Carpooling created less pollution. Home thermostats were kept at 65 degrees during the day, lower at night no matter what part of the US you lived in. We received reminder stickers from the gas/electric company to place on thermostats, refrigerators & water heaters. I still have my thermostat at 65. It automatically reset to 62 at night. "CONSERVATION" is not spoken about these days.