Soap Box--"Environmentalism" in the 60's Made More Sense

I have this funny thing about how things looked in the past.  When I see a photo that was taken before color photography was possible, I tend to think that everything in that era was actually in black and white, or sepia tones.  Clothing wasn't colorful, cars were bland, even parks had no green grass or trees.  Do you do this too? 

I sometimes wonder if the younger people today think the same thing about photos from the 50's and 60's.  All my family's old movies and photos were done in black and white.  The colored photos are all washed out, making everything look more "pastel" than it actually was.  I'm here to say--yes, there WAS color in the 1960's!

In fact, when I look at photos of the day, it was much brighter than it is today.  One of the huge differences I can easily see is the amount of trash.  Today, you can't drive anywhere without seeing trash on every stretch of roadway (if you live somewhere where that isn't true, count yourself very blessed!).  Parks are littered with garbage, with crows picking through fast food wrappers carelessly left behind.  Graffiti mars far too many signs and other surfaces.  Walking barefoot in a public place is far too risky because of used drug needles and broken glass on the ground. 

Florida in the 1960's--look how clean and bright it is!

1960's freeway--pristinely clean

In the 60's, here in Washington State, we had poster campaigns the whole time I was growing up.  In school we would work on posters with the theme "Keep Washington Green".  Our roads had that motto painted on them as well.  I can so well recall the pride we had in our surroundings back then.  Cities planted flowers around their "Welcome to..." signs, and kept the lawns neat and tidy. 

Washington State freeway in the 1960's--no trash beside the road

Most of all, everyone seemed to have the same attitude of picking up after themselves.  They walked the few feet to a garbage can and threw away their trash.  Kids were taught from the earliest age to leave the area as good or better than they found it.  It was for the good of all, and well worth the effort.

I don't have to go into the morbid details about the attitudes of today.  We all know, it's gone way downhill.  There are probably lots of reasons why that is true, and I know that I alone can't change attitudes.  All I can really do is model the behavior I want to see.  I try not to leave grocery store carts in the middle of the parking lot.  I often go so far as to take my cart to the grocery cart "barn" when I'm done with it.  I throw away my trash in garbage cans wherever I am, without even thinking otherwise.  And I have taught my own children to do the same.  It takes very little effort, and much less time than people might think.  We can do so many little things that make a big difference.

Far too common sights today

Is our society so busy complaining about air pollution, global warming, and ocean pollution that they can't see the mounds of filth we're living in, up close and personally, every day?  Is there a way to change hearts and minds in our country--to regain an attitude of caring about our surroundings?  This is the heart of winter right now, and where I live there are no leaves on the trees.  It is still drab and kind of dark when it rains all day long.  Having trash and ugliness everywhere I go doesn't help my spirits any
.   How about you?  Is this an issue that bothers you too?  Can you think of ways to turn things around?  I'd love to hear them!