This just occured to me, but alot of people who think the 80s are innocent seems to be if you weren't aware of the politics or the darker issues going on then. I don't wanna get into an argument about what birthyear can remember or know about this or that (since everyone's experiences are different)...but on average I'd say you'd have to be about 12 or even maybe in middle school to really grasp those aspects.

A huge thing might be if you were afriad of nuclear war or the Soviets. Even if I have a good memory and always paid attention to things, I was too little to be conscious of anything like that, so that's probably why I'm on the side that sees it as totally happy and worryfree childhood times. I knew the music and videogames and toys, but that's different. ;)

I didn't really learn about the Cold War and the nuclear scare until sometime in the 90s, and even though it gave me a better overall perspective of what was going on, it still didn't tarnish my breezy little kid memories since I was already conditioned that way. My own personal life and feelings are the first thing I flash back to, and I'm sure most people do the same thing.


P.S. I do remember the Gulf War in early 1991 when I was 9. That was sort of an in between feeling with me... like I knew enough to realize it was serious and could be bad (it actually scared me that first time it was announced on the news and my mom told me, lol) but it still didn't ruin by still basically totally innocent perspective of the time either.

The only event that I remember in the 80s is the Challenger blowing and I remember reading the Ebony magazine about the only black man in there dead with the rest of those who were in that shuttle.  It was a very seriuos matter.  I don't remember the Cold War.  I remember people helping out Africa as far as starving children.  As far as events, I remember EVENTS mostly after I turned 8 years old. I remember Walk Across America in 1986.  I remember Baby Jessica being stuck in the sewer in 1986.  It seems like I remember things mostly AFTER 1985 when I turned 8 years old.  I remember Jesse Jackson trying to run for President in 1984. I was 7 then.  Of course he didn't win because at the time, they weren't ready for a black President like we are now. You're right. Usually you have to be at least in middle school (6th-8th grade) to be able to remember some events that happened in the 80s.  Now I remember the Gulf War like it was yesterday, but I didn't remember the Cold War.  I was sheltered when I was younger.

No.  I can remember talk about AIDS and having the fear of drugs and drug abuse drilled into my head.  It was a time of constant "don't do this" whatever the "this" may be.  Fear tactics were pretty common.  Tipper Gore and her crusade against Rock music.  The so called Satanic Cult activities on the rise.  I can remember being too scared to read the newspaper because of things being bad.

I remember the Cold War.  I gave up worrying about nuclear war, though.  I lived right between a major air force base and Morton Thiokol, that did lots of government work.  I figured I would be blown away either way so why worry.

The 80's didn't seem innocent to me. 


Tipper Gore and he crusade against Rock music. 


Oh, lordy, the PMRC.  ::)  That woman drove me nuts.

No.  I can remember talk about AIDS and having the fear of drugs and drug abuse drilled into my head.  It was a time of constant "don't do this" whatever the "this" may be.  Fear tactics were pretty common.  Tipper Gore and her crusade against Rock music.  The so called Satanic Cult activities on the rise.  I can remember being too scared to read the newspaper because of things being bad.


I remember in the 80s when I was in the 4th grade that they talk about drugs and crack, and it scared the sheesh out of me, for real.  I remember this commercial when they used eggs and bacon as an example of what drugs will do to you.  I remember when Stevie Wonder sing that song "Don't Drive Drunk" when I was 7, and I paid attention to those lyrics as a little girl, and I never drove drunk even though I don't drive at all! ;D  I wrote a rap sog about stop doing drugs dropping out of school and stay in school when I was in the 4th grade in 1986, and I won an award.

I remember the Cold War.  I gave up worrying about nuclear war, though.  I lived right between a major air force base and Morton Thiokol, that did lots of government work.  I figured I would be blown away either way so why worry.

The 80's didn't seem innocent to me. 

Oh, lordy, the PMRC.  ::)  That woman drove me nuts.


It was half and half when it comes to the 80s.  I went through foster homes, molestation, and all that, but I also had good memories, better memories than the 90s I know that.

I was only 13 when the decade came to an end so I can't recall the nuclear scare.

But I do remember hearing the news about the Challenger blowing up and watching people crying on TV, tearing down the Berlin Wall, Ben Johnson being caught on steroids, AIDS talk (I was actually so scared about the disease that at one point I thought I was going to avoid $ex forever  :o ), baby Jessica being stuck in a well, and the big earthquake in San Francisco.

Despite all those headlines, the 80s still seem far more innocent compared to today, and I think that's the reason why I like to listen to 80s music sometimes.

I was only 13 when the decade came to an end so I can't recall the nuclear scare.

But I do remember hearing the news about the Challenger blowing up and watching people crying on TV, tearing down the Berlin Wall, Ben Johnson being caught on steroids, AIDS talk (I was actually so scared about the disease that at one point I thought I was going to avoid $ex forever  :o ), baby Jessica being stuck in a well, and the big earthquake in San Francisco.

Despite all those headlines, the 80s still seem far more innocent compared to today, and I think that's the reason why I like to listen to 80s music sometimes.
  I though that baby Jessica was stuck in the sewer.  Oh well, at least I remembered it.  Like you, I can't recall the nuclear scare.  I was 12 when the 80s came to a close.  I heard the AIDS talk, and the drugs talk, especially crack in the 80s that was so prevalent in the black community.  I remember visiting my mother in North Philly, and I will go with her to her friend's house in the projects, and it would have crack vials all over the ground.  I don't remember the Berlin Wall, I was watching hip hop videos at the time, so I didn't really pay attention to it.  Regardless of how it was in the 80s, the 80s were very innocent to me anyway.

being an adult in the 80's i never gave it much thought,  but my parents did, in the 50's and early 60's the nuclear threat was much more severe!

I remember the Cold War.  I gave up worrying about nuclear war, though.  I lived right between a major air force base and Morton Thiokol, that did lots of government work.  I figured I would be blown away either way so why worry.

The 80's didn't seem innocent to me. 

Oh, lordy, the PMRC.  ::)  That woman drove me nuts.


  Morton Thiokol...didn't they manufacture the fuel tank seal that failed on the Challenger..?

But there were other things as well.

Many history classes don't give much thought of this, as I see this as a rerun of the '50s scare, which was MUCH MORE documented; people began to feel that technology was improving to the point that it would be tougher to cause a big attack. When you do a search involving the "80s" on the Web, you will notice pop culture sites/blogs far outnumber history/journalistic discussion-oriented articles, but when you do a search for "50s", it's pretty even, and the importance of nukes was MUCH more critical in the '50s as opposed to the '80s. Because the '50s were not long after WWII, people still had fresh memories and felt afraid that a nuclear war would launch WWIII. Still, even if you could only remember the late '80s when the nuclear threat had ended, you would still perceive the '80s as even more innocent than the average adult, but not by too much. Even people who have some memories of this are viewing the '80s as more innocent than in the past due to the greater scares of the weapons of mass destruction from this decade, triggered by 9/11. 

I was a young adult through the 80's.  I didn't feel the 80's were innocent - but mind you, I had only the 70's and 60's to compare it to then.  I was indeed concerned about Russia and the nuclear scare.  Sting's song, Russians, spoke to the greater sentiment, at least from my perspective (he would've never made that song if a lot of us weren't concerned).  Crime was out of control.  Street gangs had a huge resurgence in the early 80's (they were pretty dormant in the 70's) and since I lived around an urban center, that was a concern.  Drugs were on everyone's mind, especially when used by kids.  Poor quality child education was a concern of some.  The economy had its rough moments, too.  One thing that appeared more innocent than the 70's was loose sex; this was mostly due to STDs, especially AIDS.

Despite all that, it was in many ways a hopeful time, which may have helped it feel "innocent".

I think the Cold War had actually started to become less intense by the 80s. Under Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet government was less hard line and authoritarian than it had been in the past. The Vietnam War was over. Sure, there was the Soviet war in Afghanistan, but overall, the hostility of the Cold War had definitely toned down. People were far more worried about an all-out nuclear war breaking out in the 50s and 60s than they were in the 80s. During the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, the whole world came pretty close to being nuked into oblivion!

  I though that baby Jessica was stuck in the sewer.  Oh well, at least I remembered it. 

I clearly remember her being trapped in a well because I remember I was watching Rags to Riches but then the show got interrupted with the news. I believe that was in the Fall of '87.

A nuclear scare was the subject of the video for Ultravox's 1984 hit 'Dancing With Tears in My Eyes'.  Used to make me wonder if something like that could happen

I think the Cold War had actually started to become less intense by the 80s. Under Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet government was less hard line and authoritarian than it had been in the past. The Vietnam War was over. Sure, there was the Soviet war in Afghanistan, but overall, the hostility of the Cold War had definitely toned down. People were far more worried about an all-out nuclear war breaking out in the 50s and 60s than they were in the 80s. During the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, the whole world came pretty close to being nuked into oblivion!

 
  “Able Archer 83″ and the attack on Korean Airlines 007 is widely understood to have been the closest we have been to destroying ourselves and our planet since the Cuban Missile crisis... :)


  Other news...

  What seemed innocent at first glance turned out much more sinister if you look closer.  A song everyone should know, "It's a Mistake" by Men at Work.  The music video portrays a cigar smoking government lackey sitting next to "the button".  Next to the button sits an ashtray.  He mistakenly puts his cigar out on the button and starts WWIII!  It's funny!  If you look at all the references to nuclear war in the music, it was downright bleak and dark with pessimistic lyrics, but set to an upbeat melody.  It's there, a person just dosen't notice it...

  The mainstream eighties (and seventies too) was an obsession with the end of the world.  It HAD to have warped more than a few children.  At the same time, somehow, this era was as deeply creative as it was deeply depressive and oppressive.  My answer to the OP is yes, but that goes for any era.  I can't judge the '50s by watching Leave it to Beaver...

A nuclear scare was the subject of the video for Ultravox's 1984 hit 'Dancing With Tears in My Eyes'.  Used to make me wonder if something like that could happen


That's a good song.

I remember a lot of the different events that went on in the world in the 80's - the Cold War, the Challenger tragedy, Chernobyl disaster, the Berlin Wall, Baby Jessica, etc.. from watching the national news with my parents in those days. Sometimes I wondered if there would be some kind of nuclear war so it did worry me a little bit.

We had nightmares--literal nightmares--about thermonuclear war with the Soviet Union.  Movies such as "The Day After" and "Threads" only enforced the fear.  Tons of '80s songs had cryptic messages about nuclear disaster.  For example, long after it was a hit, I found out "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes" by Ultravox was about a nuclear power plant melting down!  I mean for crhissakes, I thought it was just another romantic breakup song!  Yeah, as far as I remember, the '80s was burdened with a constant threat of atomic disaster.  It helped Ronnie Ray-gun sell his bloated defense budgets and illicit funding of Central American wars!
::)

I clearly remember her being trapped in a well because I remember I was watching Rags to Riches but then the show got interrupted with the news. I believe that was in the Fall of '87.



OOOOOOHHHH  I get what you saying.  Now it all comes back to me.  Now I see what you are taking about.  It was in the Fall of 87 because I was 10 at the time, and I remember that it was a loong special report because of that.  I remember Rags to Riches too.  I remember Tisha Campbell in it as well.

A nuclear scare was the subject of the video for Ultravox's 1984 hit 'Dancing With Tears in My Eyes'.  Used to make me wonder if something like that could happen


Hey, Whistledog, I didn't see your post!  I do remember the video, but I honestly didn't know it was the original subject of the song.

A lot of people thought "Safety Dance" was an anti-nuke song.  Others thought it was about safe sex.  I knew it had a homoerotic theme: "Doin' it pole to pole!"
8)

   Other news...

   What seemed innocent at first glance turned out much more sinister if you look closer.  A song everyone should know, "It's a Mistake" by Men at Work.  The music video portrays a cigar smoking government lackey sitting next to "the button".  Next to the button sits an ashtray.  He mistakenly puts his cigar out on the button and starts WWIII!  It's funny!  If you look at all the references to nuclear war in the music, it was downright bleak and dark with pessimistic lyrics, but set to an upbeat melody.  It's there, a person just dosen't notice it...

   The mainstream eighties (and seventies too) was an obsession with the end of the world.  It HAD to have warped more than a few children.  At the same time, somehow, this era was as deeply creative as it was deeply depressive and oppressive.  My answer to the OP is yes, but that goes for any era.  I can't judge the '50s by watching Leave it to Beaver...


Good call Dave! Another song that springs to mind is Land of Confusion by Genesis. The video was spot on as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yq7FKO5DlV0&feature=PlayList&p=57AAD448709F596F&playnext=1&index=79

I remember Jessica, Berlin Wall, talk of Cold War, Gorbachev, Falkland Islands, Gah - I could list for quite a while.
Aids - I did a speech report on it for English in 10th grade. It got right down to the nitty gritty. I started my speech but once the teacher figured out where it was going, she had me stop and sit down. I never got to finish my speech, however she gave me 100 on it. Guess it was outside of the core curriculum, and not approved of. :-X

      What seemed innocent at first glance turned out much more sinister if you look closer.  A song everyone should know, "It's a Mistake" by Men at Work.  The music video portrays a cigar smoking government lackey sitting next to "the button".  Next to the button sits an ashtray.  He mistakenly puts his cigar out on the button and starts WWIII!  It's funny!  If you look at all the references to nuclear war in the music, it was downright bleak and dark with pessimistic lyrics, but set to an upbeat melody.  It's there, a person just dosen't notice it...


And of course, Nena's 99 Red Balloons.  The title is a lyrical play on the (ww1? 2?) colloqualism "The balloon's gone up" as slang for "a battle has started".  Some unsuspecting kid lets loose a bunch of balloons somewhere in East/West Germany, the other side sees a bunch of unidentified radar signatures, launches fighters to investigate, the other side sees the fighter scramble, and "It's all over, and I'm standing pretty / In this dust that was a city."


“Able Archer 83″ and the attack on Korean Airlines 007 is widely understood to have been the closest we have been to destroying ourselves and our planet since the Cuban Missile crisis... :)


The Korean Air Lines 007 incident was the sort of thing that, in the 80s, could have blown out of proportion.  A civilian airliner went off course, and the danged Russkies blew it out of the sky.  (In the Soviet Union, the Americans attempted to overfly a militarily-sensitive area by hiding naughty things on a civilian flight that was only pretending to be off course.)  With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, the most plausible explanation was that it an honest (but tragic) screwup a'la the shootdown of the Iranian civilian airliner by the USS Vincennes.

Three weeks later, against the backdrop of KAL 007, during the run-up to Able Archer 83 NATO exercises, Stanislav Petrov saved the world by doing nothing.

Nena's song - released just a few months before these events - was closer to the truth than she knew.  Mutually-assured destruction worked, but only because decisionmakers on both sides were rational.  And lucky :)


  The mainstream eighties (and seventies too) was an obsession with the end of the world.  It HAD to have warped more than a few children. 


Just because I still giggle like a schoolboy opening his first Playboy whenever I hear Sigue Sigue Sputnik's M.A.D. (Mutual Assured Destruction) (the song's a tongue-in-cheek celebration of the idea of sending the world out with a bang, and samples every WW3-themed movie from Dr. Strangelove to War Games) doesn't mean the 80s warped me.

The fact that I giggle while using it as background music while playing DEFCON... that's proof that the 80s warped my fragile little mind.  We were promised the end of the world as we knew it, and REM didn't have a clue how fine we felt.

And of course, Nena's 99 Red Balloons.  The title is a lyrical play on the (ww1? 2?) colloqualism "The balloon's gone up" as slang for "a battle has started".  Some unsuspecting kid lets loose a bunch of balloons somewhere in East/West Germany, the other side sees a bunch of unidentified radar signatures, launches fighters to investigate, the other side sees the fighter scramble, and "It's all over, and I'm standing pretty / In this dust that was a city."

The Korean Air Lines 007 incident was the sort of thing that, in the 80s, could have blown out of proportion.  A civilian airliner went off course, and the danged Russkies blew it out of the sky.  (In the Soviet Union, the Americans attempted to overfly a militarily-sensitive area by hiding naughty things on a civilian flight that was only pretending to be off course.)  With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, the most plausible explanation was that it an honest (but tragic) screwup a'la the shootdown of the Iranian civilian airliner by the USS Vincennes.

Three weeks later, against the backdrop of KAL 007, during the run-up to Able Archer 83 NATO exercises, Stanislav Petrov saved the world by doing nothing.

Nena's song - released just a few months before these events - was closer to the truth than she knew.  Mutually-assured destruction worked, but only because decisionmakers on both sides were rational.  And lucky :)

Just because I still giggle like a schoolboy opening his first Playboy whenever I hear Sigue Sigue Sputnik's M.A.D. (Mutual Assured Destruction) (the song's a tongue-in-cheek celebration of the idea of sending the world out with a bang, and samples every WW3-themed movie from Dr. Strangelove to War Games) doesn't mean the 80s warped me.

The fact that I giggle while using it as background music while playing DEFCON... that's proof that the 80s warped my fragile little mind.  We were promised the end of the world as we knew it, and REM didn't have a clue how fine we felt.


  Exactly...

  Mutually assured destruction was everyone’s nightmare in the 80s...but it sure made for some great music..!

  "Secratary of State Haig invites the Russians to a nuclear weapons freeze.  Russians tells him to take a flying leap..."  Pass the McNuggets, please...

The 80's were innocent to me because I was so young to them. January 1s,t 1990 I was still 9 years old. I had no idea about any of this stuff.

The 80's were innocent to me because I was so young to them. January 1s,t 1990 I was still 9 years old. I had no idea about any of this stuff.


Which is why were here.  We remember when Reagan said "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down that wall.  (The Berlin Wall)

Which is why were here.  We remember when Reagan said "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down that wall.  (The Berlin Wall)


I was watching a lot of hip hop and RnB videos at the time in 1989, so I didn't really watch the Berlin Wall falling down, but I did remember the Baby Jessica incident and the Challenger blowing up.  I remember an African American man who was with them in that shuttle.

   
   “Able Archer 83″ and the attack on Korean Airlines 007 is widely understood to have been the closest we have been to destroying ourselves and our planet since the Cuban Missile crisis... :)


   Other news...

   What seemed innocent at first glance turned out much more sinister if you look closer.  A song everyone should know, "It's a Mistake" by Men at Work.  The music video portrays a cigar smoking government lackey sitting next to "the button".  Next to the button sits an ashtray.  He mistakenly puts his cigar out on the button and starts WWIII!  It's funny!  If you look at all the references to nuclear war in the music, it was downright bleak and dark with pessimistic lyrics, but set to an upbeat melody.  It's there, a person just dosen't notice it...

   The mainstream eighties (and seventies too) was an obsession with the end of the world.  It HAD to have warped more than a few children.  At the same time, somehow, this era was as deeply creative as it was deeply depressive and oppressive.  My answer to the OP is yes, but that goes for any era.  I can't judge the '50s by watching Leave it to Beaver...


You're absolutely right! I don't know what I was thinking, saying the Cold War wasn't intense in the 80s. What with the Reagan administration's massive arms build-up, the backing of the Contra rebels in Nicaragua, and the Soviet war in Afghanistan, there was more than enough Cold War tension during the 80s to keep people up at night! With both sides being armed with nuclear weapons, the Cold War meant that people in the 50s, 60s and 70s, as well as the 80s, had to live with the constant threat of the human race being completely annihilated by weapons of mass destruction.