Watergate, Warhol and the Birth of Post-Sixties America

[Paul Mackin]

On Apr 21, 2006, at 2:14 PM, kelber at mindspring.com wrote:

> From anecdotal evidence provided by, ahem, friends, it seems the  
> internet has helped revive promiscuous Sex  (if it was ever, in  
> fact, dead).

The Internet is certainly a more efficient way of communicating one's  
desires than the old ISO ads in
the New York Review and the Washingtonian magazine.

The Internet got its start in the 70s but hardly anyone except  
scientists, engineers, and such had
access to it. Dating a R&D types is such a bore.

By the way another college professor has written about the place of  
the seventies in recent history.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/23/books/review/23heilbrun.html

'Decade of Nightmares,' by Philip Jenkins
Doomsday Machine
Review by JACOB HEILBRUNN
Published: April 23, 2006


It seems Jenkins sees nightmares whereas the other prof saw a nervous  
breakdown.



"[Jenkins] notes that a series of moral and political panics in the  
late 70's, involving what many saw as excessive
permissiveness in domestic and foreign policy, pushed the United  
States rightward."

"As Jenkins sees it, the left bears a good deal of responsibility for  
this state of affairs, with its Watergate-era desire
to upend traditional society and its obsession with conspiracies. He  
describes the mid-70's as a turning point,
when, among other things, radical feminists railed against patriarchy  
and the dangers of sexual abuse by
parents. With liberal activists circulating wildly exaggerated  
figures of child abuse, Jenkins says, conservatives
soon had an open field: "Sex crimes could be traced to the libertine  
heritage of the 1960's and the deformation
of gender roles."

etc, etc

>
> Laura
> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Paul Mackin <paul.mackin at verizon.net>
>> Sent: Apr 21, 2006 8:07 AM
>> To: pynchon-l at waste.org
>> Subject: Re: Watergate, Warhol and the Birth of Post-Sixties America
>>
>>
>> On Apr 20, 2006, at 4:48 PM, David Casseres wrote:
>>
>>> On 4/20/06, Paul Mackin <paul.mackin at verizon.net> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> for a brief decade  promiscuous Sex could be had conveniently,
>>>> irresponsibly and safely.
>>>
>>> But the Pill became available May 11, 1960, and at least at my
>>> college, the Sexual Revolution was in full fuck by 1961.
>>>
>>
>> Yes, the pill was important and as the  60s rolled on there was much
>> relaxation on he  part of  parental and school authorities regarding
>> the  sexes residing together, staying out all night together,
>> vacationing  together.
>>
>> But I was mainly referring to the behavior
>> of  grownups and not to whether sex  was occurring
>> but whom it was occurring with and how indiscriminately.
>>
>> Over the broad population, from young adults to the very
>> late middle-aged.
>>
>> People were mostly married to someone else.  (or recently separated
>> from)
>>
>> Sex became like shaking hands.
>>
>> Hope I'm not exaggerating too much.
>>
>> Roe v. Wade had to be a big factor.
>>
>> There was nothing to worry about.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> .
>>
>>
>