NOW and THEN

Things have changed. Social. Moral,Economic,Fashion,Technology.The speed and degree things have changed is amazing. In 1950 in Vancouver things were much different to 2011 Vancouver.

Not everyone had a phone ,No one had a TV. There was no 911.No computers and no calculators.There was no direct dial.No numbers on the telephone.

A husband could beat his wife senseless without repurcusions from the law.Children could receive beatings or anytype of abuse. No abortions.Few support organizations.A  divorced woman was considred a  bit loose Getting a divorce was extremly difficult.

Housepartys were the normal social venue.  This continued well in to the 1960's. The food was supplied by the hostess as was some alcohol. Guests often brought both food and alcohol as a show of courtesy and thanks Sometimes in the 60's  it evolved to a BYOB party which means you were responsible for bringing your own alcohol. This was because of the expense and variety of tastes..In some social circles it was expected that most invited should  also have a party. Many times these were work related All socio-economic levels participated. The lavishness depended on the economic status of the participants.

There was no day care Women did not make good money. They had just come through a war where they ran things They worked in factorys, drove taxis amublances and firetrucks. They welded and riveted. They farmed. Women took the place of men to be left by the wayside when the men came back . Thank goodness that was relativly short lived.

It was easier to get ahead with hard work. At this time Canada lost a lot of talent to the U.S  as emigrating was much easier. It was a blessing in disguise that they tightened the rules about getting into U.S  Most that went south did well financially due to Canadian work ethics.

Penicillan was available but not antibiotics. Mumps Measles and Chicken Pox were common childhood illenessess. Whooping Cough was less common as was Scarlet Fever and Rheumatic Fever. TB was a huge issue and People were isolated in TB sanitoriums to recuperate.These long extended stays were extremely hard on families. No treatments were available for Venereal Disease. Surgical techniques by todays standard seem primitive now. The only major diagnostic equipment was Xrays. The equipment was large and cumbersome The  doses of radiation often large.

In the late 50's or early 60's a man named Tommy Douglas promoted Health Care Insurance for all It was  a universal program . It was created to encourage better health and prevent useless deaths due to economic circumstance. It was considered extreme  to have a facelift to prevent and rid of signs of aging.If people found out you had a facelift it would be embarassing. Thought to be too vain and  was not  covered. It was feared there would be arush of people to get treatment that would break us financially. There was a small rush but nothing that would break the system. It turned out Universal Health Care was cheaper With the former system people would not go to a doctor until things were at a crisis. Penicillan and the advent of antibiotics and preventative treatements turned out to be less expensive to the pateint and the system. Doctors thrived financially as they had no defaults No produce or or animals as payment..Bookeepping was cheaper because the forms became standardized. Private healthcare now was for extra things and remains today.. . To this  day Canadians are proud of their Health Care Insurance. It has flaws but nothing is perfect.

Birth control changed the lives of women and familys. Increase in income made lives easier  Womens rights organizations all became active at this time. Many jobs foremerly restricted to men were now open to women. Latch key kids were common.

After the invention of the transistor and the pocket calculater technology raced along and new things became available. Everyone had more money to spend and they did. The first computer I think was created by IBM and was huge. They remained huge until the 80's.Radio Shack sold the first computers. They were very primitive compared to todays sophisticated pc. The common household computer likely has more capacity than that of the 1980's institutional computer.Now computer can be book size. The radiophone evolved to become the cell phone The first cell phones were large and evolved to become the size of a large shoe and then to the  small size they are today.

In the 50's there was a cartoon character called Dick Tracy. He had  a  2 way wrist radio It was fantasy then. Real;ty now.

Mentally ill people were not homeless .In BC they were sent to a Mental Hospital ,Essondale later to be renamed Riverview. They had a board there that reviewed involontary admissions to prevent colusion between husband and the doctor. As a  moral issue It was considred intolerable for mentally ill people to go hungry not have a warm dry place to  live. Essondale was the best  available  As polcy changed more people were released. Would it not have been better to not only up date policy but build a new modern facilty.?Was too exensive Street was cheaper. Most fascilitys did not come  up to Essondale standards Crease Clinic was clinic for more temporary patients. They were not the best  by todays standard ,but were better than most.

 Amongst educated people homosexuals were considered to have " problems" It was thought to be a psychological issue. Intolerance was blatant  If one was a homosexual it could not ever be made to be known. Things were more tolerant in the late  60's and certain professions became acceptable. It was  not talked about. I expect in some very conservative circles that still remains taboo

Abortion became a hot topic Women will get abortions The legality or safety was not  an issue  due to desperation  Most were married   They  were poor  women Many men came back from the war broken and the women had to support the family. Thousands of untold heroines of the back street abortions died or were  severly damaged for life. Often they simply bled to death. They were unilkely to seek help as it was a criminal offence that would have gotten them jail time and shamed the family. Employment would have been  impossible to procur.It was a nightmare that changed with birth control and later the acceptance of abortions.

Once a week the air raid sirens were tested.This continued up into the 60's Places The suburbs used them to announce fires and for Volunteer Firemen to do their duty.