1976 versus 2026: A comparison

I subscribe to, read and watch, a variety of blogs, podcasts, and programs on WordPress, Substack, Goodreads, and YouTube. (Maybe, too many?) However, that’s necessary to get a well rounded view of what’s going on regarding the state of our union, our country and its people. Unfortunately, given that, it’s impossible to say whether or not we’re making progress toward a “more perfect union”.

Some people say this is the best of times, others say we’re headed for catastrophic destruction.*

Moreover, it doesn’t matter who, or what tribe they’re from regarding their argument. There is as much disagreement between tribes as within. Liberal, Conservative, Progressive, Christian, Atheist, etc. and so on – it doesn’t matter.

What is true is that they all believe their argument is correct. Elon Musk or hobo living on the street – it doesn’t matter. Therefore I thought I’d add my two cents to the debate. (This blog being named “Great Debate”.)

Unlike many, I was alive and “adult” at the bicentennial, 1976; and am also, here now in 2026. Therefore: 1976 versus 2026: a comparison. Let’s talk about it.

1976

In 1976 I was twenty-six years old and between my first and second marriage. I owned my own home and property. Albeit a small, rustic (= without running water or electricity) cabin on a wooded quarter acre in the mountains west of Denver.

 

I paid $7,000. ($71. each month after a downpayment of $1,000.) for the cabin and land. (The median home cost then was $43,000. An apartment went for $200. a month.) There I lived, and worked as a bartender in Denver, a thirty-mile, one-hour, one-way commute. Gasoline was $.59 a gallon. My ride was a 1974 Dodge Power Wagon that I’d bought for $5,000. cash. (The average new car cost then was $4,500.) I worked 60 hours a week and made about $500, to $600. a week. (The average weekly income then was $255.)

I smoked Kool cigarettes, which cost $.42 a pack. There was the consumption of copious amounts of cocaine, which cost $100. a gram. Additionally, a lot of beer and liquor were consumed. Sirloin steak cost $1.24 a pound, which I got from the butcher at the back of the local grocery store. Located three miles down mountain.

Dog food was about $5.50 for a 25lb bag. TV was free, as was the radio – for the cost of a few ads selling necessary goods and services. There was no SportsCenter. No CNN.

I saw John Prine in concert for $6.50. Books, Movies, and Music were great! Think Centennial, Jaws, Hotel California. A movie, at a theater, cost $2.

In 1976 there were no computers. There was no public Internet, smart phones, or Social Media. Day care didn’t exist. My college tuition, in 1970, was $11. a credit hour. I had no student debt.

Nevertheless, I was so happy and content. My nickname was Dr. Trout. I fished a lot.

2026

For comparison. I am now seventy-six. I don’t smoke, snort cocaine, fish, or work. There is no marriage, nor home, as I rent an apartment. I have no pets. I’m okay; but not happy.

You all know how much things cost now. Nevertheless, look at this house below. It was built in 1940, here in Loveland, Colorado. This year it sold for $400,000.

Therefore, a buyer would need, at least, $40,000. for a down payment. A 30 year mortgage might be $2,275. a month. Not including taxes, insurance and such. Additionally, I’m sure it needs some work. (As did my cabin.)

Twenty-six in 2026

If you are now twenty-six years old, in 2026, as I was then in 1976 – you were born in year 2000. You are of Gen Z. You are the first fully online generation of the Digital Age.

When you were in diapers, Osama bin Laden attacked our country and killed 3,000 people. Our country went to war. In 2008, when you were eight, your parents experienced “the Great Recession”. Later that year, we elected the first black president, Barack Obama. Eight years later, when you were eighteen and could vote (but probably didn’t); Donald Trump was elected president. Three years later in 2020, COVID-19 landed and you experienced The Great Pandemic shut-down.

Here now, at age twenty-six, I can say with some confidence:

• you’re not married
• don’t own a home
• are mired in debt
• live at home with your parents
• your income is sketchy at best
• have a diagnoses

In Conclusion

Sure, some folks are doing fine – great even. All the advances in technology and services have led to all manner of new opportunities. However, overall? If we just look at we the people? It’s not even close. Our population is not healthy. We the people, overall, are overweight, lonely, anxious, depressed, and unhappy. Moreover, no amount of new things and gadgets can replace a person’s health and well being.

The wealth of this nation is an illusion. There isn’t enough gold in Fort Knox to pay for, or fix all that ails us. I think “things” peaked in the 1990’s and has been in decline ever since. Of course, it was not just one thing, but a confluence and accumulation of many factors. “Permutations of complications” as David Wallace called it.

Even baseball was better! (Think Reggie Jackson, the New York Yankees and the “Bronx Zoo.”) Boxing? There was Muhammad Ali. Are you kidding?  Horse Racing? (Think Secretariat and Seattle Slew.)

The American Dream** is on life support. The digital revolution, like the sexual revolution has failed most Americans. However, the failures are across the board. The NSA (National Security Agency) failed. Bankers and the banking institution failed. The CDC (Center for Disease Control) failed. Teachers and the educational system has failed. Politicians and the electoral process has failed. In other words, all our institutions and systems have failed to meet their obligations. First and foremost which is to protect us and keep us safe. So as we are free to pursue life, liberty, and happiness.

That said, ultimately these institutions and systems are made up of people. Therefore it is us, we the people, who are responsible for our failures. Hmm …

The 1976 versus 2026 comparison is not even close.

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• The overwhelming amount of what I read, hear, and see is anti-Trump, and self-serving. Because that is who makes up most readers and writers. Or, the “educated”. These are not “my people”. Even though I’m a reader and writer and well educated.
• I define The American Dream as the reality that your children can have a better life than you did. Because America was all about the freedom to do whatever it is you wanted, within the constraint that you must not break the law in doing so. Now, in 2026, we can’t even agree on what The American Dream means. People, smart people, are choosing to not have children! They’d rather care for a dog or cat. Because children, now, are a cost to happiness. Imagine that! come on … talk to me. Tell me I’m wrong.