Shot In The Dark: Worldviews

August 24, 2005

Worldviews

King Banaian points us to this year's Beloit College Mindset List, which purports to enlighten us on what the new generation of students regard as their baseline reality.

You know the survey; it's the one that enlightens us with things like:

2. They don't remember when "cut and paste" involved scissors.
3. Heart-lung transplants have always been possible.
4. Wayne Gretzky never played for Edmonton.
5. Boston has been working on the "The Big Dig" all their lives.
6. With little need to practice, most of them do not know how to tie a tie.
7. Pay-Per-View television has always been an option.
8. They never had the fun of being thrown into the back of a station wagon with six others.
9. Iran and Iraq have never been at war with each other.
10. They are more familiar with Greg Gumbel than with Bryant Gumbel.

Interesting? Certainly.

But certainly not the whole story.

There are other things that are integral part of their worldviews - things that Beloit College missed:

76. "I Feel Your Pain" has always been an expression of cynicism.

77. Snoop refers to a rapper, not a Beagle.

78. "Heyyyyy" has always been Rosie O'Donnell, not Arthur Fonzarelli.

79. Alan Funt" Didn't he used to do that show that Ashton Kutcher invented!

80. Bob Dole has always been a Viagra pitchman.

More?
Posted by Mitch at August 24, 2005 06:27 PM | TrackBack

Comments

The Simpsons have always been on TV in one form or another. Unfortunately, so has Oprah.

Likewise, FOX has always been around.

"The Bomb" that could destroy us all is probably referring to The Fantastic Four.

Elmo has always been terrorizing Sesame Street.

Floppy Disks have always been solid.

Posted by: Jerry Leigh at August 24, 2005 06:47 PM

Oh great, now I feel old...

Posted by: Jay Reding at August 24, 2005 07:13 PM

Atkins is the name of diet plan not the "food" the got the Ventures going...i.e. Walk, Don't Run.

Posted by: Michael A. at August 25, 2005 12:02 AM

I worked on newsletters cutting and pasting paper bits to make camera ready copy for the printer.

I worked for American Motors.

Posted by: Fred Boness at August 25, 2005 01:49 AM

The NHL has always had Russian and Eastern European players.

Tobacco and distilled liquor were never advertised on TV.

The term "dial tone" makes no sense since phones have always had buttons.

I think there may have been some guy who hosted the tonight show before Jay Leno, but I'm not sure.

"Woody" refers to the guy in Toy Story or a nickname for a male condition -- not a stlye of car or the Ohio State football coach.

I remember the controversy when "All In the Family" used the word "pregnant" on prime-time TV.

Posted by: Nordeaster at August 25, 2005 09:08 AM

I remember when there were no such things as "video games", and how incredibly amazing the Atari 2600 was where you could play DIFFERENT video games just by switching cartridges.

I remember having to get up to change the tv channel, and turning a dial to do so.

Posted by: FJBill at August 25, 2005 10:55 AM

I still adore my Commodore 64!!

Super 8 is still great!!

Magnus Ronaldus was always President!!

Posted by: Greg at August 25, 2005 02:14 PM

Jobs at McDonalds have always paid $7.00 an hour, which is why we won't work there - it's beneath our dignity.

A call from a pay phone has always been a quarter. If you could find a pay phone.

Sin City wasn't the first black-and-white movie, Schindler's List was.

We have always been able to watch movies at home, on the VCR. With microwave popcorn.

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