Quote Originally Posted by Tuerto View Post
Yup, working class culture has been wiped out for a number of reasons, traditional jobs in industry and manufacturing has had a huge knock on effect. I'd say that making the poor even poorer thus creating an underclass has proved catastrophic for the working class.
Good analogy that ‘making the poor even poorer’, it may be rose tinted glasses but years ago all blokes seemed to have a couple of bob over for a few pints with mates (whether that was detrimental to the household income, I don’t know? My old man always enjoyed a pint but never to our cost). I’d hate to be judgemental but has an underclass been created now, an underclass that could never afford the spiralling cost of nights out or treating their kids to the attractions available? So they drink cheap booze at home, never having the chance of mixing in the local and forging some community spirit. You mention that it was a bit dodgy growing up years ago but that local pub had a lot to do with calming that. It was a melting pot of age groups and the majority of good diluted the minority of bad, the older generation more or less kept the young tearaways in control because, more often than not, a youngster playing up would have his old man with his mates in the local telling them to ‘knock it off’. None of that now, people hardly know the other folk in their area.