Everything old is new again; ’70s revisited
by Chris Taylor, editor-in-chief

    Being bedridden for a week will certainly open a person’s eyes to a few things. During my stint on the sick list, I learned that daytime television stinks.

   First, you have Barry Manilow (shudder) selling his greatest hits (?!) on television. Then, Miss Cleo is telling me the cards never lie, and I get to see a commercial for a hair removal product that bears the unfortunate name of Nads.

   I did notice something else, though. What year is it exactly?

   I see Scooby Doo on television; a new Star Wars movie is due this summer, and Spiderman is about to star in a movie. Is it the 1970s all over again?

   Further proof of this exists at the local toy store. On the shelves are toys from Star Wars and Kiss (the band that wore all the outrageous makeup).

   It might seem like some fads are going through cycles like they usually do, but while still at the toy store, I see evidence of some kind of time warp.

   I saw G.I. Joes, Transformers and Masters of the Universe. All these toys were big in the ’80s. On television, there is That ’80s Show. Even our government is getting into the act. Military spending is at its highest since the Reagan era, and there is talk of a war with Iran.

   Is the Ayatollah still in power over there? Also, our president thinks we need a missile defense system. The economy is in bad shape, and the unemployment rate is increasing.

   Does this sound familiar to anyone?

   The ’90s are haunting us also. Remember Saddam Hussein? He’s back, feuding with a president Bush again.

   So what does all this mean? Are we stuck in a time warp or has the space-time fabric been ripped to shreds?

   Or could it be that we’ve just run out of good ideas?

   It certainly seems that the more things have changed in the last 30 years, well, the more they’ve changed back.

   It’s not a bad thing because nostalgia can be good, but as the saying goes, if we don’t learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it.

   When people yearn for the good old days, it seems that maybe they haven’t gone that far at all.

   All I know is I’m going to cash in on those trends early this time. If anyone wants to buy a pet rock, let me know.