How interesting. I didn't know much about the time period of Ford's presidency, so there was a lot here for me to learn!
I recently went through some archived newspapers from early 1987. I was struck by the various similarities between then and now, and how, despite things changing, nothing really ever changes about human interactions or human nature.
Very insightful, thank you so much. I haven't thought about the Ford Administration in a long time and not I suppose as fondly as I ought to. Maybe it's time to reread the Updike novel. I wonder if there is also recency bias in how we view Ronald Reagan. At the time he was elected I was about seventeen and in Northern Europe I think he was more or less viewed as neoconservative though with neo being short for neolithic as in sacking air traffic controllers at a whim and brining about travel chaos. Today he is viewed as a progressive leftist by American political journalists who have become used to the recent personality cult. The Red Queen Race of today's politics. Indeed there is nothing new under the sun though that may be a curse every bit as much as it is a blessing.
Thank you for your thoughtful comments as ever! It’s always good to read your thoughts. Indeed, I could have sworn I’d deleted the words ‘memories of the Ford Administration’ from the article, but, on rereading, it seems I was quite unable to resist. Glad you noticed it though! Reagan is an interesting case, you are quite right. He looked pretty neoconservative back in the day, as you remark, although one can’t help suspecting he couldn’t have spelt the word. His philosophy seems, as I understand it, essentially to have been a case of ‘Everything always turns out well in the end’. The amazing thing was how successfully he not only embodied it but somehow made other people believe it, too. I have a hard time believing the world would be a better place had Carter remained in office, good smart man though I am mostly sure he was. I feel possessed by a sense of end times when I look into my political glass ball, but maybe that is just Thanatos speaking. There must be hope: there always has been before now.
Indeed I don't think you mentioned the novel at all, it was just me making that link or at least I think so. Maybe it's in there and I took it in and used it without it registering. Happy to provide fuel for psychological analysis!
How interesting. I didn't know much about the time period of Ford's presidency, so there was a lot here for me to learn!
I recently went through some archived newspapers from early 1987. I was struck by the various similarities between then and now, and how, despite things changing, nothing really ever changes about human interactions or human nature.
Very insightful, thank you so much. I haven't thought about the Ford Administration in a long time and not I suppose as fondly as I ought to. Maybe it's time to reread the Updike novel. I wonder if there is also recency bias in how we view Ronald Reagan. At the time he was elected I was about seventeen and in Northern Europe I think he was more or less viewed as neoconservative though with neo being short for neolithic as in sacking air traffic controllers at a whim and brining about travel chaos. Today he is viewed as a progressive leftist by American political journalists who have become used to the recent personality cult. The Red Queen Race of today's politics. Indeed there is nothing new under the sun though that may be a curse every bit as much as it is a blessing.
Thank you for your thoughtful comments as ever! It’s always good to read your thoughts. Indeed, I could have sworn I’d deleted the words ‘memories of the Ford Administration’ from the article, but, on rereading, it seems I was quite unable to resist. Glad you noticed it though! Reagan is an interesting case, you are quite right. He looked pretty neoconservative back in the day, as you remark, although one can’t help suspecting he couldn’t have spelt the word. His philosophy seems, as I understand it, essentially to have been a case of ‘Everything always turns out well in the end’. The amazing thing was how successfully he not only embodied it but somehow made other people believe it, too. I have a hard time believing the world would be a better place had Carter remained in office, good smart man though I am mostly sure he was. I feel possessed by a sense of end times when I look into my political glass ball, but maybe that is just Thanatos speaking. There must be hope: there always has been before now.
Indeed I don't think you mentioned the novel at all, it was just me making that link or at least I think so. Maybe it's in there and I took it in and used it without it registering. Happy to provide fuel for psychological analysis!