I have a friend who came to this country in the early nineties and
missed that wonderful cultural insight that has come to be known as the
eighties. I know there are a lot of you out there who would rather forget
that the eighties ever happened, but the fact is they did, and you had better
learn to cope with it. Also, the eighties are the shared background of
most of my friends who like to hang out and be cool, and everyone knows
that a working knowledge of that jilted decade are essential to not only
hanging out, but also being cool.
Imagine never waking up early on Saturday morning to watch Optimus
Prime and the Transformers kick some Decepticon butt with their cool laser
guns and explosions and then follow that with a lovely half hour where the
Care Bears use their lovable little Care Bear stare to make the bad guys
feel all warm and mushy inside. If that doesn't lead to a screwed up image
of the world, then nothing will.
But cartoons are not the only thing she missed. She never heard of
Cindi Lauper or owned a jean jacket. She never settled down to watch ALF
or Family Ties or Knight Rider. And if I ever sit her down to watch the
Smurfs, she will wonder on why one girl is living with 99 guys. Then I
will try to explain to her that Smurfette used to be a guy until she was
turned into a girl by the evil wizard, but she will just look at me funny.
See what the nineties will do to you?
John O'Hara
never liked MYST. He thought it was a silly game. On a more
serious note, he would like you to remember the plight of the dyslexic
dolphins and he hopes that you will support their cause by sending him lots
of money.
