Nice whitewashing of history. For just one sobering reminder, re your materialism claim: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keeping_up_with_the_Joneses
So, you have absolutely nothing to support your ignorant claim. That figures because you are on the same level of playing field as trendlover. The two of you could easily be the definition of "pre-human."
What a joke ricter is. He claims people in the late 30's basically wore classy dresses, shirts and ties with shined shoes, combed hair, etc., as the people were "keeping up with the Jonses" then. Does the lunatic KNOW keeping up with the Jonses today, i.e., real estate crash, and more, may just be a little more problematic vs people trying to "out dress" each other then? Self respect, he'll never understand.
You also have to remember that coming off an airplane back then and you smelled like an ashtray. Everyone smoked on airplanes back then. They used to ask if you wanted to sit in smoking or non-smoking, but it didnt matter because the smoke would hit you no matter where you were. I remember as a boy I went to sleep on a plane, and woke up and could barely breathe there was so much smoke on the plane. I ran to the bathroom because the air was "Cleaner" in there, caught by breath then went back into the sea of smoke. Was a horrible experience. Also remember that people used to smoke in hospitals up until the 70s too. A doctor would be delivering a womans baby with a cigarette in his mouth.
Oh I do remember the smokers in the back of the plane... I'll occasionally fly planes with ashtrays (lids have been dismantled), in the arm rests. Talk about old planes. Lol!