US History 1973 - 2014 Commonplace Book: Lecture 8, Society and Culture in the 1970s (Con't)

I wish a buck was still silver
It was back when the country was strong
Back before Elvis
Before the Vietnam war came along
Before The Beatles and 'Yesterday'
When a man could still work, still would
The best of the free life behind us now
And are the good times really over for good?...
Wish a Ford and a Chevy
Could still last ten years, like they should...
I wish Coke was still Cola
And a joint was a bad place to be
It was back before Nixon lied to us all on TV
Before microwave ovens
When a girl could still cook and still would
The best of the free life behind us now
Are the good times really over for good?

— Merle Haggard, "Are the Good Times Really Over?" (1982)

Introduction to (and explanation of) this quote series can be found here.  Read this tag to see all of them.