It's funny to look at the date of the OP and realize that when it was written, the iPhone was not yet released (it came out just over two weeks later). Netflix existed but only to mail people DVDs, and they certainly didn't make their own shows. There was no Hulu, or Amazon Prime TV, etc. There were no self driving cars. So arguably in the nine and a half years since it was posted, things have again changed just as much!
My top 250:
http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?user=SlackerInc&perpage=250

Oh come now. Mass shootings are FAR more frequent than they were then. I remember the shooting at the San Ysidro McDonald's back in the 1980s, and it was so shocking. The news reported on it for weeks. Now, these shootings happen so frequently that it's not even shocking any more.

Good point. "Family" was in the midst of its third season at that time.
My top 250:
http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?user=SlackerInc&perpage=250

Talk about remembering a decade through rose-colored glasses!
Exactly, and they also had school shootings because I remember the 'I hate Mondays girl, Brenda Spencer, who shot up an elementary school and killed some people because she hated Mondays. B!tch was crazy!

No terrorists in the 1970s? LOL Talk about remembering a decade through rose-colored glasses!
http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/28/opinions/bergen-1970s-terrorism/
(CNN)Terrorists' bombs going off frequently in New York, Washington, Chicago, and Los Angeles. More than a hundred hijackings of airplanes in the States.
These weren't the acts of ISIS-inspired terrorists in recent times, but of terrorists in America during the 1970s
In fact, the real Golden Age of terrorism in the United States was during the '70s, not in the post-9/11 world. Consider that terrorism in the United States was then a quite common feature of life: There were literally hundreds of terrorist bombings, shootings and hijackings in States during the 1970s. In the 14 years since 9/11 there have been by contrast only some two-dozen terrorist attacks in the United States perpetrated by a mix of jihadist terrorists, neo-Nazis, violent racists and anti-government militants, according to a count by New America.
My top 250:
http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?user=SlackerInc&perpage=250

Some of the examples I read on this thread was also poetic license or plot device. The 70's did have rules (or knowledge) about the questionable things they showed on the shows

Since I was a child of the 70's, I so wish were back in those days.so much simpler, there were no terrorists, no child killers shooting at schoolspeople could live their life without fear. With the exception of the show with the jury selection. I was appalled at the one guy who was such a bigot, why didnt one of the lawyers catch that?

Actually, child deaths from "unintentional injuries" (falls, fires, drownings, getting run over by cars) were WAY higher in the '70s than they are now. I don't mean 50% higher, but like three or four times as high.
So all the stuff you are scoffing/sneering at has actually saved many thousands of lives.
My top 250:
http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?user=SlackerInc&perpage=250

Mr. Coffee, microwaves, cable TV and answering machines were all available by 1979. The answering machines weren't as common and not many people had them. But they were available; a big box that hooked up to your phone. I remember begging my parents to get cable but they wouldn't. When I went to college in the mid-1970's, I had a Mr. Coffee machine in my room.

Yeah right, the mid 70's we were still in the dark ages, we never wore our seat belts, no helmets riding our bikes, people smoked around us, etc, isn't it amazing that we survived into adulthood? Where was the government when we needed them most to protect us, keep us safe, protect us from ourselves and our parents and all the horrible people around us, and nothing was even child proof. I guess we weren't responsible enough, we took too many risks, we need the gov to save us from ourselves because they care and love us so much. We can all agree, it's always worth losing freedom in order to stay safe.
How did we ever survive without microwave ovens, internet, cell phones, video games, Mr Coffee, cable TV, answering machines? Life must have sure been boring in the dark ages of the 1970's! How would the youth of today ever survive going back in time to then? Damn what a boring life we had back then!

3 words: Lawyers and Lawsuits!
Changed life as we KNEW it forever! Once they knew big bucks could be made from accidents, everyone got scared and hence no more diving boards, helmets, seatbelts..

I was amazed at how much cigarette smoking was shown in this. Willie, Nancy and Jeff all smoked.
Willie smoked in one episode - when he was trying to choose between Selena and Big Al.
Jeff smoked in one episode - when he was trying to get back together with Nancy at an outdoor cafe.
Nancy was never shown smoking.

They smoked a lot on "I Love Lucy" too, and it's still shown all over.

Many older TV shows featured smoking. "I Love Lucy" and "Andy Griffith", which have never been off the air, show the characters occasionally smoking.

I was amazed at how much cigarette smoking was shown in this. Willie, Nancy and Jeff all smoked. No wonder it isn't airing on TV anywhere in the US!

LOL Yeah, that's pretty true all right.
hmmm
By the time that we turned ten, we already had a couple of years experience in the workplace after school and kept up with family chores after work and before homework time, right?
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I played outside and went to friends houses from when I was six. I was allowed to take a bus to go to the movies from when I was eight. Children weren't treated like babies then.

Kate was of the generation that tried to patch things back togetherand didn't run and break camp at the first sign of a problem. It was definitely a generational situation. I bet if we surveyed themMANY women who have been married FOREVEr will admit to the husband having cheate don them at least ONCEI don't agree with it but I can see the other side of it.
As far as the alcoholstudies were done but it still wasn't yet known how MUCH alcohol can affect the baby. they were still saying ONE drink won't hurt the fetus.
Success is nothing without someone you love to share it with Brian to Tracy in Mahogany

I have only watched the first two episodes and I had to call one of my friends to comment on this very subject. In the pilot, we see Kate give a pregnant Nancy AN ALCOHOLIC COCKTAIL. Hello, I really thought people knew better by 1976. In the same episode, Kate is disgusted that Doug agrees that Nancy should leave her cheating husband AFTER SHE FOUND HIM CHEATING IN THEIR OWN BED and all Kate can point out is that it somehow must be Nancy's fault. Then Kate and Nancy bond over how their husbands both cheated on them.
Yes, some things were simpler then and I loved the freedom kids like Buddy had to freely go to their friends houses or the mall without parental supervision, but some of the backwards thinking is really striking.

Yeah Now what gets me is DOUG IS A LAWYERin the first ep he has the Ford LTDok suitable for himand Kate's the one with the MaverickTHEN in eps after that Kate has that busted @$$ Pinto grocery getter and Doug has the Maverickuntil the later seasons when they sorta correct the problem and Doug once again has an LTD and Kate the MaverickNOTE Nancy always had a NICE carI believe it was a Benz in the first ep and maybe a BMW after that?.or did she still have the Benz?
Timmy's car seat is another thing I noticelook how simplistic and NOT VERY safeGod Bless us babies born before the mid 80s.
Emily, Doug's alcoholic sisteractually HIT the parked car at the end of the driveway. At least Kate had the good sense to tell Nancy to take the baby in the house firstactually, aside from physically sparring with Emily, Kate really couldn't do anything about Emily who was persistant in driving away from there at that moment.
Kate and Doug had DAILY evening cocktailson the one ep when Nancy was going to marry Peter her former professoryou see Kate drinking BEFORE Doug gets homeand when he comments on it she says, "I was thinking of getting drunk. Care to join me." LOL @ Kategotta lurve her.
How about the fact that they could still ORDER their groceries from the LOCAL marketAND have them delieveredas was the milk!

There were so many things that flew right over my head when I bought the DVD, I was amazed at the frequency of Doug & Kate's cocktails and the common occurence & acceptance of dropping out of high school. The one thing that sticks with me throughout the years..? These people always drove unassuming FORD vehicles. Product placement circa 1976!

No matter what we have we'll always want more. I guess that's true in any age. When "Family" first aired, I was a college student and life seemed very complicated I hated my major, I was dating a guy who was gun-shy about long-term commitments, and I lacked the courage to change either of those things. Shows like "Family" were a fuzzy, feel-good break from life.

It does make you wonder, are we better off with all we have? Life seemed simple back then. Hmmmmmmm maybe it's true - "less is more".
Anyway, I love the show for many reasons. I love the family, the hominess and the distinctly different lifestyles of each of them, yet they are tight knit.