The Wisdom of the Nineties

So I remember a couple of things being drilled into my head as a child. Basic and fundamental things that defined the way I acted and viewed the world. Like the time in high school when some sixth graders were trying to convince me that the best course of action when lost in sub-zero temperatures was to sit still. Because you might lose a limb, but better than lowering your entire body temperature? I still think their teacher was wrong and leading these poor kids to their deaths.

Example 1: Stranger Danger

Do you remember these lessons? Occasionally set to music. Don't take candy from strangers. Don't get into a stranger's car. Set up a secret password with your family so if your mom has to send someone from work or whatever you can verify that s/he actually knows your mom. (Ours was "pickles" I think.) Don't wear t-shirts with your name on them. (I remember being crushed when I learned about this one. I didn't have a t-shirt with my name on it, but my fondest dream was born and smashed in the same moment.)

So how can people justify this:

Not only do strangers have your names and placement in your family, but they know if you like soccer or have a pet. A whole generation of parents is putting their kids in grave danger! How is this allowed?

Example #2: Hole in the ozone layer

Remember when, pre-global warming, the hole in the ozone layer was environmental concern #1? Remember how that hole was caused almost entirely by aerosol hairspray? And the 90's, so fraught with aerosol hairspray abuse.

So imagine my horror when, in the search for product this weekend, I could find nothing BUT aerosol hairspray? Even brands whose non-aerosol products I've used had nothing to offer in the pump-variety. What happened? Where did all the environmentally conscious hairspray go?

When I was living in Armenia I spent the autumn in constant panic: leaf disposal there is largely a matter of unsupervised burning. My "No Burn" desert social conscience suffered an aneurysm daily.