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Faced with rapid change and the fear and uncertainty that go with it, individuals as well as nations sometimes seek to return to the ways of the past as a solution. In the early 1980s the idea of returning to the ways of the past had a strong appeal to many Americans who increasingly viewed their past as being better than their future. Yankelovich and Lefkowitz have observed that until the 1970s Americans generally believed that the present was a better time for their country than the past and that the future would be better than the present; by 1978, however, public opinion polls showed that many Americans had come to believe that trust the opposite was true; he past had been better for the country than the present, and the present was better than the future would be better than the future would be. g P>pb W_
The population appeal of returning to the ways of the past as a solution to the problems of the 1980s was demonstrated when Ronald Reagan was elected President of the United States in 1980. Time magazine chose President Reagan as its “man of the year” and said of him:” tellectually, emotionally, Reagan lives in the past.” !Q\*a-C
One of President Reagan’s basic beliefs is that the United States should return as much as possible to its pre-1980 ways. In those times business institutions were strong and government institutions were weak. Reagan believes that the American values of individual freedom and competition are strengthened by business and weakened by government. Therefore, his programs as President have been designed to greatly strengthen business and reduce the size and power of the national government. By moving in this way toward the practices of the past, president Reagan believed that the standard of living of Americans would begin to improve once more in the 1980s as it had done throughout most of the nation’s history. zY/O
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26. American people wish to return to ways of the past because __________. ,$`} Rf<
A. they are nostalgic "|JbdI]%P
B. they are uncertain of the present 1gK|n
C. they are conservative 3$"V,_TBZ
D. they are facing too many social problems RQ=rB9~:ZN
27. Before the 1970s Americans generally believed that _________ 7c\W&ZEmb-
A. the past was better than the present T.cTL.}
B. the present was as good as the past P
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C. they should return to the past "6C
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D. One of the reasons that Reagan was chosen as the “man of the year” in 1980 by Time magazine was that ___________ k2Cq 9kQ q
A. he knew a lot about the past u^xnOVE
B. he was experienced enough to compare the present with the past T[4xt,[a
C. his idea and feelings are quite similar to those of the pleasant past C9 +rrc@4
D. he was well liked by American people
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29. Which of the following might not be used as an explanation for Reagan’s belief that the American values of individual freedom and competition are strengthened by business and weakened by government?_________ a=$ZM4Bn
A. When a government is too powerful, individuals won’t have much freedom. 6n/=n%US
B. When business have more freedom, they are likely to be more competitive. rOOo42Y W`
C. The reduction of the power of the government will allow more freedom for business. 8^EWD3N`
D. Government has proved itself useless in terms of enhancing individual freedom and competition. }t#|+T2f
30. President Reagan’s belief about the relation between business and government was based on _______ ,R=!ts[qi
A. modern political theory B. practices of the past 6<@ mB Z
C. practices of the present D. his own creative ideas
