Save the Wetlands Sun Shield Art, Wildlife Refuge, Linda Patterson San Francisco
One of a Kind 1980's Save the Wetlands Sun Shield: Citizens Committee to Complete the San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Don Edwards Refuge. A vintage Save the Wetlands sun shield from the Citizen Committee to Complete the San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge with art work by early pioneer activist Linda Patterson. This sun shield has seen better days and, indeed, looks as if it took a dip in the tidal flats itself. However, the main artwork remains in good condition and is suitable for framing, as they say. The reverse side has that old standby from the days prior to cell phones: "Need Help, Please Call Police" just in case something dire happens during your commute and it just seems too dangerous to exit your vehicle to seek help. Ah, the 80's....
Now known as the Citizens Committee to Complete the Refuge, the SFBNWR was a pioneering environmental venture started by ordinary citizens that coalesced during the activism that would eventually lead to Earth Day and a national understanding of the importance of local environmental issues to the overall health of the Earth. Initially founded in response to a planned development on fragile wetlands by the Leslie Salt Co, the SFBNWR's reach has helped create a refuge that now spans 30,000 acres of the South Bay protecting a diversity of habitats including salt ponds, tidal marshes, seasonal wetlands and vernal pools, and uplands. You can visit CCCR's newsletters here to discover more about the successful work of this fantastic organization.
Save the Wetlands
80's Anyone?
THREE WORDS: GREED IS GOOD! During the 80's economic deconstruction increased in the developed world and multiple multinational corporations relocated to third world countries benefiting with large economic gain through lower wages and benefits. And, as H. Ross Perot would soon famously add: "That giant sucking sound you hear is your jobs going South."
Meanwhile back at the ranch, things were disintegrating: Cocaine, AIDS, Supply-Side, Live Aid, Farm Aid, Falklands, Grenada, El Salvador, Glasnost, Berlin Wall, Tiananmen Square, USENET, ATARI, GUI, MS-DOS, HTTP, CAFE, MTV, ET, HBO, PTL, PLO, WWF, WTF, NAFTA, Iran-Contra, Ollie North, Greenpeace, Pan Am Flight 103, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand (all gained independence!), Just Say No, Crack Babies, Air Traffic Controllers, Hunger Strikes, Marcos, Helmsley, Hinkley, St Helens, Challenger, Korean Flight 007, Bhopal, Chernobyl, Exxon Valdez, Mario, Boombox, Halley's Return, Faulty O-Ring, Yugo, K-Cars, Mini Vans, DeLoreans, Solidarity, Junk Bonds, Trump, Milken, Black Monday, Keating 5, Thriller, Dallas, Cassettes, Madonna, Drum Machines, Grandmaster Flash, Curt Cobain, Karen Carpenter, 750 Million People Watched Prince Chas Marry Lady Diana, Jim Baker, Jimmy Swaggart, Olympic Boycotts, 49'ers, Magic-Byrd, Pac-Man, Member's Only, Mullets, Rubik's Cube, Leg Warmers, Brick Phones, Swatch.....It was a decade of excess and paybacks, not to mention hangovers!
Personally, I was pretty busy raising a family and developing my career so missed out on a lot of the extreme side of it, but it was definitely all around me wherever I went, and the shambles of it linger here and there, including in my 80's ANYONE? shop! So go ahead and try on the crown of Post-Modern Capitalism for a while to see how it feels:
https://www.ebay.com/str/portlandpandemonium/1980s-Anyone/_i.html?store_cat=38704223017
We Will Scratch Your Vintage Itch
