A retrospective look at the crisis of the 1970s which contributed to the rise of the conservative movement, as a pivot between two different eras in the history of American capitalism and , by extension, labor relations in the United States – are not just an exercise in nostalgia. Rather, it is an opportunity to try to learn lessons from these crises and apply them to our current situation. The 1970s indeed marked a turning point in labor relations in the public sector. This shift has had long-term effects on how states and municipalities treat public sector unions. “It is important to understand the driving force that has driven American conservatives to meaningfully engage in the worlds of politics, education, the courts, and culture. — namely the reaction force”. (That Crisis of the 1970s, 2013) In the late 1950s, conservatives felt they had no choice but to fight what was happening in their country and the world and what was happening was largely the result, in one way or another, of the left. . Things were going wrong and needed to be fixed: the advance of communism, the expansion of the welfare state, the overregulation of free market capitalism, the growing power of unions, activism in the courts, sexual permissiveness, crime and the collapse of the political system. the family, not to mention the deterioration of our schools. “What the left saw as progress, conservatives saw as decline – and in response, they looked for practical solutions.” (First Principles 2013) Over the next two decades, the 1960s and 1970s, conservatives became increasingly influential in politics, conservative organizations grew, financial resources were developed, new periodicals were founded and a vibrant youth movement...... middle of document Training course: Ronald Reagan, air traffic controllers, and the strike that changed America. New York: Oxford UP, 2011. Print.McCartin, Joseph A “A Wagner Act for Public Employees”: The Deferred Dream of Labor and the Rise of Conservatism, 1970-1976. The Journal of American History; June 2008 Schulman, Bruce J. The 1970s: The Great Shift in American Culture, Society, and Politics. New York: Free, 2001. Print. Taylor, Evelyn SPATCO and Reagan: An American Tragedy: The Air Traffic Controllers' Strike of 1981. Bloomington: AuthorHouse, 2011. Print. “What can the crisis of American capitalism in the 1970s teach us about the current crisis and its possible consequences? This crisis of the 70s. Internet. December 9. 2013.