Politics and Cultural influences in 1986

According to the CPI inflation calculator on the bureau of labor statistics shows that $50.00 in 1986 has the same buying power as $99.95 in 2008
A great website for economic, political, and social information for 1986 is http://www.answers.com/1986
This website has a list of categories on the right hand side with a variety of information from this time period

1986 was designated the international year of peace by the United Nations.
Some more websites for political information and articles are
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE1D81538F937A25754C0A961948260&scp=6&sq=politics%201986&st=cse

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE1D71638F93AA2575BC0A960948260&scp=1&sq=politics%201986&st=cse

http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20030201&slug=webchallenger01

http://www.enotes.com/peoples-chronology/year-1986/political-events

A big influence throughout the late 1980s was princess Diana she supported many british designers from Arabella Pollen and Bruce Oldfield to Amanda Wakeley, then started supporting more international designers such as Chanel.
http://www.fashion-era.com/diana_80s_fashion_icon.htm

In the 1980s, fashion was influenced by the western economic boom. The dominant market was getting older and was also financially secure. Demographics changed the face of society. People were living longer and seemed to act younger at the same time. Old industries died, while new technologies developed and boomed.

Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan in the USA celebrated presidential success with a style that used fashionable conspicuous clothes and social events to display the affluence of American society to a world audience. 1980s Fashion history - Headshot of Margaret Thatcher in her trademark royal blue tailored suit and also a black suit with white collar.

The world was in flux; ever changing. The USSR relaxed rules and opened up to private enterprise. The Berlin wall came down and other eastern bloc countries craved western clothes and liberation.

In Britain Thatcherism promoted privatization and the idea that greed was good was given credence. Temples to modern living, shopping malls sprang up throughout Britain. Western society consumed and consumed.

Designer labels and branding gained impetus. Brand names became status symbols for sports gear and sportswear, perfumes, electrical equipment, cars and fashion designer goods such as clothing, bags, luggage, scarves and spectacles.

By the mid-eighties tills rang not with cash, but the increasing use of credit cards. It was all such a relief to the consumer to be able to spend and actively be encouraged to consume after years of recession. Clothing purchases soared. Interiors were decorated. Showing wealth was superficially powerful.
http://www.fashion-era.com/1980s_lifestyle_and_fashion.htm

some fashion history of not just 1986 but all of the 1980s
http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/80sclothes.html