hippie movement
Festivals & Gatherings – A Revival of the Hippy Movement?
hey mr. hippy dude,
whats happening. i have a question for you. how do you feel about the music scene thats going on right now?? the hippy scene seems to be getting bigger and more accessible lately. im not saying that in a bad way or a quote unquote selling out way, but it seems to be becoming huge again. for instance ..this summer we have boneroo which is huge, the gathering of the vibes, the grateful dead reunion and whatnot. it seems to be one of the biggest summers for our music in a long time.. could this be a small taste of whats to come.
i definitely see more and more jam bands becoming huge and alot of bands and artist playing together more and more. and many artists from various musical styles intertwining. could we be entering a new phase of musical creativity?? similar to the scene that was going on in the 60’s?? everyone seems to be coming together and with everything that happening in the world right now, it would be a great time for it.&n! bsp; what are your thoughts???
id love to hear you opinion.. thank you- sean jersey hippy
Sean,
That sounds wonderful! I hope you’re right that it’s a signal of things to come. I have some reservations however. First all these big festivals have one thing in common, beside the music, a LOT of commercialism. That wasn’t the case back in the 60s. Oh sure there was some, but with the last Woodstock fiasco, it seems the people putting on these events are more into the money than the vibe. In addition the people coming to these events aren’t always coming with a peace & love vibe.
I’ve found these mega events to be a mega pain. I don’t do them anymore. Even smaller concerts indoors are so much of a bother, I rarely go unless the venue and artists are truly worth the shit you have to put up with to attend these things. Of course this is because I’m old and jaded. It’s just not as exciting anymore as it was when I was a kid and it was a novelty.
For the younger generation of hippies (esp. wannabees), it’s very exciting and a great change from their suburban middle-class lifestyle. So I encourage them to go, because it’s the perfect way to realize you’re not alone in being different, and you can discover the solidarity and power of the younger generation, and learn from those of the older generations who attend these events.
Plus the music is always a good experience, if it doesn’t get drowned out by the commercialism of the event itself.
It’s great for young people to learn there are alternative forms of musical entertainment besides rap, heavy metal, and boy bands. And the whole experience of these mega events is much more than you get going to a regular concert. In addition alternative lifestyles are displayed including that of the kynd people who travel around with these groups like the deadheads. Yes you CAN live outside the corporate American program, and thrive!
Of course exposing young first timers to sex, drugs, and the whole scene is fraught with risks if they are too naive. If they don’t get ripped off, they might overdose, or sexually preyed upon. My advice to first timers is to attend these events with a group of friends, and stick together. Watch out for each other.
I’m sure most people have the time of their lives, but for some it can be a very unexpected learning experience. It’s just that these things are not like the original Woodstock, when the peace & love vibe was so overwhelming, that the danger was minimal, even given the conditions. The world has changed.
For a real taste of what Woodstock was like, I recommend the Rainbow Gatherings. These are completely without the commercialism and hype that accompany the major music festivals. There’s much more to be learned about communal living, social responsibility, and living in harmony with your surroundings than any of these other gatherings can teach.
Another alternative is the Burning Man, which likewise is free from commercialism (but it sure is getting big). This is a place for those who are creative and need to express themselves in ways that society would frown upon. If I had the time, I would check it out myself, although hanging out in a dry lake bed in Nevada isn’t my cup of tea.
But getting back to your original question, I think the increase in the number of these events and their attendance is a sign that more people are rejecting the corporate media, and prevailing lifestyles and conformity, and opting for alternative entertainment. As long as they keep these events from just being another huge commercial ripoff they can spread the healing vibe to a new generation! And yes that is something we need desperately. I just hope it’s not too late…
The Old Hippy
Posted by: skip
Views: 54726
Topic:3
A Neo-Hippy Movement?
I was just wondering if you think it is possible to accomplish a neo-hippy movement as great and as intense as the summer of love? Is there anyway that you can see the hippies of this generation molding together to unleash the essence of flower power all over again. If so, enlighten us.
Jazzerous and Jannyfire
A lot has happened since the summer of love in 1967. Unfortunately, we can
never go back to those days. There was a certain innocence with which we
entered that year of great change. Today that innocence no longer exists –
especially now that children are afraid of what might happen in their own
schools.
The combination of events that flowed into the summer of ’67 are unlikely to
be repeated again. A postwar generation coming of age, draft age kids going
to a new war far away in Asia, the spiritually hollow affluence of the most
powerful nation on earth (worse now), the sudden mass production of a new psychedelic
drug, LSD, the opening up of several million minds to infinite
possibilities, the colorful emergence of a new subculture – hippies, the
words and music of a generation ready for change, the positive attitudes and
vibes and feeling of brotherhood, the growing awareness of eastern
philosophies completely at odds with the American consumerist mentality.
All this, combined with our youthful optimism contributed to a feeling that
we were the future, that we were going to completely change society into a
hippie utopia. Of course we were naive. Naive about our own limitations,
about the power structure of society, about how to organize ourselves. And
then we were all on our own trips, too. The drug scene took many of our
icons. We learned the futility of fighting the system. Those that did
ended up in jail or underground or dead. There never was a cohesive
strategy. Even though it was them vs. us, we could never get us to
agree.
However, the lasting impact of the summer of love and the flower people has
been more subtle. The memes (concepts) we promoted spread around the world
and have instilled themselves in the subconscious of the species. These are
reflected in some of the famous sayings of the time:
Make Love, Not War
Peace Now
Save the Planet
No Nukes!
and many more.
The point is the collective unconsciousness of our species is still
absorbing and processing this information. It creates a lot of cognitive
dissonance among us. That is, we now Question Authority far more often,
we don’t believe everything we hear, we think for ourselves, and we have
more of a conscience about what we do.
It is this conscience that seems to have jumped a generation and now appears
in young (neo) hippies. The sad fact is that the world situation really hasn’t
changed much. The same power structure exists. The need to respond to the
world situation is as great as ever. In fact this is what has evolved over
the last three decades. The media has shown us that the problems of our
planet are far more serious and long term than those of our neighborhood.
Our consciousness has expanded to where we now worry about people we’ve
never met in countries we’ve never been to. This sensitivity is something
new to our species. It belies the us and them notion with which our
governments like to brainwash us. THERE IS ONLY US! THIS IS OUR PLANET!
What we do will determine the future of the human race. If we let hate and
fear rule the world, we are in for a catastrophic millenium. It is YOUR
GENERATION, the new hippies who must spread the word about LOVE and PEACE
and the alternatives open to us. Those who hate and fear see nothing but
hate and fear around them. We must open their eyes as time is running out
for us.
I can see a new movement emerging if we have a single uniting cause. I once
thought the marijuana movement might do it, but the $18 billion being spent
on the war on drugs is hard to counter. I think what might do it is if
there is a draft to fight the war in Kosovo. Then I think this draft age
group of 17-19 year olds will finally open their mouths before being sent to
die in some distant land just to help some aging military industrial
societies save face by destroying another military industrial society ruled
by a megalomanic.
One thing we have on our side now, which didn’t exist in the ’60s (in it’s
present form) is the Internet! Our ability to organize and communicate is
greatly enhanced, and once we coordinate our efforts we can become a truly
effective force in this society. Hippyland is here to help facilitate this
goal, as are many other websites. We await the cause, we await your call.
Peace,
The Old Hippy
Posted by: skip
Views: 68824
Topic:3