I wasn’t born in the 1960’s, I was born in the 80’s. I am in college, and just am really lost. I feel like I am experiencing what the 1960’s hippies experienced. I am being forced to choose a major and a degree and forced to get a job. To me education should be about learning, and instead I am being herded as a sheep to try and get a high paying job. This isn’t what I want. I don’t want material possessions. My parents are telling me to look for a job, but it just seems so useless sometimes, jobs today pay less than they did 20 years ago, people are working for minimum wage, in menial jobs, when all the CEO’s are making the real money. I would love to maybe be an independent musician along the lines of Fugazi, but colleges don’t have classes in independent business or buisness ethics, its all business classes that are talking about how to make it big and make big bucks how to be a typical sleazebag CEO. In the 1960’s one could drop out and go to Haight or other places, but today their isn’t a thousand or so kids living in the Haight, the hippie scene as it existed back then seems non existent. Their isn’t large numbers of hippies who have dropped out and could provide support. Bascially, I am lost. I am not sure what to do. As I said in the 60’s, if I was feeling this way I would have thousands of kids who were doing to same thing and I could go with them to the Haight, but as I said this doesn’t exist anymore. If I drop out of school, I have no place to go, dropping out of society isn’t really an option for people anymore, because the support of thousands of other people isn’t there I am worried about a draft, I am draft age, I am lost as to what I should do. I am confident I could get CO status, I am an activist, but is it worth it if all your friends are dying and you stay alive. Know what I mean? I don’t know if I could mentally and emotionally deal with thousands even millions of youngsters being carted off to die in iraq in the event of a draft. Should I just flee the country, or should I stay here? Also, I am upset that their isn’t mass uprisings at universities like they had in the 60’s. I have read books that described after Kent State 80 percent of universities had strikes, and in Madison wis, alone their were something like 55 bombs set off at universities. You had a generation of people thinking they could change the world. You had strikes, bombs, in vietnam their were fraggings, you have fringe radical groups like the weathermen and symbionese pop up. I am not saying all of this was good, my point is that during the 60’s people cared about the war, now it seems the uprising and protests are far between. Would it be worth it to stick around during the draft and fight the good fight by protesting, or should I just leave the US? Basically I am sick of everyones complascence including my own, why isn’t their mass uprisings going on? Like I said before, frankly I am lost, I have been listening to music and watching movies from during the Vietnam era to try and gain wisdom, but I haven’t found any answers. Can anyone give me advice about the way I am feeling? What can I do about my dilemmas? What should I do? What do all you current hippies feel about all this? What can you older hippies give in terms of advice to me? It just seems like no matter what path I choose its going to be tough. If I choose to get a job and be the status quo I will be ignoring my beliefs and values. If I leave the US I may miss the protests and uprisings that will occur, if I stay I may be drafted and I may see friends carted off to war. Help me with this please! Z
I would say, stop waiting for life to happen. it is happening, there is stuff going on, but the world is a very different place to what it was forty years ago. if you care about something go out there and tell people, talk to people and do something, there is plenty you can do to show your support or protest of issues. the hippie era isn't coming back as it was, you can't live in what was, if you want to change the world you live in because you don't like it, then stop looking behind you, or looking to others to make things happen. all said though, i do agree with you about what went on in the sixties, it was the fact that everyone cared so much and really believed they could change the world, which they did. (for me anyway)
I wasn't born in the sixties either...1975, I too felt the way you do while I was in college and I did drop out. Sometimes I wish I hadn't, but for the most part I don't think that the type of lifestyle I would have had I taken the corporate road would best fit me. I'm going to be thirty in May, and I am still "lost", but isn't everyone? The cool thing is, dude, that you are aware that you are lost. As GI Joe used to say when I was a kid, "knowing is half the battle". I don't think very many people plan their lives. I mean who sits around as a little kid and says "when I grow up I want to live in a trailor park and work at McDonalds", who says " yeah, I want three kids by two different deadbeat daddy's"....nobody does. I think people just fall into things. They have kids, or they make lots of money, or both, but usually when people think about it, most of them aren't doing the type of things they had dreamed of as a child, or even a young adult. I hate society. It's killing the Earth, it's making slaves out of humankind,and it's bringing about and evolutionary pattern that will lead to complete soulless-ness. The sad thing is though, there are millions, no billions of people on this planet (most of them in this country) that are completely oblivious to this fact. They are content as long as they can flip on HBO and wolf down a 99 cent cheeseburger..they love their kids as long as they go play, or sit quietly and watch the big screen TV. As long as they're satisfied, fuck the rest of the world. AND....you asked a question that got me going:Why aren't there mass uprisings? I'll tell you, and I am sorry to say this but AMERICANS ARE PUSSYS!!! The people just lay down and take it in the ass...the corporations know it, they price things at whatever they want, we pay...they build and destroy and pollute wherever they want, we pay...the government knows it, they plunder and bomb for oil in the name of "anti-terrorism" agian, we pay..they march around they world like one of those dumb jock high school bullies, taking the little kid's lunch money..."You don't want no trouble do ya?"....ever notice that they always go after small, third world, backward ass countries? The people in this country don't want no trouble either, so the just watch American Idol, roll through the Taco Bell drive thru and forget about it. Ignorance runs rampant. But.....Can it be changed? Can somehow these automatons be woken up? I think they can, and they will. But unfortunately it's going to take things becoming alot worse than they are. It is sad, very sad that it seems that the day of the hippie has come and gone. I wasn't there. My parents could have been, but they were busy running the rat race. They're dead now..both died young, of natural causes...One of the main things I remember about them is that they hated their jobs..So when I was younger I made a promise to myself never to fall into that trap. But what can you do? What other options are there? I have no money, other than to pay my bills each month. Rent, Utilities, etc...then once they're paid the cycle starts all over again. I'd love to be able to move out to sticks somewhere and tell the rest of the world to kiss my ass. But that takes money. I read these forums alot. Some of the shit on here is better than TV...'cause you know that these people are real. I'd love to join a commune or live on the road, anything but run the rat race until I'm too old or I drop dead. But like you, I'm caught in the vortex of living day to day and wantin to get away. Sorry for the rambling, too much coffee & grass this morning I guess. (I work at night) I probably didn't really give you any good advice, but at least I let you know you weren't alone. I know this place (hipforums) someone will chime in with something worthwhile. As far as the draft goes.....there WILL be one..US forces are being stretched thinner and thinner around the globe and now they are having lower and lower re-enlistment and new recruit numbers, so they will have to do something to ensure the strength of the Empire. I'm pretty sure I'm too old though, don't know. I wouldn't go if they did draft me though...they'd never find me. Peace Dude, -B
I was born in 83, and life hasn't been all rosey and peachy (it's been hell at points) but brother I'm livin the life I want to. I don't need the "good old days" to make my revolution a reality. You just need to make your reality work for you too, not to sound cliche but you need to look outside the box. Life doesn't have to work in pre established incriments, infact most "career councilors" will even give you this advice. The days of going to school, getting a job, raising a family and sitting back comfy with your pension are over. To be the person you want to be in the 21st century requires you to be a entrapeneur, or a renisance man if you will. Work, go back to studies, work some more, work and study, pursue artistic avenus, work on the side, learn languages, travel, mix it up. If it's community you're looking for: live on the road, in communes, with decent street kids, the developing world, first nations people....seriously, TRUE community seems to exist in the most unlikely places, you just have to have the courage to find it (experience has shown me karma smiles on those who seek out these places and take that leap of faith). The oportunities of living and learning from such communities and ways of life are endless. So don't feel traped, don't feel tied down and obligated; explore your options, find what works for YOU. I dropped out of highschool, spent the past 4 years doing seasonal work, travelling and participating in community development exchanges. Recently, after moving back in with my parents and doing some academic upgrading, I took some left over cash from working on a farm this summer and lived out in BC this past month. I hitchhiked around, met people, listened to thier stories, and found myself learning and growing at every turn. I'm actually starting a college certificate program in a couple of days, the beautiful thing is I WANT TO, no one is forcing me to do anything; I'm 21 years old and happier then a pig in shit with the prospect of going back to school. Over the next 5 months I'm going to be learning how to design and build environmentaly sustainable homes and buildings. Know where I found out about the course? My highschool guidence councilor? FUCK NO. While volunteering at a folk festival!(see what I meen when I'm talking about that karma stuff ) In september I could be picking mushrooms on Haida Gwaii, or looking for a carpentry aprenticeship with the sustainable building projects going on in Vancouver for the 2010 olympics, I could be doing a thousand other things too. Ultimately I'll do what I feel is the next logical, but above all spiritually and mentally fufilling step. I have a rough idea of where I want to eventually get to but there is no concrete gameplan because life more often then not shows you the path you should follow, you just have to learn how to read the signs and accept the changes. Don't worry about the big picture it's a big crazy world and no one person will ever make total sense of it so just stay educated, stay aware and just try and be part of the solution, and not part of the problem. Above all esle JUST DON'T BE THE SYSTEMS BITCH, the defeated man is the complacent man. Most of the friends I grew up with are still a year away from getting thier bachelors degree, and although in the eyes of society I might be behind I feel like I'm already miles ahead (hint, society doesn't understand how society works, and most of those friends will likely end up working minium wage, so don't sweat it ). While my friends, thier academic acheivments asside, have been mindlessly going through the motions, I've been doin the real thing: seen third world poverty, I can now speak two languages, I've joined in with people in thier struggles for better communities, expressed myself artisticly (photography, poetry, journalism, drumming, carving), I've worked the land, I've travelled the road, all and all, I've followed my path. Just to clarify, I'm not denouncing post secondary education, for some it is what they truely want, unfortunatly for the majority, it isn't, and by second year many are spiritually lost, in debt, unhappy with thier field of study and one step closer to being just another number. Post secondary education is a financial burden now comparable with real estate, do you really think it's wise to be making that choice fresh out of highscool? Take a gap year, do one of those things you've promised you'd do in your lifetime, see where it leads you, see how it inspires you. All I know is that if you're feeling lost, institutionalised education isn't going to be where you'll find yourself! Dude, just be the person you want to be, have your own fucking uprising!!! It takes balls, it means sacrifice, a shit load of uncertainty and at times it will even feel as if the whole world is working against you. However there will also be times where you will just be blown off your ass and think to yourself "shit, I'm truely alive, this is living, this is why I am here" and that my friend is a beautiful thing.
as for the draft: there is a world outside your borders, don't be afraid to take sanctuary elsewhere if and when that time comes
yovo, that is pretty much how i see it, and you've managed to explain it much better than me! i'm at uni now (one more year to go). i was at uni when i was eighteen, dropped out cus it just wasn't where i wanted to be at the time, i went to france for a few months, worked back here in england and then went back to uni two years ago. this time around i am studying (photography and art) because i want to and i am learning so much. everyone asks, 'what are you gonna do when you leave uni?' and the truth is i really don't know! the first winter i'm gonna work a season in the mountains somewhere for sure, and then after that? who knows. i wanna travel and see places and meet people, i might find a job i like, i might find a commune i like, a new country whatever. as long as i'm happy and there are people for me to love and experiences to learn from then i don't care! peace x
well you're right this isn't the 60s. but when people think about the 60s they think about 68 which was the peak. but the movement didn't start at the peak. it started small. remember before the 60s was the 50s when conformity in america was at it's peak. everybody had short hair dressed neat and most people believed in the government and the american dream. if you didn't fit in you were crucified. remember the mc carthy hearings? but a few people like the beats and a few anti war protestors and civil rights workers had the courage to step out of line and stand up for change and live a life of change. so the 60s didn't start with millions in the streets and campus strikes. it didn't start with woodstock and the summer of love. it started with a few people willing to stand up and work for change. and it wasn't easy as the 1st anti war protestors were demonized, spit on, and brutalized. so were the civil rights workers who were attacked with dogs etc. so working to change the empire is not easy. but some of us can see that it needs to be done and are willing to work to make the change happen. do you think there was a hip forum in the early 60s? there wasn't an internet then. was there a network of intentional communities? no because there weren't any intentional communities. so actually it is a lot easier for someone to become part of the movement now than then. there is a massive movement communications system already established on the internet. there are networks of intentional communities already established and many more in process. there is the rainbow gathering which gathers thousands of alternative lifestyle people in the forest. there are many musical tours to connect with and meet like minded people. so you're right this is not 68 and the campuses will not be on strike this spring. but watch what happens if they try to reinstate the draft. in the vietnam war over 50,000 US troops and 1 million vietnamese died before the movement was strong enough to end the war. do you think people will stand for those levels of slaughter again? doubt it. so building the movement for change takes time and yes americans will have to face much more suffering before the mainstream wakes up. but the movement doesn't start with the mainstream. it starts with us. the few visionaries and activists who are willing to step out from the herd and begin to envision and live a different way of life. so step right up son. because the movement for a new world is looking for some good men and womyn. for intentional community connections you can check http://reach.ic.org/. for rainbow family info you can check http://rainbowguide.info/index.php and http://cnr.ch/links.htm#rainbow. also you can check our forum at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/newworldrisingforum/ where we are helping develop a network of grassroots communities and advanced consciousness and communications. so the 60s were great but we could only go so far. now is the time when we will be able to bring down the empire and build the new world that people have been dreaming about for thousands of years. the main thing holding back the growth of the movement is people thinking that we can't do it or waiting for the mainstream. so don't be held back by the mainstream leave the doubt and fear behind and step into the life you really want to live. peace nwrfred
Dude..."nwrfred"...you should be a motivational speaker....."so step right up son....." thats awesome! peace -B
I think it's easier & easier to drop out all the time. The only reason to believe that it's harder is if you're only following the evening news, the mainstream blur. They talked about dropping out (in horrified tones) back when it was a new idea. Now it's no longer "news" to them. It's not news because it's been a simple fact of life for decades. Woodstock was big news. It's not news anymore, but now there's at least one festie somewhere every goddamn weekend. Sure none of them have half a million people (if there were half a million kids at all the festivals, there wouldn't be any left to do anything else) but the fact remains that we have festivals out the butt, as many festivals as you could possibly want. Lots of people live their entire lives going from one to the next, selling hemp or brownies or just scrounging. But that's just one little corner of your new enhanced modern drop-out options! Perhaps you'd prefer the Rainbow Trail? Barely an inkling of an idea in the fabled sixties-- the first gathering was in 1972. It's been growing by leaps & bounds ever since, & these days there is a gathering somewhere every day of the year, usually more than one, and the original yearly gathering (the "national") routinely has tens of thousands of gatherers at peak. That's a small city built (& then disappeared) in the woods every year. A city where the food & medicine is free, where you can still see the stars, where people of all nations & all paths & all religions gather in peace. They didn't have this shit in the sixties, dude. They could only imagine what we're creating. There are a thousand ways to drop out today. You know why the Haight was so talked about back then? Not because it was some wonderous lost utopia of hipdom. Because it was one of the only refuges. It was a tiny little enclave in a society that was-- believe it-- even more conservative & anal than the one we're in today. Think about it. http://couchsurfing.com http://melonheads.villagevisionaries.net/ Hell, hipforums. If this existed in the 60s people would have gasped & pointed -- "Those dangerous countercultural freaks are collaborating online! Someone burn them!" -- but now nobody thinks twice. It's not easy to drop out. It never has been & it never will be (if it becomes as easy to drop out as to hang on, society will deeply transform & the term will lose the context that gives it meaning). But it's easier than it ever has been. You can make it even ever easier, by adding your flame to this rolling fireball of a cultural revolution. <3
