06/10/02
In the Fab Shadow
I hate the 60s. Not the decade itself — that would be foolish — but the “era” that is loosely aligned and firmly associated with it. Mine isn’t an ideological spite. I believe in many of the ideals behind the “causes” of that time, and some of my current beliefs would not have become feasible without the social changes that took place then.
What I hate is the insinuation within the popular culture for my entire life that the 60s constituted the pinnacle of history. For subsequent generations, the 60s represent that legendary party in a community into which we’ve recently moved. The games were more fun, the socializing easier, and the band better. But the extravaganza can never be repeated. The house in which it was held burned down; several parents lost their children; and everybody is still reeling, all these years later, from the hangover. Moreover, the partygoers rummaged through every drawer of innovation, grabbing all things new and unknown, throwing them around, and discarding them, sullied and used.
This essay has been published in Just Thinking: Volume I, 10/29/01–10/21/02 and is available in Confidence Place: The Timshel Arts Store.
06/03/02 New Reasons to Take Up an Old Young Cause (Society)
05/27/02 Breaking the Slump (Society)
05/20/02 Self-Evident Equality (Society)
05/13/02 Grownup 101 (Life)
05/06/02 Choosing a Lyric Battle (Religion)
04/29/02 A Bright Future for Revolution, Part 2 (Media)
04/22/02 A Bright Future for Revolution, Part 1 (Art)
04/15/02 A Love-Lit Shelter Sets Me Free (Life)
10/29/01 through 04/08/02 Archives