Has anyone noticed how there are some very vocal members who have a very conservative right-wing bias in their writing? I am baffled as to how this can come to be on a "hip" or "hippy" forum. Hippyness is hard to describe but I think one thing that ties it all together is a desire to challenge the status-quo and consider alternative perspectives. Conservatism is the status-quo. We should never be so arrogant as to think we're always right, of course, and there are a great many mistakes made by "lefties", but you'd think we would agree that leftist or liberal thinking is closer to progressiveness or "hippyness" than conservatism is. This mostly relates to the larger, American-dominated forums. On the Politics and "America Attacks" forums there is a group of pro-Bush, pro-Iraq war cheerleaders - on a hippy forum! It's very strange. But it happens here too occasionally - what prompted this was reading Sal's "global poverty" thread. People disagreeing with the basic idea that corporations should act fairly towards their employees and the community. Most odd.
yeah, i had a little lookie at some of those forums....weird!!! :S i may go on a lil rampage in them over the summer when i have more time i guess you have to remember that there are loads of different people in all walks of life "conservative hippies" though....yuk!
Good point Showmet, but I always take the name "Hipforums" with a grain of salt. I don't think Skip ever actually referred to this site as a site for hippies, but as a "free speech" site. And what use would a free speech site be if only hippies were allowed to post on it? Don't ask me, because I'm dim Try this if you don't believe me. Go to the Suggestions forum and suggest that the site be changed so that only hippies are allowed on. Say that people from other "genres" of life (term used loosely, but I'm tired and it makes sense to me) shouldn't be on here since it's a hippy site. Then put your flameproof underwear on, sit back and feel the glow.
I think it's silly to assume anything about an individual that happens to "belong" to the hippy community. Being a hippy is about free thought and opinion... being who you are. I also don't think it's logical (unless you generalize) to assume that a hippy should belong to any political party, ideology or philosophy. I'm registered as an independent... I did so because I agree and disagree with aspects of both Republican and Democratic theology. I also happen to believe that I would fall into the so-called "hippy" community. Isn't that the beauty of the hippies anyway? Each one is unique! with love, kayatree
(I'm an American living in Japan now, and I think the phrase "conservative hippies" is a complete oxymoron. But there are some things I'd like to say)Actually, there are many people on this site who say there aren't hippies. I do think most of the people are on this site are pretty liberal, but even those who are fairly liberal do seem to share some conversative views on some issues. I do think it very odd that are pro-Bush, pro-Iraq war folks on this site. Of course, if they want to join the site, they're welcome to. But it's weird they've join a (supposedly) liberal, left-leaning site (and it can be quite annoying at times). I do think there is no one set kind of hippy - there have been and are differences in the counterculture. Bu I think a part of hippyness is challenging the status quo and the "establishment." I love this site, but seeing a lot of vocal conservatives here can get on my nerves.
Well life should be a compromise sometimes i think, in order to move forward you need to have principles but also the ability to listen to other points of view I feel some people on here have very fixed views and don't consider the realities of what they say I find that some people often comment niavely on issues they no very little about... Open debate is good... hopefully we can listen, and speak with wisdom and respect Love Learning and Freedom Clairexxx
I have stated my opinions on how and why I feel as I do on certain issues.."my OPINIONS"..but I have found some people like to lash out if you don't have the same opinions as they do..so, it ends up..not as a debate, but as name calling and other heated, negative remarks and totally off what the topic was in general..Then it takes away all of your postive energy and can totally wear you down..I have decided therefore, to let the "trolls" as I call them have the last word, and to move on..If they want to think or dislike me because of my opinions, then that is their right to do so..and then as for me, I'll still have my opinions and feel peaceful in doing so without zapping my energy from me Peace and love -Heather
I'm going to venture into talking about something I don't know much about, so anyone who wants to correct me jump in there, I'll be only too pleased. I am fascinated by the "conservative hippy " phenomenon. I think it is part of the interesting differences between the US and UK. I would be surprised if there were many british conservative hippies. However, in the states the libertarian movement is pretty popular, and I can quite easily see how you could jump from that with its interests in self sufficiency etc, to embrace a form of hippiedom that would be different to anything on this side of the Atlantic.
On the face of it, America is a much more conservative country than most of western Europe. That might account for some of the differences between the forums, and the prevalence of so called "conservative hippies" on the American-dominated ones. I wonder why that is? Founded in such high ideals, and with a proud history of liberty, equality and justice (except for blacks) you'd think the USA would be a much more forward-thinking, progressive, free and liberal society than it often seems to be. Conservative values of self-sufficiency and looking after your own kind seem to be at the heart of much US politics. For example, the lack of universal healthcare and and ingrained aversion to the idea of a welfare state. I think you're quite right about libertarianism Mrs Moomin, I was thinking the same thing. Libertarianism is technically approaching total anarchy, with a complete reigning in of the state and all its laws and regulations. And the end point of total anarchy is 'the law of the jungle', or a rather Darwinian situation in which the powerful are free to dominate the weak. Hence the libertarian conviction in the value of the unregulated free market economy, alongside a belief that the state has no place in controlling people's personal lives. Yes you can see how this might be a factor in someone seeing these ideas as alternatives to the conservative mainstream. Except that libertarian and conservative economics, while possibly coming from different places, are in effect identical, because they tend benefit the powerful at the expense of the weak. On the other hand, more traditional progressive thinking is a mixture of regulation and freedom - of putting safeguards in place to protect against the powerful exploiting the weak, while accepting no state interference in the personal choices people make; the only proviso being that it mustn't harm or exploit others.
saddam killed lots of people there is a good argument that getting rid of him will save lives, even if you had 10,000s of thousands of dead that still may be less than the number of people he would kill if he was still in control. lots of my friends believe that if the west can setup a pro-western secular govement in Iraq they will then be able to bring down the govement of Iran and maybe reform saudi I dont think this is going to happen I may be wrong I really hope that I am wrong I hope the americans dont get beaten in Iraq if they do this will strengthen the spread of islamic fundermentalism worldwide pretty much in the same way the defeat of the soviet union did in afganistan I didnt support the Iraq war because I dont see that ourleadership really understand the cause of groups like al-queda they took afganistan and installed another damn islamic republic this is like defeating the nazis and installing another bunch of nazis we didnt do this in germany at the end of the war and we shouldnt do this now but this is what we are doing in Iraq too and in the long term it wont work the news that Im getting from Iraq is that there is a exodus of christians because the americans invasion has just helped to take apart whatever secularism was in that country the americans are running tv stations that promote islam inside iraq in a vain attempt to be liked by islamic clerics well they are never going to like them if they had really understood the cause of the problem I would have supported a war to get rid of saddam
Little bit off topic there, Jonny? Did you actually read what this thread was about before deciding to post YET more anti-Islamic propaganda? Sheesh. You're behaving like a "troll".
yes I read it you wonder why anyone could support a war that got rid of saddam and then post on a hippy site I wonder how nobody apart from me cares that the peace movement allied itself with a bunch of religous nazis I wonder why on the anti fascist site that organises rock against racism concerts that claire posted there is a guy called dr siddiqui of the muslim parliment as one of the signatories behind the site now this I guess is kalim siddiqui (it could be one of his sons because kalims dead but it doesnt really matter as they support the same aims ) you may be to young to remember kalim siddiqui but he was the man who organised the campaign of book burning against salman rushdie some people believe he was the person who encouraged khomeni to put the fatwa out on rushdie in the first place as he was in Iran at the time and was one of the strongest british supporters of the Iranian revolution salman rushdie had to go into hiding as people where being killed bookshops bombed he then set up a seperate parliment which "human rights section" jihad fund collected money for mujahideen in many parts of the world this money was to buy weapons . the whole aim of this seperate parliment is to work towards making this country a islamic state rather like Iran where at the moment they have eye gouging stoning ect ect ect why is this man so honoured to be a signatorie on one if not the top anti fascist organisations in this country if himmler had a brown face or belonged to a crazy religion would he be welcome to the situation in iraq is very nasty but you have a far worse stuation happening in sudan at the moment and fucking silence from you hippys I mean if theres slavery and literally millions of people being killed in one country and that gets no attention and just because you dont like george bush you give all your attention to a country where only 10,000 by your own estimate have been killed you have to ask why
Er in this little Moomins opinion, Iraq wasn't a fundamentalist Islamic state and Sudan is one of a large number of countries round the world where an oppressive regime needs to be put in the spot light, but it is not in the interest of American politicians and their gas guzzling electorate to do so. I think hippies come from all walks of life and shades of opinion perhaps it's only in Europe that our liberal tradition rather than libertarianism dominates? One of the driving forces behind the original hippy movement was surely an anti-war philosophy, which meant all war, and ideas such as the equality and respect of and for global citizens. In peace Mrs Moomin
This forum is for hippies? Oh christ, I better sort myself out there then. I need to join the hip and trendy alternative young people! I better use this rather narrow minded guide from Frank Zappa to help me achieve hippydom! "First I'll buy some beads And then perhaps a leather band To go around my head Some feathers and bells And a book of Indian lure I will ask the Chamber Of Commerce How to get to Height Street And smoke an awful lot of dope I will wander around barefoot I will have a psychedelic gleam in my eye at all times I will love everyone I will love the police as they kick the shit out of me on the street I will sleep... I will, I will go to a house That's, that's what I will do I will go to a house Where there's a rock roll band 'Cause the groups all live together And I will join a rock & roll band I will be their road manager And I will stay there with them And I will get the crabs But I won't care "
*Don't Feed The Troll* Jonny: This was a friendly little thread discussing conservative bias, the phenomenon of "conservative hippies", the reasons for it, the nature of hippydom and the differences between America and Britain. Can you see any discussion about the rights or wrongs of the Iraq war before you jumped in and hijacked it to spout off and twist even that tenuous link in order to further your perrenial anti-Islamic agenda? Please take your irrelevant angry venomous little paroxysms of self-righteousness out of my thread.
you specifically wondered why you had hippys who support george bush and the gulf war you mentioned america attacks you referered to posters as cheer leaders for bush I gave the reasons why I didnt support the Iraq war and what george bush would have needed to do to get me a former conservative party voter to support him I pointed out the double standards that I see in the left in general and this site in particular and not just in one organisation read your first thread
Jonny, I hope you don't mind you asking me this as I don't know you very well, but reading your previous post, I was just wondering, are you a conservative hippy? If so I'd be interested in how in your view you can combine conservatism with a hippy philosophy, which was part of the interesting ideas in the original postings, seeking insights Mrs Moomin
Please read my opening post again, and the discussion which followed. You've clearly missed the point of it. This was never a debate about Iraq or Islamic fundamentalism. There was a single mention of pro-Bush, pro-Iraq war "cheerleaders" (ie vocal conservatives / Republicans) as shorthand to make a wider point about so called "conservative hippies" - which you missed. There's no excuse for turning every thread you post in into a forum for your own personal hatred of Islam. Please desist from trolling.
Possibly, although wouldn't the original "hippy movement" in America and Europe have been closely allied to "leftist" economic policy, as in fairly distributed resources and, at the extreme, anarcho-syndicalist communes? Rather than libertarianism with its belief in unchecked corporate power? I don't think we have an equivalent of libertarianism here, do we? I don't think there's any such thing as a "hippy movement" now, though, other than in a retro-chic fashion sense. Personally I find all the trappings (music, clothes, etc) irritating and dated. I prefer to think of it as a state of mind, or a way of thinking. If you look it up, one of the definitions of a "hippy" is someone who challenges the status quo and rejects the conventional standards of a society. True, that could be just about any kind of challenge, not just a "lefty/liberal" one. Would you think of a Lenin-style communist, with a belief in state control of personal behaviour, as a hippy?
