In a message dated 98-03-29 10:45:20 EST, Lynne
writes:
>The kids who found salvation (?) in the hippie movement
>and the Jesus movement in the 1960s sound very much like
>those who found salvation in the fascist movements of the 1930s.
I fail to see the parallels.
After the Nazis came to power in 1933, they held state
power in Germany. The youth who participated in fascist
activities in the 30s were just going along with the system,
and doing what they had to do in order to earn approval
of the authorities and advance their personal I.
see them as comparable to the Young Democrats and
Young Republicans of the USA, who enthusiastically
supported the Vietnam War in the 1960s (although some
YDs came to oppose the war).
I don't see how the German youth of the 30s resemble Jesus
Freaks and hippies, who were unconventional and certainly
not highly motivated by the desire to earn approval from their
elders in positions of influence within the established institutions.
Your comparison might be more germane to the youth
movements of pre-World War I Germany. The Wandervogel
would be an example. At the time, they could definitely
qualify as somewhat eccentric and unconventional, so there
might be some grounds for exploring resemblances to hippies
and Jesus freaks. They were also somewhat mystical.
The hippies' fascination with astrology comes to mind on this
point. Former Wandervogel members became a recruiting
ground for the early stages of Nazi party organization.
-- Michael Wright