When Mark Walberg raised the topic of flower children and their rarity in the Powell Memo thread, I remembered Adam Curtis's "Hypernormalization", as parts cover various social movement participants, eventually overwhelmed and exhausted by their causes, who then turned inward believing social change had to come from what all could control - the self. In my memory the most prominent example the video suggests is Jane Fonda turning to fitness. The video also raises figures who didn't recede inward, but instead turned their efforts toward the internet. Given it's nearly three hours long and my last watch was at least a year ago, my memory might lack what happened to others.

Moving on...today he released his new six part series "Can't Get You Out of My Head". The household and I watched the first two parts. By the end of the second, the topic of "those who wanted to change the world" turning inward returns, this time with more (IIR the former C) emphasis on how psychology aided established economics and finance to manage modern power structures.

"Hypernormalization" was the first Curtis video I saw. It was most useful to me as a springboard for finding other information, something I hope both the above can be for those curious about where flower children and such may have gone. That reminds me, his series "All Watched Over By Machines of Loving Grace" covers at least one hippie commune that ultimately failed. I recall it was the one reputed to be the first rural commune, Drop City, but would have to watch again to be sure.

I highly recommend his filmography to anyone who hasn't seen any. I have watched all but two of his titles from his '89 film forward, and would appreciate them even without the music or his narration, provided captions giving names, dates, and places were attached to the images, because he uses the BBC's archives to make his films, meaning he has access to obscure and oooollld footage.

Lastly, I'd like to echo Bob Ross's saying many just got older and are harder to recognize. My retired clergy neighbor sells antiques, writes a column for the local paper, and organizes Satyagraha Institute. I had known him for over a year before he invited me to attend the first SI gathering, and only at that gathering did I finally gain any clue he has a deep history of activism. He told me stories of breaking into Ellsworth Air Force Base (he and crew informed the base they would do so and when) to protest nuclear weapons multiple times during the Cold War when he still preached. Fun fact: he said one of those times, law enforcement broke a protester's arm so bad his bone was sticking out, but because it happened on Sunday, when no health care personnel were at the jail, that person had to wait another day for any care - yikes! Maybe someday I'll get more stories out of him.