[Craig31884]

Is there any truth to rave culture's PLUR (peace/love/unity/respect) mentality? I got the idea that people who were drawn to raves were like modern-day hippies, but when I finally went to one, my friend had her purse stolen (along with her car keys) and was told it was 'great that she still went out at 27.' Is age an issue? Sexual orientation? Is there usually so much attitude? Is PLUR only a result of being on Ecstacy? Or was this atypical?

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Name : Craig31884, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 37, City : Minneapolis, State : MN Country : United States, Occupation : Computer Guru, Education level : 4 Years of College, 

[Jamie20907]

There are lots of different kinds of raves, and the PLUR feeling has a lot to do with class - Hippies have always been mostly from middle-class backgrounds - the more middle class the rave, the more PLUR there is - safe and 'fluffy' - psychedelic techno music. If you are working class and have always lived in the city, your taste in rave may be more garage or jungle - the MC will still be saying PLUR, but you're more likely to bump into someone who will give the opposite. But raves are no different from the rest of life - if you're surrounded by well-off people you don't need to worry about your purse so much.

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Name : Jamie20907, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 31, City : London, State : NA Country : United Kingdom, Occupation : teacher, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[Lisa]

I've been to a bunch of raves, and in my mind's eye they are about two things: 1) Music. A tremendous underground subculture surrounding electronica music has developed via the rave scene for the past 20 years and is now filtering out to mainstream pop culture. A large number of rave attendees go specifically to listen to a particular DJ or electronica type (Techno, Drum & Base, etc...) And 2) Drugs. Everything about a rave is built around creating the perfect environment for drugs, specifically Ecstasy. The lighting, music, all the paraphernalia (baggy pants to dance, pacifiers to ease jaw grinding, neon sticks, etc.). I would not consider the Ecstasy-resultant 'PLUR' kinds of feelings analogous to the 'mind expansion' of the -60s, which were driven by social revolution and a huge anti-war campaign. Frankly, X is far more hedonistic and contrived than that (maybe I'm giving the '60s too much credit.) But I really think X is just about feeling good and dancing. And while X fosters 'PLUR,' in my experience, it's a rare occurrence that the newly forged bonds ever outlast the high. From these two things a beautiful and unique outpouring of art (primarily design) and style has arrived that's eked its way into pop culture, specifically teenage pop culture.

Note: Raves have changed significantly in the last decade. They're far more mainstream, and there are far more young people involved. When I started going, it was primarily professionals (lawyers, advertising execs) who liked the music and all that 'PLUR' jazz; it was very 'underground'; now it's teenagers who like the drug and subscribe to all the trappings of that subculture. If you want a real neo-hippie experience, I suggest going to 'Burning Man.' That's mostly professionals expressing themselves through art and community and yes, drugs. It's closer to the old-school rave mindset and less centered on X.

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Name : Lisa, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 24, City : los Angeles, State : CA Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[Dan27358]

With just about every subculture I can think of, it's usually an 'inner elite' or the old school founders who would establish such doctrines as PLUR. In the case of ravers, when it got started it was probably much like that, and then it started getting trendy and many outsiders (as in those who are clueless to PLUR) came in and didn't give a rat's ass about any of that stuff. And in L.A. usually half the people at raves are aloof teeny-boppers or frat/sorority/jock types looking for drugs, booze and skin or who are somehow gang-related. It's the same with punk rock: something that's supposed to be about working-class values and radical politics has been tarnished and diluted by Mtv and mass-consuming trend-followers and is now a pale shadow of what it was. Same thing with Goth: what was supposed to be an aesthetic appreciation of the darker side of life (through music, philosophy or dress) has been distorted into a Marylin Manson, trenchcoat satanic-wannabe farce, and the true heads remain in the underground where they've always been.

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Name : Dan27358, Gender : M, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Religion : Pentecostal, Age : 22, City : Los Angeles, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Kiara]

I was nodding and shaking my head at the same time when I read your question. Someone said that raves are just like every other area of life, which is so true. People are so naive and misled when they think they are entering the zone of peace and love. That's as real as the love and peace that went around in the hippie era. It's been over-glamorized.

That said, raves are different everywhere. The ones I have been to are mostly unbiased in regard to age; it's anything goes. Then again, when a bunch of people come together with all that energy and a significant number are on various drugs, anything goes for the moment. My general observation is that hard core ravers tend to be very "snappy." The drug Ecstacy depletes serotonin levels; hence the 'bitchiness' that seems to come with the rave head. In a big dome of love, just as in this wonderful world of ours, there are the sneaky rats, the thieves, the bad guys. I'd say your friend's bad luck is just that: Bad luck.

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Name : Kiara, Gender : F, City : Sydney, State : NA Country : Australia, 

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