Poly = hippie?

TL4everu2

New member
I'm curious....My wife and I have not really identified as "poly" for very long. We used to identify as "swingers", but that was not really what we were. Anyway, since identifying as "poly"....we've noticed that a LOT of poly people or people who claim to be poly, are very much like "hippies" from the 70's. (i.e. smoke pot, want to just live and let live no matter the consequences, wear funky shirts..usually tie dyed, etc etc etc) :p Sorry if this describes you and/or offends you. That is not my intent. It is just an observation. My wife and I are NOT part of the "hippie" movement or genre.

Has anyone else noticed this?










I know this will offend some, and I'm ok with that. I'm tired of being PC all the time. It is hard to do. LOL
 
actually I notice some trends. I don't fit into most. :)...my wife is a hippy and had an easier transition than I did...:)

I will simply leave it at that :p
 
I find a general similarity in approaches to sex and love actually. I've had an old friend say that poly is just a re-emergence of the hippie movement from her perspective which I think would be shared by a lot of people on the surface. I personally do not identify as a hippie but also don't see anything negative in the comparison....Hey, Hippies are people too!
 
No. The vast majority of the poly folk I know are not hippies. They're friendly with hippies and can be found hanging out with hippies at times, though they are not hippies.
 
how is your question not PC? something is not PC when there is a passive aggressive tone behind it that are pointedly rude/bias/disrespectful towards another person or persons... one that is meant to make a dig on purpose or without care for others... you just asked a question. That's it. I can't see how that is offensive.

yes I have noticed that btw. :D
 
No. The vast majority of the poly folk I know are not hippies. They're friendly with hippies and can be found hanging out with hippies at times, though they are not hippies.


Also, the vast majority of hippie folk I know are not poly. They're friendly with polys and can be found hanging out with polys at times, though they are not poly.
 
I wonder if the poly hippies tend to be older.. (i.e. 45+years old).

I've met other interest groups in the poly community. Wiccans, sci-fi fans and BDSM seem to be cropping up regularly. SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) also is a common factor.

And this applies to the group, in that ... if you are hanging around these groups, you are more likely to find people who are accepting of the poly lifestyle.
 
I wonder if the poly hippies tend to be older.. (i.e. 45+years old).

I've met other interest groups in the poly community. Wiccans, sci-fi fans and BDSM seem to be cropping up regularly. SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) also is a common factor.

I would agree with this. My although I betcha if I went home there would be a lot of poly people that are hippies that are in their 30s. Just a regional thing :)...my wife is a hippy and is in her early 30's

SCA...is that the conglomeration name for LARPING? (just briefly looked at the website)
 
The SCA is a Medieval recreation/reinactment society. Although members do usually create personas, it's not a "role-playing" group per se. It's based on recreating and studying the reality of Medieval culture, not on sci-fi/fantasy.

It says all this somewhere on their website(s).
 
The SCA is a Medieval recreation/reinactment society. Although members do usually create personas, it's not a "role-playing" group per se. It's based on recreating and studying the reality of Medieval culture, not on sci-fi/fantasy.

Thanks...so live action medieval recreation :)...

Actually thats good, I thought thats what larping was :)
 
LARP is an acronym for Live Action Role Playing. It is more a game like Dungeons and Dragons, except it's LIFE SIZE. Instead of sitting around describing the action, it's done in real time and space on location. It is not focused on the medieval period.

The SCA focuses specifically on the MEDIEVAL and EARLY RENAISSANCE period(s) (600-1600 AD), and includes some aspects of role-playing but role-playing is not the primary focus. They have jousting tournaments, cooking and sewing guilds, armor-making workshops, etc. and some folks attend these events "as" a persona that would have existed during that period.

I am interested in that period but I do not have the time to "join" anything. I own a copy of the SCA's Known World Handbook.
 
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we've noticed that a LOT of poly people or people who claim to be poly, are very much like "hippies" from the 70's. (i.e. smoke pot, want to just live and let live no matter the consequences, wear funky shirts..usually tie dyed, etc etc etc)

The above doesn't describe the poly- communities I know best. The fashion/music subculture easiest to identify amongst them is goth/industrial. There is not a lot of tie-dye.
 
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Interesting still....It seems that there are even more people who are poly from even more genre's. Maybe they are regional? I know that in this area, a LOT of them are the hippie type....and a lot of them are into the sci-fi stuff also.

This poses a bit of an issue for my wife and I, as we don't really relate to these people very well. We're not hippies....and we're definatly not into sci-fi at all.......Sigh....It's so difficult. LOL
 
Interesting still....It seems that there are even more people who are poly from even more genre's. Maybe they are regional? I know that in this area, a LOT of them are the hippie type....and a lot of them are into the sci-fi stuff also.

This poses a bit of an issue for my wife and I, as we don't really relate to these people very well. We're not hippies....and we're definatly not into sci-fi at all.......Sigh....It's so difficult. LOL

I think it is regional. And I to a point have the same problem.

You could always go and try and find another level to relate on. :)...

Its funny, I am a sci fi geek...I don't do sci fi
I ran d&d and roleplaying games for decades...I don't relate well to most gamers
I enjoy bdsm play...but for me its just play. I enjoy the rush it gives, I dont live it

But in those circles I have found random people to relate to (and this forum has been good too ;)) You might have to step out of your comfort zone into someone elses to find what you want, and heck you might like it.
 
You might have to step out of your comfort zone into someone elses to find what you want, and heck you might like it.

I think Ariakis' suggestion here is a good one.

My favourite fiction genre is murder mystery, but I don't ever use that as a criteria for who I am willing to date. On the other hand, it probably wouldn't even occur to me to date somene who dressed in a way that they really liked but that I found goofy or otherwise unattractive. If you actually notice someone as a prospect, the surface things that make them different than you are probably not dealbreakers, even if you find those things strange.

That said, you might also consider starting a new poly- event more in line with your interests. There are probably other poly- people in your area who aren't very enthusiastic about tie-dye and science fiction, but might like a... murder mystery book club, or pool league, or whatever.
 
Quite possibly people who fit into any kind of subculture and who aren't of the "norm" are more likely to show up at group events of another type of subculture that they belong to. I imagine there are people in all walks of life who love or are capable of loving more than one person. They just might not be comfortable with the group events due to what you have observed, that no one else there is "like them".

Personally I'm not a hippy, I'm actually pretty far removed from hippy. However I used to be involved in role playing games and sci fi conventions. I'm used to being places that I'm not exactly like everyone else. That's how we learn from each other.

-Derby
 
There's a lot of overlap between the groups mentioned so far...but not everyone who's a member of one group is a member of any of the others, and obviously poly types might be a member of one of the groups...but they might not.

What do hippies, SCA-folk, sf fans, wiccans, BDSM types, and gamers have in common? A tolerance for those who are different, a willingness to just accept people for what they are and judge them solely on the merits of how they fit into that sub-group, not the larger world as a whole. "So, you're polyamorous? Whoa, that's cool." "Thy personal life is none of my concern, varlet! Now, have at thee!" "Really? I think Heinlein wrote some stuff about that; so did le Guin and Bradley. You ever read any of them?" "Yeah, okay. So, you going to roll to hit, or what?"

Part of this is because all of these groups endure judgements based on what people THINK they are, rather than what they ACTUALLY are. So, it's not surprising that many poly people gravitate towards groups that are accepting and non-judgemental.

But tolerant, accepting people are everywhere, if you look long enough.
 
Interesting still....It seems that there are even more people who are poly from even more genre's. Maybe they are regional? I know that in this area, a LOT of them are the hippie type....and a lot of them are into the sci-fi stuff also.

This poses a bit of an issue for my wife and I, as we don't really relate to these people very well. We're not hippies....and we're definatly not into sci-fi at all.......Sigh....It's so difficult. LOL

In my community there is a strong more out group that is political and out there. It's a mix of trans people, more traditional looking families, hippies, emo's, goths, anarchists, old and new alike, different physical abilities and illness/disorders too. We are a good mix, but just the tip of the ice berg. there are far more poly identifying people that don't hang out with our local group. They don't feel they fit, aren't interested in groups... whatever.

Keep looking, there is people out there that you will feel comfortable with. You just haven't found them yet.

As for me I think I am a "hag" a mono hag, a geek hag, a anarchist hag, a queer hag, a military hag... I don't fit anywhere entirely and like that just fine. I fit with my tribe and that is good enough for me.
 
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