a slogan which was a cheesy in 1994/5 when it was first being bandied about when the paths of rave and the internet crossed (at least for the wider public)

a bit of spin which contains some good ideas but has limits..

OK raves aren’t supposed to be a place for fighting and stabbing people, domestics and they are usually friendly and fun at least until the drugs wear off or run out..

But no fucking way am I going to feel love or respect towards people like control freak politicians and ministers, facist/racist groups, extreme religious nuts etc, yokels who whinge and moan and grass up parties even when they are just walking their dog (i.e they don’t even live there) etc…

its every thing to me

This is what makes my life happy and this is what I strive for in my life and the good people around me who want it too.

as for the whole world I very much doubt this can be. But it least I can try and make it happen for myself and my family and friends.

alot of peeps are not in to it but thats ok for them. I am a hippie and proud

I lead my self I am not a follower.

And that’s why it is bollocks.

People don’t all agree, we aren’t all as one.

It’s a concept that doesn’t exist.

If you want to stick your head in the fluffy clouds that’s up to you, but I, sir, am a realist.

i dont see how peace love, unity and respect can be bollocks, i mean they are beautiful concepts. yea its not a recent slogan and yea, not every person or every party (or even most of them) are built on these premises, let alone them being embued in the actual events themselves. but i think they are good concepts to have in mind when organising and attending an event.

surely noone wants a fight, so we should be able to agree that peace is a good goal. and those that do want a fight should be able to appreciate that virtually everyone else at the rave doesnt want to see it or be involved, and they should respect that.

this is primarily acheived by people feeling like they are welcome at an event, and have some unity with the situation and people involved. this unity also protects us, for example when the police show up, its often the solidarity of the ravers for the rig that keeps the rig safe.

it is also vital that people have some kind of respect or tolerence of one another, because without that people are not likely to feel unified with the event, and therefore peaceful. i think that rigs should also have respect for teh land they are tresspassing on or just using. a tidy site after a rave goes a long way in the minds of the locals who will inspect it after. this helps bring grassroots support and understanding, vital ingredients for the future of raves.

and finally love. its an overused, soppy word, but i think we can all agree that we love music. and the love of music (and freinds, and drugs and massive fuck off soundystems) is what brings us together for these weird events where a load of stangers all meet up and convulse in time to music in front of a wall of sound.

its not some perfect mantra, but they are good concepts to remind us of how things could be and how we want them to be. i done know about anyone else, but when i get mashed i get confused, and sometimes simple beautiful concepts help me deal with difficult situations.

what slogan would mr tooth et al suggest as a banner for the rave scene?

I don’t think it was ever alive in this country to start with.

Thats not to say that raves aren’t a bit more fun than a townie night out but it was always a bit of a “bunch of lads doing mischief” type thing – low-cost fun borrowing someone elses resources and a lot of people are prepared to accept that – when things get heavy (cops, thugs etc) they might have a bit of a fight but just accept it as “the way things are”.

I get the impression theres a casual acceptance of violence and misogyny now; if a fight happens or a girl gets groped its just seen as normal. Fights and bullying are often seen as a “bit of a laugh” (at least for those who aren’t involved) or an excuse/reason to have another fight – as well as people bringing their grudges and domestic arguments to the parties. Girls also are often seen as rig accessories/trophies rather than actual valued crew members (with a few notable exceptions)….

the raves which go off (relatively) trouble free often have people mocking the farmer, locals, dog walkers etc. OK fair enough self defence if they try anything stupid, but it seems a bit wrong IMO to bully someone on their own land…

Basically Britains lad/binge culture has driven out anything else and raves are simply becoming an low-cost extension of the townie lifestyle rather than a replacement for it…

yeah, me and my mates were the original chavs. We knocked about together just before the rave scene started.

There was perhaps initially something different rave culture, people were a bit friendlier etc but it wasn’t long (only a few months TBH) before the problems started, people falling out with one another, blagging money and being deadbeats, the usual stuff.

That said there were less fights and real violence at least between friends.

I wouldn’t have called that initial idealism PLUR though, just good drugs, a bunch of lads having a laugh in times when there was less stress and pressure in the world and the reality that our families and friends were supportive and there to take a lot of the burden and to back us up when we fucked up (this we of course didn’t realise at the time).

gender has a lot to do with this. Everyone wants to be nice to a young lady 😉 Blokes are often just seen as competition. Even by the most “right-on” people…

Mind you I suppose when I said “this country” I may have just meant England… I have only been to Wales a handfil of times so can’t comment really on how things are.

oh dear

No offence, but I am glad I don’t think like that

every one to there own.

Trails in life will change you opinions and morals mate.

Thats for sure