Hippies and former hippies probably have a lot of reasons to be bitter about the commercialization of their movement: think about the fact that Michael Jackson owns the right to The Beatles' songs, and is free to license them at will (whenever he needs a nose-job) to whatever purveyor of crap needs help hawking its imported wares on television.

Today's New York Times has an article on this phenomenon. GEICO is using images of the sixties counterculture -- VW buses and peace signs -- to sell car insurance.

Should the baby boomers -- or at least those who were part of this movement -- be upset? I think so. What was supposed to be a powerful force for change has been reduced to nostalgia -- in the middle of a war in Iraq that bears striking similarities to the one hippies worked so hard to end. It's as if corporate America has forgotten the substance of the message and used the pretty flowers to sell insurance.

Continue reading Is the commercialization of the sixties something to mourn?

Is the commercialization of the sixties something to mourn? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.