People were getting high... Youth paid little attention to threats of mortality.  A new ice age was imminent.  There were so many people that everyone was gonna starve.  The flu was gonna kill everyone.  OMG, I'm gonna get drafted and die in Vietnam. BUT... Don't trust anyone over 30.  Owsley makes the best acid.  The music is fantastic. No matter that both the music and the drug scene were products of the intelligence community.