Thanks so much for saying this.
I agree that "Van Life" is a movement, a whole different "movement" than anything we've seen before. And it's absolutely not a response to lack of affordable housing. It's hip and it's young. As far as I can tell, these are not a penniless subset of the homeless population. They use restaurants, go to bars, etc. IME it's actually not cheap to do what they're doing, even if they spend zero for rent.
The last time I did significant roaming in my car (a Honda Element with a DIY bed), most everyone living in a van was over 62, because 62+ with lifetime National Park passes can camp for 1/2 price in any Federal campgrounds (TVA, BLM, USFS, NP....). For some, it's a lifestyle choice, for others necessity because seniors often have a difficult time getting employed or keeping employment, and then they can't afford rent. Many of these folks are "connected", but many aren't SM oriented. Many are just surviving.
IMO "vanlife" is not like the hippy movement, either. My experience was that hippies were just a different genre of regular people. (Alot of my friends were once hippies, and eventually became attorneys, psychologists, doctors..... lol) It was a counter-culture. It was a time of great change and challenge to the ways we had always done things before. There was the Vietnam War, the murder of MLK and RFK, more professional opportunity for women, a desire for smaller families, environmentalism, etc....
it's a graphic one.
