The biggest, most collossal mistake made in the 60's was the diversion of the youth movement into drug use. It was almost entirely self-defeating. I say "almost", because there actually were a few people who expanded their consciousness through drugs...but only a very few...most numbed themselves and lessened their effective awareness (as happens with most people with alcohol as well).

Drug use gave the government and police a perfect way to attack and discredit the political initiatives of the youth movement. For this reason, I suspect the government secretly assisted in popularizing illegal drugs...in various ways. If so, very clever move! Nothing compromised the peace movement so badly as associating its supporters with drug use.

The "generation gap" was another useless diversion and waste of energy, and I bet the government helped foment that too from behind the scenes. What better way to divide and conquer? What better way to marginalize the young revolutionaries than to alienate them from the older people who might have been their allies and advisors?

One must indeed look to the past...the strengths of the past...while envisioning a better future. That requires an alliance of old and young progressives, not a generation gap. I remember how prejudiced young and old were against one another. It was shameful and ridiculous, in retrospect. We missed a grand opportunity there.