ABSTRACT
The average Viennese invest in work, in the family and in networks that connect them to people who can promote their careers and supply them with above-standard commodities and services. For most Viennese the public sphere includes first of all their place of work. Contact with authorities is kept to a minimum, and one expects mutual noninterference. At work one is subject to interference not only from superiors but also from colleagues. The urban environment and the presence of a multitude of educational facilities have promoted the genesis of enclaves where alternative lifestyles abound. A pipeline of communication connects Vienna's alternative intelligentsia with the youth subculture. The link is established by common issues, such as environmentalism and the struggle against fascist revival, that bridge the gap between the lush lifestyle of the progressive intelligentsia and the economically marginal existence of subcultural youth.
