Ok, I'm old and got into punk in the late 70s. Never lived in a place with a really big active scene until Seattle in the late 80s / early 90s, but honestly that wasn't punk per se, it was something different. More rock than punk, I would say. Feel free to disagree. The Bellingham Bash in 1990 or 91 had a good vibe, though, and I saw Nirvana at Squid Row for a dollar before they got famous.

I think the point is that punk is accessible and relateable for a lot of people. The punk people I've known were the most open-minded of any crowd, whether that was built around music or something else. I think it's true that it still unites people who otherwise would probably not mix. They are also the most open to different styles of music.

And as for connecting people across space and time, I can't help but think of The Fall's "Telephone Thing" every time I remember the douchebags at Google have all my data as I type HN comments. How dare you assume I want to parlez-vous with you.