There's a certain sub-culture that exists in the scooter world.
It's almost like "geek-chic".
I do think that it's primarily a city thing, where the scooters are a handy little runabout, and the people have their clubs and user groups, just like the motorcyclists do.
I confess that I do think that some scooters are pretty cool, and I find a certain appeal to an old Vespa or Lambretta, and some of them have big enough engines to do 55mph, and work as a commuter.
And there is some heritage to "scooter gangs" like the "Mods" from the 1960s, and there's even one pictured on the Who "Quadrophenia" album. All dressed-up with a ton of chrome crap all over it, just like the old "Mod" scooters.
For the money that a good Vespa or Lambretta would cost, I'd rather own a bike like I have.
But, I can see the certain attraction to it, and if I wanted to wear horn-rim glasses, paisley shirts, and chinos, with a bluetooth helmet to talk to my other geek friends on my I-phone, then it might be cool. Especially in someplace like Rome or Paris.
And, you know, that cute little tear-drop trailer that CMW sells is a copy of the old PAV-40 trailer that is VERY popular with the scooter crowd. That style of trailer, painted-up in matching colors with an old Lambretta(sexiest scooter around), is a real hot ticket with the scooter crowd. The scooterista like to pull little trailers like that. Very popular and chic to have a scooter with matching trailer.
I read some scooter blogs from time to time, and its an interesting look into another 2-wheel culture. And they are big on modifications and doing all kinds of engine improvements and cosmetic personalizations to their scooters too.
They are not really unlike us. They do similar things.
They just have a different kind of view on what the "coolest" things are, and that's not bad. Just different.
Now, as far as the "mega-scooters" are concerned, such as the Suzuki Burgman 650, I do think that is a potential direction that commuter bikes will be more like in the future. They are quite at home on the highway, and can easily do interstate highway speeds, and they have comfy "sit-in" riding position that is aerodynamic and protects more from the outside elements, and are easy to ride.
The "feet-forward" riding position has been trying to break-thru for a long time, and alot of innovative designers have been trying to promote the idea. It has alot of good points going for it, but it's not traditional, so there has been resistance in the market. I think the Suzuki Burgman and others like it, are just now beginning to break that resistance down, and they are becoming more popular.
I think that is a format that we'll be seeing alot of in the future as the commuter bike style of choice.