Mad as hell and don't want to take it anymore!

[Haunted Horseman]

I was enraged this morning when I heard a news story on the radio entitled "has the death toll rung for Halloween in New Jersey". The report went on to explain how there were several controversies lately where people were upset over front yard haunts that depicted dumbies being hanged ( Idiots thought they were racially offensive). The report also said that several schools had banned Halloween celebrations and parades and replaced them with Fall Festivals because Halloween was a religous holiday and might offend certain people.

I don't know about you guys, but I'm at my wits end with this Sh*t. I am so sick in tired of liberal politically correct creeps destroying everything that is fun. There is an element in this country that is bent on taking down anything and everything traditional. It is an assualt on our society and way of life. People really need to stand up to these thought police and take back their freedom. The voice in the wilderness needs to cry out:

"No morons, a hanging dumby on Halloween is not racially motiviated, grow up and move on to your next BS sensationalist cause."

"Yes, we will have Halloween parades in our schools and display Jack-0-Lanterns, if you don't like it then don't participate, it's your loss."

Everyone needs to get over whatever hang ups they have, stop being offended as to what other people do and leave people the hell alone.

Man ,stuff like this really gets me down. It really takes the spirit out of you.

I apologize for laying this negative stuff on my friends, but I had to vent to people who might understand. And to our friends in Canada, England, and Europe. I hope you don't have to deal with the same <deleted> that we deal with here.

[LawP]

I read about that nonsense HH. I'm of the opinion that there are folks out there who would find an ocean breeze offensive. Halloween is getting more and more popular - third in holiday spending next to Christmas and New Years. I doubt the little puritans with their puckered lips are going to win this battle. Can't do much about the schools...they'll find some justification for their paranoia. Don't fret my friend, we have a combined Halloween spirit that will vanquish the evil naysayers. I hope those people with the dummies stand their ground. Don't ever feel bad about venting to your friends here. It's far better to let off steam where you're safe than end up in jail for assault!

[uncletor]

Frank Zappa used to say that STUPIDITY was the one unstoppable force in the universe.
Maybe.
But I'm an optimist my nature, and figure it all comes out in the wash.
Usually, I take a look at the hot button issues of the day and if they are bugging people that year, I give them a wide berth in the Halloween displays. Now, a couple of items from the wire this year would have made me think twice about doing a hanging anyway, after some hang man's ropes had been left in the doors of a couple of black guys, creating a pretty tense scene locally in a couple of places.
Friend of mine used to have a display...where the guy would be hung in Spanish Inquistion style cermony and the rope would be TOO LONG..result, the guy would fall to the ground, and TWO pages would jump out and pull the rope while standing on the victims shoulders at the same time. I think they swiped it from Evil Roy Slade, I forget.
Now, the lady down from him had a kid that DID hang himself one year, and they knocked it off for one year, maybe two..
Now it could have been ugly if he had gone through with it...as he had every right to..and she had run up on the lawn screaming blue murder..but he gave a little, she thanked him for it, and everybody was cool. I think it's the spirit of compromise that is missing the most. Everybody wants an all or nothing score board and sometimes forgets
that we are a lot more people now, and bump into each other and may not always get our way.
For the record, they pulled out Halloween from the schools around here years ago...we just didn't have the TIME for it...
On the other hand, with lots and lots of tourists coming over to SEE Canadian/American Halloween in all it's Native splendor, a few communites are realizing, that, like Christmas, it's one of the things we do RIGHT...
Amazing how you can take PRIDE in things when folks are willing to pay through the nose to come over and stay and participate in them...
When I was a kid, they said Halloween would be dead in ten years. That would have meant the Intolerants would have been dancing on the grave in 1975...yes, Hooch, the year BORN TO RUN came out...Then, it was going to be after the Reagan Right took over in the early 80's...THEY would set this GODLESS NATION right....that was a quarter of a century ago...and it's STILL around..
In fact, it's just behind five other holidays in terms of popularity..and pretty inassailable holidays at THAT...
But for candy sales...now being just behind Christmas is pretty good..
I think you see where I am going with this...
Even some very dedicated born again spirit filled Christians I know and love and who HATE Halloween..(This'll KILL ya, the one calls it 'THE DEVILS BIRTHDAY') admit it's here to stay..that 'godless marketers and candy makers had made it PERMANENT..and that's the enemy camp talking...
Me? I smile at her green flashing eyes, and her emotion filled voice and wish her luck.
Me and the day are going no where..

[jadewik]

Grrrr. That's vexing indeed. If I lived in the Garden State, I'd probably consider doing a "House of Hanging" and putting up nooses and dummies 'round the house. I could do a dummy of every race to make sure everyone is equally offended... (do note my over-exaggeration) Where does it end?

I can understand hanging being a touchy subject since that school fiasco with nooses in a tree that led to some kids getting beat not too long ago... but, for cripes sakes, it's not like you don't finding hanging anywhere in history. Are we going to take all the offensive material out of history too? How would we learn from it then?-- we're all but perpetuating history by erasing the past.

Anyway... I'm all for letting people be offended-- since it's not people doing anything "offensive" so much as it is idiots choosing to consider an action offensive. Why waste time being offended, anyway? Do these people have nothing better to do than go on moral crusades, imposing their beliefs on others? You'd think people would have learned from the past-- that doesn't work.

Sorry, for the medium-long rant... I'm very passionate about some topics and this happened to brush against a nerve. I have more ranting on the subject, but I wanted the thread to stay more on topic. =)

[hauntmaster]

I do understand your feeling, HH! Always stupid occurrs anywhere!!! Well, the same thing to me before... And also, a couple of days ago when my friends and I decorated the yard display in the front porch, we heard the voices background where the man and his lady walked with the dog down on the street, that man yelled "F*** Halloween!! Halloween stuffs are belonging to devils!!!" When one of my friends shouted at that guy, "Do you have any problems with us or the halloween things?!?!" The guy made no respond to us, then walked away. Hee hee... Well, s**t happens all the time!

[I B Howlin' Wolfman]

Thing is, we have to take a lot of things under consideration. The hanging thing may yet be too hot a topic to display a noose these days. As far as I'm concerned, a noose is something I would not of gone with this year.

Quite frankly, I never use a noosed prop. It will always be a sign of linching, and I have too many African American people as my close friends to even think about using one in my decorations. It's just too close to the calamity that the nation had experienced. And it's not a sign of racial equality either.

But then, Slip a noose around a figure that looks remarkably like Isama Bin Lauden, as effergy, and you know what? There's no problem with that. So go figure...

Also, I never really had much problem with the Harry Potter haunt I used to do. We hung up a sign that says "All are welcome! Muggles, Wizards & Witches alike." and another... "Please join us for Halloween!" and we made sure we stuck to the theme and didn't play up the grusome too much.

We never had a problem as far as people shouting their opinions about how halloween is "of the Devil", we did talk with a few folks and we assured them, kindly, that it's just for the kids and how much fun we're having when the kids visit us. We gave out small bags of toys and candy. So it was a bonanza as far as the kids were concerned.

We also invite them back and check it out for themselves. Many of them do return. They see that it's just a big show and that the kids are truely enjoying themselves. Truely, it's a time when we are trying to show our love for our neighbors and for the holiday, but you can't meet an angry comment, with anger. You have to meet it with some kindness and understanding.

We did have a comment one year, when someone asked "Why don't you do this for Christmas?" Well, at Christmas, it's kinda cold to set up a tent and tell chrismas stories, or hang around in a costume and hand out eggnog. There aren't kids and parents going door to door wishing their neighbors Merry Christmas. But we do go a little big on our outdoor decorations, without sucking the juice out of the power grid and causing a brown out of the upper half of Pinellas Co. every time we light up the display.

You have to show them that their remark isn't going to get you riled. Half the time, their just trying to get you angry. You don't HAVE to let their trick work. Just wave back and with a smile on your face say "Happy Halloween! Hope you visit us Oct. 31st. for a spookin' good time!"

We just have to put the holiday in a better light than what's been done in the past. We have a nasty steriotypical opinion which we have to deal with. Getting angry with someone who's already angry, isn't the way to handle it. Smart remarks will not help the situation. It can only do more damage to an already "tainted" holiday. We have to put our best foot forward, even if it IS a bloody stump, and be our own embassadors for Halloween.

It's up to us to make Halloween more acceptable. Not the goverment, not the congressmen or City Hall. If we leave it up to them, you know that they'll side with the ones who are so "miffed with monsters". The pumpkin is in our court, are we going to light it? Or throw it back??

[Nostalgiascape]

As far as i'm concerned there's a might too many weak bellied wussies out there expecting us to cater to their sensitivities.

[MHooch]

I know people who not only do NOT celebrate Halloween, but will not allow their children to read Harry Potter because it promotes witchcraft and devil worship. Geez....the books that I read were about love, and friendship, loyalty, bravery, and doing things that you never thought you could do.

(P.S. No, they haven't read them for themselves.)

[One Eye'd Jack]

There was this woman interviewed on one of my radio programs who was one of these very people you're talking about, MammaHooch; one of these hifalutin, bible-thumpin', anti-almost everything types who preached VERY strongly against Harry Potter!

She admitted that while she was doing all of this, she'd never actually READ any of the Harry Potter books.
She was eventually smart enough to at least want to know more about what it was she was so against so, she read one.

..... And another.... and then another, untill she'd read all to date and NOW she goes around the country doing seminars FOOOOOOORRRR Harry Potter and preaches against the bigotry of thoses types of people we're talking about, right here!

It was a great show and I wish I could remember her name or what show I heard her on. But I know all of you would've loved it.... especially you, MammaHooch!

[Cadaverino]

The report also said that several schools had banned Halloween celebrations and parades and replaced them with Fall Festivals because Halloween was a religous holiday and might offend certain people.

There are 14,598 public school districts in the United States, and 53,075 public elementary schools.

How many of these schools or school districts are involved banning Halloween celebrations? I'd like to get a grip on what the size of this problem is.

[I B Howlin' Wolfman]

You're going to end up with a LOT of PO'ed kids and as they turn into teenages, they'll vandalize because they were CHEATED!

[Haunted Horseman]

How many of these schools or school districts are involved banning Halloween celebrations? I'd like to get a grip on what the size of this problem is.

I haven't the slightest idea my friend. It was a radio news blurb which did not give any statistics. It used generalized terms like " many schools".

[I B Howlin' Wolfman]

The bigger news channels are governed by outside intrest groups. You're going to hear a lot of hype like this. It just stirs up the community. It's not worth the wear & tear on your psyche.

[thislazylife]

Strange how in a country where words like "freedom" and "liberty" are tossed around like hot potatoes we have so many utterly ridiculous laws.

[Cadaverino]

The report also said that several schools had banned Halloween celebrations and parades and replaced them with Fall Festivals because Halloween was a religous holiday and might offend certain people.

A U.S. District Court just weighed in on this subject: Halloween as commonly celebrated in America is not a religious holiday. Rosa-Ruiz v. Gonzalez-Galoffin, Slip Copy, 2007 WL 2768694 (D. Puerto Rico, Sept. 20, 2007). The plaintiff, a federal employee, objected to the decoration of government offices with witches and goblins during the Halloween season because, as a Pentecostal Christian, she found this celebration of paganism offensive. The court ruled against her, saying:

We review the pleadings corresponding to the Establishment Clause [of the First Amendment] claim on this base. The government conduct that plaintiff challenges as offensive to the Establishment Clause is the display of traditional Halloween decorations in her office. There is no allegation in her amended complaint beyond that of a mere display of decorations in the overall setting of the celebration of Halloween festivities. The cats, goblins or screeching mat alone do not convey an endorsement of any religious belief. Such decorations, like Halloween costumes and parties, are linked to the seasonal celebration of a fun-loving tradition in which children are particularly involved in classrooms, neighborhood gatherings and trick or treating. Halloween decorations, like valentines, Easter bunnies, and egg hunts are all secular displays and activities that neither convey religious messages nor constitute religious symbols. Halloween lost its religious and superstitious overtones long ago. It has become instead a commercial holiday enjoyed by communities in its many forms of entertainment. Nor is there any concern here over governmental entanglement for there is no allegation of any contact or interaction between any pagan religion or sect and the governmental institution.