quote:

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"It might be fun today to dress up like a little girl -- kids think it's cute and things like that. And you start playing around with it and, like drugs, you do a little here and there (and) eventually it gets you,"

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Welcome to America, check your sanity at the door.
 

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Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :
 
Yeah, I heard about this on the radio. And you know what they replaced it with? Camo day. 'Cause having young people dress up like soliders is much better than having them dress up the opposite gender.
 

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Posted by Troubadour (Member # 83) on :
 
Like I've said here recently: It seems that the "moral majority" has no problems with graphic violence, but anything relating to sexuality gets them all in a twist.

What an ass-backwards view of morality.
 

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Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
 
No, ElJay, I think it's entirely appropriate. It sends the appropriate message:

"Hide who you are, kids. We want everyone to look the same and act the same. That's less threatening than learning to see things from other perspectives and appreciating diversity."
 

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Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :
 
As much as like your point, Jenny, I doubt there was much appreciating diversity going on through the original theme. Knowing kids, I suspect it was a lot more about giggling.
 

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Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
 
Well, even though all of you consider me to be the "moral majority" conservative -- even I think this (cancellation) is just plain stupid. Kids play like this all the time at home and it is perfectly normal.

Now, the link doesn't work for me so I can't see the context of the original article, so I don't know if they were trying to gets kids to cross-dress that maybe didn't want to, or something like that. But it does seem way too extreme to cancel it, or change it to camo.

FG
 

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Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
 
Yeah, Heaven forbid we let the kids giggle.
 

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Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :
 
FG - It says the tradition grew out of a Sadie-Hawkins type thing, with kids switching roles for a day. It was listed through the school as an official activity... doesn't say anything about kids feeling pressure. One mother didn't like it, and wanted to keep her kids home for the day, which the school agreed to right away. And then it's kinda unclear. The mother had a group representing her. It doesn't say they asked the school to get rid of the day, it kinds sounds like the school did it pre-emptively to avoid more problems. But the school representative is quoted as sayign that a lot of boys wore "pink shorts" anyway.

And, to be fair, the camo day is supposed to be about hunters, not soliders. That's clear in the article, but wasn't on the radio snippet I heard.
 

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Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
 
Well hunting's only a little better than soldiers.
 

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Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
 
Okay -- so we have these little kids dressing as hunters, when in another state we have a fight going over a senior in high school (who's a avid hunter) who's senior picture with his hunting gun is outlawed?

So are we giving kids a mixed message, or what?

Farmgirl
 

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Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :
 

quote:

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Hunting for sport is worse than soldiers.

IMHO

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Depends on your definition of "sport." While I have no interest in doing it personally, I have no problem with people who go out and hunt and eat what they kill. It's still "sport," they don't need to do it to survive. But in general I don't think it's any crueler than any other form of meat-eating. And if someone thinks it's fun it sit without moving in a tree in the freezing rain for a couple of days on the off-chance they get to shoot at something, more power to 'em.

Trophy hunting -- shooting something just to stuff it with no intention of eating it, or because it's "exotic" and you've never shot one before -- that gets a from me. Like those hunters care about my opinion.
 

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Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
 
And that would be MY state. They're having some problems reconciling that with "Live Free or Die." Oh no! A gun in a school picture!

Um, he's a trapshooter and that's a standard pose. It's his hobby.

But it's a gun! It's a school! Can't have that!


 

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Posted by Bokonon (Member # 480) on :
 
So far, both cases brought up seem pretty idiotic to me. Let them be TWIRPs! let them pose in their favorite hobby equipment!

Y'know, I thik this has less to do with liberal/conservative, and more to do with Soccer Moms, I mean, Security Moms Gone Wild!

-Bok
 

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Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
 
JG-- I doubt that TWIRP encourages ANY type of open-mindedness. Be serious-- these are kids.

Tommy: "You know, Jimmy, I suddenly respect you more now that I've seen you in heels. Here, I'm sorry I stole your lunch money."

Jimmy: "Gee, Tommy-- you're not such a bully after all. Let's go see if Jenny wants to play soccer with us, even though she's in a wheelchair!"

Everyone on both sides is missing the point of TWIRP days. It's just fun-- it isn't meant to build rainbow bridges, it isn't supposed to drag young Christians down into Babylonian sexual promiscuity.

It's just fun.
 

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Posted by saxon75 (Member # 4589) on :
 
So, this is a little off-topic, but do people actually wear camo when they hunt? All of the hunters that I know wear bright colors like orange and yellow when they go hunting to try to minimize the chance of getting shot by another hunter.
 

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Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
 
Scott: what you said. This is like Halloween, as far as I'm concerned. It's not a devil-worshipping-holiday, it's just *fun*.

I swear some adults must have skipped childhood entirely.
 

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Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
 
At the same time, I completely support the parents' right to protest this.
 

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Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
 
I support their right, but also support the school's right of refusal. They aren't *requiring* the children to cross-dress for that day. If it offends a small portion of the parent population, they can keep their kids home that day, or require their children not to participate.

Really, I don't think this is about honestly thinking that their kids will become homosexual because of one day of silliness. I think it has more to do with feeling a "homosexual agenda" is push-push-pushing their viewpoint, to the point that they want to dig their heels in and say "NO MORE". Like someone with a neighbor who keeps pushing their religion on them, push-push-push, until the very sight of a cross offends. Even if that cross is actually a traffic sign showing an upcoming intersection.
 

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Posted by jebus202 (Member # 2524) on :
 
Can we all agree that the person quoted in the first post should be shot oout of cannon in the general direction of the sun?
 

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Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
 
So why do you hate the sun so much?
 

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Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
 
He's Irish? Easily sunburned?
 

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Posted by jebus202 (Member # 2524) on :
 
Actually I have a lovely mediteranean complexion, mack.

I was hoping that this man would actually cause the sun to explode in an attempt to get away from him. The sun exploding should grant Ireland a few well needed seconds of warmth... and light, I think.
 

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Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
 
dammit jebus.

My mother has that type of complexion too.

--I--
 

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Posted by Audeo (Member # 5130) on :
 
Saxon, it depends on what you're hunting and what you're using to kill it. For instance muzzle-loaders and archery hunters aren't required to wear the orange hunting because their season is earlier, by several weeks or months, than the modern rifle season, and in order to get a kill with a muzzle loader or a bow you have to be significantly closer than, and therefore better hidden, than to hit with modern rifle. Also some animals, that have different seasons than deer or water fowl, like coyote, or bear, don't require orange, at least in my home state, even if you use a modern rifle or shotgun. But they make orange camo patterns too now, the whole purpose is to break up your silhoutte, so that you aren't as easily spotted as a solid color. If you really want to go all out though, you need a gilly suit.

edited for clarity

[ November 19, 2004, 04:49 PM: Message edited by: Audeo ]
 

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Posted by Troubadour (Member # 83) on :
 
More of the same silliness...

This time about "Shark Tale":

quote:

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Of course, when it comes to kids, this is tricky stuff. The film does not come right out and say that we should all accept homosexuality. And, naturally, children should be taught to be accepting of others.

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The underlying implication being, of course, that it's ok to accept everyone unless they're a raving queer.


 

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Posted by babager (Member # 6700) on :
 
oh my gosh...that was close...if that soccer mom hadn't taken a stand all them younguns mighta turned out gay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

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Posted by Troubadour (Member # 83) on :
 
And of course that gayness would've been re-inforced if they also went and saw Shark Tale....
 

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Posted by Tater (Member # 7035) on :
 
I think it's definately stupid not to let kids dress up as the opposite sex. Doesn't everyone know that people are more likely to do something if they are told not to? Hmm, I thought that was common knowledge.
Tell me more about this boy not allowed to have a gun in his picture. Wonder if they'll let him have a deer head, or some turkey feathers, or..a mummified cat.
 

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Posted by Tater (Member # 7035) on :
 
After reading both articles..I'm still convinced this is the craziest stuff I've seen in awhile. Except for this
George Bush's Debate Notes


 

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Posted by twinky (Member # 693) on :
 
God is awesome!
 

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Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
 
Hunting Camo vs Bright Orange.

Hunting most of the year is done in Camo, so the animals don't see you coming.

Hunting during the main Deer Hunting season is done in bright oranges, so you are not mistaken for a deer by the ameuture hunters.

My father went deer hunting for many years, until he noticed people camped on two sides of him brought more beer than other camping equipment. When you have someone with an itchy trigger finger walking 10 feet away, you don't want to be camoflaged. Those idiots shoot at anything that moves.

During deer season weekends we keep our big dog locked up, just to make sure he doesn't get shot.

I've had deer hunters shoot toward our house before.

And I've heard the story of the farmer afraid his cow would be shot, white washed the letters C O W on the side of her so that the stupid hunters wouldn't confuse her with their quarry.

The next day he went out to the pasture and found his cow dead, a bullet hole right in the center of the O.
 

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Posted by A Rat Named Dog (Member # 699) on :
 
For some reason, while I have no problem with older kids cross-dressing for fun, somehow it weirds me out when really young kids whose parents are still choosing their clothes end up in drag. I dunno, when the kid doesn't really have any volition in the matter, it just seems weirdly mockful. Like beyond simple costume-day mockful.

I know that's a strange reaction, but I had to share it

Perhaps I'm reacting this way because the whole entertainment value of dressing in drag is the fact that it shocks people. I don't mean it shocks them morally or anything. But when you look at someone, one of the first things your brain tries to recognize is gender, and if the person you are looking at is putting on outward signs of both genders, it causes a sort of "whoah, agh, weird" reaction. Making people react that way is fun, so people have entire events built around dressing in drag.

(I'm not talking about the motives of serious transvestites here ... just stuff like TWIRP day.)

So anyway ... maybe I react weirdly to someone dressing their four-year-old in drag because something in my brain says little kids are supposed to be cute, cared for, and protected, and seeing one dressed for shock value just seems to run against that in my head ... I'd probably react the same way to a little kid in a thong swimsuit or a little kid with an automatic weapon.

Anyway, I'm weird, apparently, because pretty much everybody here seems to love the idea of little boys running around in pink dresses Or maybe what I'm seeing here is mostly just resistance to the unjustified motives behind the TWIRP-day banning ...

[ November 20, 2004, 01:20 AM: Message edited by: A Rat Named Dog ]
 

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Posted by Synesthesia (Member # 4774) on :
 
Dang. I would have enjoyed dresing like a boy when I was akid.
I hated girl's clothes.

*still fails to see how wearing a dress can make a kid gay, but then again... thinks it a little odd to put a boy in a dress, just a bit*
 

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Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
 

quote:

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Can we all agree that the person quoted in the first post should be shot oout of cannon in the general direction of the sun?

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