Politics, Music and Halloween

It’s been a really good and interesting week here.

When is a costume too shocking for Halloween?

First off there was Halloween…man, oh man, American loves Halloween!  

I have never seen anything like it.  The media build up in the days running up to last Friday was huge!  It’s not really a thing that has the kids at the forefront anymore, although the trick or treat thing is still massive, it is, rather, far more an adult event than I had expected.  That takes many forms and has a number of controversial sides too.  

What to wear is all important, people like a bit of character and a wee bit of scare, however there were a couple of outfits that really caused debate in the US.  

First off was the Ray Rice ‘costume’.  Rice is/was an NFL player who, in February this year assaulted his partner, who has since become his wife. The incident was caught on camera and resulted in a heap of publicity and Rice being suspended indefinitely by the NFL.  He is currently appealing that decision.  However, back to the point, many Halloween revellers wore a costume with Rice’s football number on a top and dragged a blow up doll with a bloodied face behind them.  I put this down to TV hype, until I saw two guys like this last Friday night in Washington.  To be honest, this left me feeling really uncomfortable.  Did I challenge them?  No I didn’t.  This experience has left me thinking about how women are viewed in society and the acquiescence given to offensive views, which, I feel the wearers of these costumes demonstrated.   Such aquiesence arising as a result of either an inability or unwillingness to challenge those expressing these views.  For me, my lack of challenge was through inability, I wonder whether the rest of the company those guys were with, the bar tenders who served them across the night or the cops they no doubt passed on the streets were unable or unwilling to challenge?  I wonder too, what would have happened in Scotland would friends, bar staff, bouncers or cops have behaved differently?  I hope so, but...

Challenge to costume ideas did, however, come thick and fast from both men and women in response to Amazon’s idea to sell a ‘sexy’ PhD costume for Halloween.  The reviews that were submitted both put the distributor in its place and proved, without doubt, Americans get irony!

A drive by shooting, oh really?

Halloween was Friday past, and rather than get dressed up, I went to see a band.  They were advertised as the Wild Hearts, a rock band I really like, but instead of getting rock, I walked into a country bar where I had a surprising good time listening to Bryan Elijah Smith and his version of the Wild Hearts.  But here’s the thing.  As I was listening to them give it yee-haa, I heard one of the audience members mention, in passing, to his mate that there had been a drive by shooting outside.  “Oh really”? said the mate before they turned back to watch the band.  

OH REALLY, is that it???  

By now, I was starting to get more than a little interested and perhaps even a wee bit concerned!  It seems that a drive by shooting  happened literally 100 meters from where I was.  The police response was, I have no doubt fulsome, but nothing like I would expect in Scotland.  Streets were not shut for ages, forensics did not appear in white suits but blue lights and extra cops were on the ground and apparent.

The response was not better, it was not worse, it was just different and different sums up much of this experience.

Guns, laws, restriction and their management and place in society…that’s still something I am thinking about in the context of over here.

The Mid-Terms

Yesterday were the mid-term elections.  Two years to go until the Presidential race, and that race clearly started this morning…no time to reflect or take stock on yesterdays result for either main party.  

Its a bit different here.  Whilst the Democrats have the President as their obvious party leader, the Republicans don’t have that single figure head, which is a bit odd as there is nobody to take the blame, or, given the success of the GOP last night, the credit.

Today sees the biggest Republican majority in Congress for 70 years, which also says a lot about the move to the right in American politics.  The question arises as to what that move to the right will mean for the UK should the next President by a Republican!

This was also an election that was, by UK standards, massively low key.  Whilst the news channels had coverage, there was little by way of signs on the roadway or posters in windows.  Had I not known it was on anyway, I may never have guessed.  One of the main reasons for this, according to many of the Americans I have spoken to, is that national politics is not that important.  People are far more likely to get involved in local, state legislature, rather than at national level.  Local is where, so many believe, the important decisions are actually taken.

The management suite for my apartment complex was a polling station yesterday.  When I was in chatting to the staff, a big round of applause happened out of nowhere.  The reason; the 500th voter had cast their ballot and all the staff marked this number with a huge round of applause and a cheer!  

The 500th voter was just short of 25% of the turnout for the district, which was reflective across much of the States yesterday, which perhaps also supports the point around localism.

It is also interesting that so many people have, on learning I’m Scots, have remarked on our ‘big vote’ recently, so if the referendum has done nothing else, it has, I think, put Scotland on the map of American conscience in somewhat bolder ink!

So what I’ve learned this week…

Sportsmen have a real responsibility in setting an example as how to treat women

American gets irony and can use it really well

Drive by shootings really do happen, and can happen in otherwise safe places

It’s nice to give voters a wee cheer for coming out

As always, thoughts and comments are appreciated.

Take care

Richie