Poor Choices for Halloween Costumes

[webfusion]

Part One -
http://www.comcast.net/news/strange/index.jsp?cat=STRANGE&fn=/2006/11/02/512352.html

A police bomb squad raced across Norway by helicopter Thursday to investigate a mysterious, wired package that turned out to be a discarded Halloween prop left behind by a young man who had dressed up as a suicide bomber.


Part Two -
http://www.comcast.net/news/strange/index.jsp?cat=STRANGE&fn=/2006/11/01/511635.html
"Bad choice of costume" -----
Former inmate, Oscar Aponte, was taking his daughter trick-or-treating in Peekskill on Tuesday night in his old orange prisoner's jumpsuit, when a county correction officer _ also out trick-or-treating with her child _ spotted the familiar jumpsuit and took down the man's license plate and called authorities.

Part Three -
http://www.comcast.net/news/strange/index.jsp?cat=STRANGE&fn=/2006/11/01/511571.html
A Brooklyn high school student caused a stir when he showed up for class dressed as Adolf Hitler for Halloween.

OK, did anyone else see some stuff personally on Tuesday that you felt was OTT or worthy of mention here?

[Wheezebucket]

I was dressed in full Jesus garb (crown of thorns w/ blood, stigmata, robes, etc.) and a friend went as 'Priest Hitler' (A priest robe and Hitler mustache/hat, etc.). Then later he lost the robe and underneath he had a fanny pack (with a big swastika on it) and a hawaiin shirt and went as 'Vacation Hitler'. We went to go get some McDonalds before the party and it was *packed* with kids for some reason. We had a lot of angry mothers shooting us death rays.

Oh yeah, and his girlfriend went as 'Miss Jew 06'. I'll leave out the details of that one - but it was good.

[Tony]

There were reports of someone dressed up as an invisible pedestrian lurking the streets of Houston Halloween night.

[Dustin Kesselberg]

Bill Maher dressed up as Steve Irwin with a sting ray sticking out of his chest.

Bad choice I think.

[ARubberChickenWithAPulley]

I went as a nudist.

[patchbunny]

Then later he lost the robe and underneath he had a fanny pack (with a big swastika on it) and a Hawaiian shirt and went as 'Vacation Hitler'.

Vacation Hitler? Oh, that rocks. Would have gone well with our Halloween Bad Movie/Good Company party this year. I showed They Saved Hitler's Brain (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0265870/). :eek:

[Mephisto]

My son wanted to be something really scary and I suggested Dick Cheney. He promptly answered, "Dad, I said I wanted to be something scary, not something evil." :)

[webfusion]

Bad costumes --- the teenagers with NONE!
They just come around in large groups of 6-10 with backpacks for the candy.

They add a whole new dimension to the meaning of "trick" or treat ---
these gangs are really prepared with fireworks, eggs and shaving cream.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
I always dress as a pirate.

[Temporal Renegade]

This really isn't first hand, but thought it would be interesting to see a trick or treater show up at my house wearing this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v66/Tremas/villagepe645564ople.jpg

Others can be found here: http://www.retrocrush.com/costumes/

[SteveGrenard]

The kid in Brooklyn who dressed up as Hitler (Cartman did this on South Park by the also) argued that he was satirizng and making fun of the fuhrer and wants to know why it is okay for Mel Brooks to make a movie with Dick Shawn dressed up as Hitler and do a sham Broadway musical called Springtime for Hitler and he can't don the costume and similarly satirize the dead nazi.

Does he have a valid argument?

[Dustin Kesselberg]

The kid in Brooklyn who dressed up as Hitler (this was done on South Park by the way also) argued that he was satirizng and making fun of the fuhrer and wants to know why it is okay for Mel Brooks to make a movie with Dick Shawn dressed up as Hitler and do a sham Broadway musical called Springtime for Hitler and he can't don the costume and similarly satirize the dead nazi.

Does he have a valid argument?



Yes.

[SteveGrenard]

Yes.

I agree with him also. He should have initially said he was dressed up as Eric Cartman dressed up as Dick Shawn dressed up as Adolph Hitler and then it would've been okay.

[Ausmerican]

My wife is heavily pregnant and was dressed as a nun. Partly for the humor and partly because there just aren't many good maternity halloween costumes.

[American]

We had a lot of angry mothers shooting us death rays.

Oh yeah, and his girlfriend went as 'Miss Jew 06'. I'll leave out the details of that one - but it was good.

Genius.

And I don't mean that cynically, it really is golden.

[Charlie Monoxide]

My son wanted to be something really scary and I suggested Dick Cheney. He promptly answered, "Dad, I said I wanted to be something scary, not something evil." :)You've taught your son well...

Charlie (and he has a great sense of humor to boot) Monoxide

[toddjh]

The kid in Brooklyn who dressed up as Hitler (Cartman did this on South Park by the also) argued that he was satirizng and making fun of the fuhrer and wants to know why it is okay for Mel Brooks to make a movie with Dick Shawn dressed up as Hitler and do a sham Broadway musical called Springtime for Hitler and he can't don the costume and similarly satirize the dead nazi.

Except The Producers doesn't satirize Hitler, except in passing. It uses Hitler to satirize something else. In the movie, there's a reason the subject of the faux Broadway musical has to be something offensive and in bad taste. Is there a reason a Halloween costume has to?

[SteveGrenard]

Short round-up of press commentary on the case....


You've got to hand it to the Hitler Kid: After getting ejected from school for donning the costume on Halloween, yesterday he wore it again — this time for the media, and purely in protest. This is quickly turning into the lamest ACLU case ever. [NYP]
http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2006/11/its_springtime_for_hitler_kid_1.html



Petryk's stepfather, Howard Bloom, who is Jewish, told the Post he was initially "very disturbed" by the costume but nonetheless defended his stepson's rights. "If he had wanted to advocate my genocide, I wouldn't have allowed" the costume, Bloom said. "That wasn't the spirit in which he was doing this at all. He was doing it in the spirit of Monty Python and Mel Brooks." AP
http://www.suntimes.com/news/nation/120933,CST-NWS-hitler02.article



While Pertyk is saying that he has a right to wear the costume at public school because of his right of free expression, the Anti-Defamation League said, "This is not an innocent First Amendment advocacy. He knew this outfit would offend and hurt and maybe even invite by the fact that he didn't wear it on the subway." Yes, Pertyk did tell the Post he wore his Charlie Chaplin costume on the subway.

Pertyk may face a 10 day suspension for insubordination. and that's not all: School parents are planning a protest, and one student what he did to Pertyk when he saw him on Halloween. David Gerber said, I warned him, 'You're going to get beat up by every single Jew in this school,' and I personally kicked him. Gerber's grandfather was in a concentration camp. I think it was stupid and offensive."

The Post shows Pertyk's Halloween costumes of yesteryear: Davy Crocket, Sherlock Holmes (who was a drug addict!), and Spider-Man. Semi-related:

And these cats couldn't help it if they look like Hitler.
The Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Committee likened the costume to a Ku Klux Klan hood, saying it represented unprotected hate speech.




http://www.nypost.com/seven/11022006/news/regionalnews/reich__wrong_regionalnews_david_andreatta_________ and_john_doyle.htm

And he should not try this in Germany either:


GERMAN cops will use sweeping powers to collar England fans doing Basil Fawlty-style Hitler impressions at the World Cup.

Yobs will be instantly banged up for TWO WEEKS if they goose-step like John Cleese in his most famous Fawlty Towers scene.

And hard core louts who give Nazi salutes — like the one jokingly made by Michael Barrymore in Celebrity Big Brother — could be hauled before a judge within 24 hours.

If convicted of inciting hatred they will face jail terms of up to THREE YEARS.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2006060530,00.html

[CFLarsen]

Except The Producers doesn't satirize Hitler, except in passing. It uses Hitler to satirize something else. In the movie, there's a reason the subject of the faux Broadway musical has to be something offensive and in bad taste. Is there a reason a Halloween costume has to?

This is also why Jesus isn't the focus per se of Monty Python's "Life of Brian". I remember John Cleese telling about the film, where he said that when the group were writing the script, they realized that Jesus simply wasn't funny. He didn't do funny things, he wasn't saying anything that was funny.

Instead, they realized that other people's reactions to Jesus and religion are extremely funny.

[webfusion]

One more --

http://www.virtualjerusalem.com/news.php?id=3086
The president of the University of Pennsylvania, Amy Gutmann, dressed as Glinda, the good witch of Oz, was pictured smiling alongside Saad Saadi, who is sporting a toy gun, toy explosives pasted to his chest and carrying a prayer book. The image appeared on facebook.com after a campus Halloween Party.

[webfusion]

Ok, really, the last one --

http://www.sickandwrongpodcast.com/SWHWEEN.htm

[Charlie Monoxide]

One more --

http://www.virtualjerusalem.com/news.php?id=3086
The president of the University of Pennsylvania, Amy Gutmann, dressed as Glinda, the good witch of Oz, was pictured smiling alongside Saad Saadi, who is sporting a toy gun, toy explosives pasted to his chest and carrying a prayer book. The image appeared on facebook.com after a campus Halloween Party.Great Halloween costumes! Isn't that what it really is about? Some yucks and partying...

Charlie (Maher as Steve Irwin WAS funny) Monoxide

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Part Two -
http://www.comcast.net/news/strange/index.jsp?cat=STRANGE&fn=/2006/11/01/511635.html
"Bad choice of costume" -----
Former inmate, Oscar Aponte, was taking his daughter trick-or-treating in Peekskill on Tuesday night in his old orange prisoner's jumpsuit, when a county correction officer _ also out trick-or-treating with her child _ spotted the familiar jumpsuit and took down the man's license plate and called authorities.


They get to keep those things?

[webfusion]

They get to keep those things?

He escaped in it?

[Mycroft]

Personally I think kids should be able to dress up as Hitler, klansmen or suicide bombers for halloween. For cripes sake, it's just a holiday costume!

[SteveGrenard]

Here's an early Hitler impersonator named Charlie Chaplin:

[Ace_of_Sevens]

They get to keep those things?

No. He snuck it out when he was released. He was re-arrested and is being vharged with petty theft.