Hey Grunts,

I was looking forward to attending a Halloween party for a few weeks now, since I haven't worn my USCM costume since Dcon, and when the day came to attend it one of the attendees asked what I was going to wear. I told them a Colonial Marine from "Aliens" and you know what they said to me? "You can't wear that !!! With all of the stuff going on in Iraq and throughout the world. That would hit too close to home and you shouldn't wear it."

So to stop the nagging I said I would wear something else. What do I find when I get to the party? Pregnant nuns and a Michael Jackson look-a-like with a blow-up Spiderman doll on his no-no spot.

So my question is this. Why am I yelled at for wanting to wear a fictional sci-fi costume when others wear things that are down right offensive to the church and display acts of "no-no behavior"?

I'm just venting so I hope this doesn't come off as sounding like I have something against the Church or Michael Jackson for that matter but I just get peeved when people have the gaul to says things like that to me.

My 2 cents.
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I know what you're saying man. If it was me- I would have worn whatever the hell I liked. If it offends some people... oh well. Try and explain to me how those other costumes are not offensive?

I'm mean there were a couple of guys dresses as US Army soldiers at D-Con. I asked them if they were part of any group (Stargate for example)- and they answered "Nope- we're just dressed as soldiers".

Kevin

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TgDnAloXyJBkYBZV7s*Kj9!1Bc8b0FJ!WEmX8BpHJk8yRyABH697OsLy1Bm1knQrHcDDdHqDnRAmyoDB6vy6w!ASmCM57J8W6cyCxY8Y84TWwwCw7UVNAA/Burton%20004.JPG[/img]

"I know I'm human. And if you were all these things, then you'd just attack me right now, so some of you are still human. This thing doesn't want to show itself, it wants to hide inside an imitation. If it takes us over, then it has no more enemies, nobody left to kill it. And then it's won."

I'd have worn the USCM and said you were just showing support for the troops out there.

Whats the Michael Jackson and Pregnant Nun trying to achieve?

All well and good saying it after the event, next year if they ask what your wearing just saying 'something that is not offensive'

Just sucks you missed out on trooping the colors
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You'll always find people who are overly worried about offending others. The type of people who say things like "You can't wear that...it'll be hitting too close to home".

More often than not, their fears are disproportionate.
I can't believe there would be many people who would be offended by a USCM costume regardless of what is going on in Iraq.
None of my colleques in Iraq that I know of would be offended by it.

As if the Nazi's at DC were worried about offending anyone...


I would have worn it in spite of what that person said.....those type of people piss me off.


Derek
Pvt.
D.Smith
A04/TQ1.0.62147E1

Name: Chris "FNG" Chulamanis
Status: Missing in Action
Mission: Bring him back alive....no matter the cost.Edited by: [url=http://p220.ezboard.com/bthealienslegacy.showUserPublicProfile?gid=uscmgrunt>USCM Grunt[/url] at: 10/22/06 12:05 pm

My two cents:

I was one of the people dressed in full National Guard BDU's, boots, tactical vest (loaded with beer) Sunday night at DC06. Nobody asked me about it either. The reason I mentioned this is that it belonged to a very good buddy of mine whom I was rooming with there. He had no problem with me wearing it and I took him up on it. Some people might have thought that was crass...screw 'em. I have no problem looking up to or dressing up like one of our armed forces. It's a costume for me, my buddy rightfully owns the pride that goes with it, period.

I dress up like a badass. The soldiers over in Iraq putting their lives on the line for me and my family ARE badasses.
Cpl. Swartzell
A05/TQ1.0.72150E1

"He's just a Grunt, no offense." "None taken..."

Honestly, there is only one person who can ask you not to wear a costume to the party. That is the host. If they don't care then no one else gets a vote. Next year, if you care that much just say "Thanks for the concern." and drop it. If you really care, run it by the host (don't tell the attendee or else they might go bug the host into not letting you wear it) and if the host is cool then wear it. If the attendee then has the guts to call you on it, you can say "I checked with the host, they said it's cool."

I've been doing USCM for the last two Halloweens... I think I'll give it up... 'cuz everyone just assumes I'm coming to work with my real Army kit... some even asked me how I was allowed to bring a REAL weapon to work

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I try and only go to Halloween parties where there are NO rules. Those are the only parties worth going to.


-Spat
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Spat, I thought you liked everything without rules? lol.


I'd have gone in whatever the heck I wanted, people that worry about something like that just need a life or to get their head out of their...

Halloween has only 1 Rule, There are No Rules.

Yeah isn't Halloween night the night you let all your inhibitions go? You get to be what you normally wouldn't be?

I dressed up like a soldier when I was a kid and still do now. I grew up a Navy brat who spent the weekends with Marine Corpsmen. I was never in myself but grew up with, and still have, a deep respect and admiration for anyone who served at any point keeping me safe so I could dress up how ever I wanted. I wear my USCM and G.I. Joe gear with pride, for fun and as a show of support. If someone gets offended by that oh well.
Chris

<span style="color:orange;font-size:large;]"Long live the fighters!"

Our Boy Scout Troop is having a Costume Party tonight.

Guess what I'll be there as?

Batman?



<span style="font-size:xx-small;]Kidding.

Kevin

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TgDnAloXyJBkYBZV7s*Kj9!1Bc8b0FJ!WEmX8BpHJk8yRyABH697OsLy1Bm1knQrHcDDdHqDnRAmyoDB6vy6w!ASmCM57J8W6cyCxY8Y84TWwwCw7UVNAA/Burton%20004.JPG[/img]

"I know I'm human. And if you were all these things, then you'd just attack me right now, so some of you are still human. This thing doesn't want to show itself, it wants to hide inside an imitation. If it takes us over, then it has no more enemies, nobody left to kill it. And then it's won."

He'd make all the other Dad's jealous with his Batty hottness

It was a church party huh? I would have figured they wouldn't celebrate pagan holidays such as All Hallows Eve.

from wikipedia!

The pagan belief that lasted the longest in Brittany, and is by no means dead yet, was the cult of the dead. Caesar said that the Celts of Gaul traced their ancestry from the god of death, whom he called Dispater. Now figures of l'Ankou, a skeleton armed with a spear, can be seen in most villages of Brittany.</ref> as the Pagan Celtic harvest festival, Samhain. Irish, Scots, Calan Gaeaf in Welsh and other immigrants brought versions of the traditions to North America in the 19th century. Most other Western countries have embraced Halloween as a part of American pop culture in the late 20th century.

The term Halloween, and its older spelling Hallowe'en, is shortened from All-hallow-even, as it is the evening before "All Hallows' Day"[1] (also known as "All Saints' Day") . In Ireland, the name was All Hallows' Eve (often shortened to Hallow Eve), and though seldomly used today, it is still a well-accepted label. Halloween was also sometimes called All Saints' Eve. The holiday was a day of religious festivities in various northern European Pagan traditions, until it was appropriated by Christian missionaries and given a Christian interpretation. Halloween is also called Pooky Night in some parts of Ireland, presumably named after the púca, a mischievous spirit.

Halloween is often associated with the occult. Many European cultural traditions hold that Halloween is one of the liminal times of the year when the spiritual world can make contact with the physical world and when magic is most potent (e.g. Catalan mythology about witches, Irish tales of the Sídhe).

That said, obviously not every one who went to the party was as thoughtful as you about the environment or offending other party goers.

I commend you for thinking about the feelings of other people above your own Charlie. That's not a bad thing!

Plus, they would have asked you which GI Joe character you were anyway.