Uncle Sam died for your sins and other Arkansas Christmas floats

[gatorboy]

If there was one time I wish I had my camera it was last night.

I took the family to our Christmas parade last night and boy was it interesting...not a single nativity scene, which is the normal staple of a Christmas parade but they made up for it in patriotic tackiness.

One of the first floats we saw was a scene from 9/11. Two huge cardboard WTC buildings. Which I thought wasn't too bad until I saw the aluminim plane they built that was on it's way to crash into them. There was a banner across the bottom that said, "9/11 changed everything and so did Jesus."

Next there was a float with a man dressed as Jesus, waving American flags.

And to top it off, one of the final floats had a man walking behind, dressed as Uncle Sam, carrying a cross that had the message "He died for your sins" burned into the wood. Now I haven't been to Sunday school in awhile but I never knew it was Uncle Sam on the cross.

Wackiest, Parade. Ever. :crazy:

[shrike]

1. Lordy, lordy

My husband loved Little Rock and we were thinking of going there for a long weekend sometime. Now I'm not so sure ...

[dbt]

22. Don't let stuff like this put you off, shrike!

For every fundie bible-thumper in Little Rock, there's at least one live-and-let-live pothead. A few hours in the River Market and you won't even care that you're in the very buckle of the Bible Belt.

Come on down!

:hi:
dbt

[tk2kewl]

2. That is truly disturbing

you should see if you can find pics of that from someone else in the community or the local paper. the 9/11 float is not just "tacky" it is downright offensive. :mad:

[MatrixEscape]

3. But NOBODY

expects the Spanish Inquisition!

[underpants]

4. Wow that sounds ridiculous

and assinine

[Coyote_Bandit]

5. Church = Political Rally These Days

:puke: :puke: :puke: :puke: :puke: :puke: :puke:

[fertilizeonarbusto]

6. This is why

I favor irreverence towards such matters.

[sniffa]

7. pLease Let pics show up!

[underpants]

12. I looked but couldn't find any

I'll look again

[gatorboy]

8. I know there are a few other Hot Springs, AR residents on this board.

So maybe someone else was able to get some shots. Oy!

[theophilus]

24. I was there! Unfortunately I didn't take my camer either!

My wife and I both said (more than once), "The things you see when you
you don't have a camera!" I have a friend who had her video camera and I bet she got all the shots but I don't know how I would grab any frames soon enough to still be relevant. I think we have just gone back about one hundred years. This stuff isn't new but there are frightening aspects in regards to Progressivism, etc. Time will tell.

[grumpy old fart]

9. We need pictures!

There's gotta be some pics out there somewhere of this craziness. Did the local paper cover it?

[datasuspect]

10. but see

when you talk about this, you're alienating them and being disrespecful . . .

how do you expect to win them to our side?

/sarcasm

the religious people in this country are INSANE.

i say this without any qualifiers. a moderate christian is one terrorist attack away from becoming a fundy.

[pnutchuck]

11. Have you heard of the book

"What's The Matter With Arkansas" by Thomas Frank. I saw him on Comedy Central, The Daily Show where he discussed the dramatic shift of the heartland state from progressivism to conservitism. He can't figure out how the Republicans managed to take over the minds of a people that were once the trendsetters for progressive thought among the rural class.

[kckc]

13. My hometown parade was similar

although not even close to that level of wackiness. It was called "An All-American Christmas". I thought I was just imagining the overt red-white-and-blue-ness of it all, but everyone ignored me when I mentioned it. Perhaps it was the disgust in my voice :eyes:

[TlalocW]

14. That beats out the disturbing Veteran's Day Parade in Tulsa

Actually, just one "float." It was a trailer pulled by a truck and on it were three flag draped coffins. What made it disturbing was that it was the only float that was throwing out candy. I just thought it was weird.

TlalocW

[booksenkatz]

15. RoveThink = blurring lines

Rove has taught his minions throughout the country very well: how to blur important lines. The blurring of 9/11 and Iraq... the blurring of Jesus and George Walker Bush... the blurring of Satanism and liberalism... it's amazing how well these people have succeeded and ARE succeeding.

How can we defend ourselves against this dumbing down of America? Is it too late? Eh, those are just rhetorical questions, aren't they?:(

[gatorboy]

16. I forgot the climax of Santa Clause.

The parade always ends with an appearance by Santa but instead of the usual sleigh float he's normally on, he was standing in the back of a Humvee surrounded by soldiers...

I know one of the photgraphers from the paper so later today, if I can get ahold of him, I'll see if he has any extra pics.

[Razorback_Democrat]

17. Wow, I'll Have to go to Ft. Smith's X-mas parade Saturday!

was this Hot Springs?
I always thought Hot Springs was more liberal.

(the RW around here would always talk about Clinton down in "liberal" Hot Springs with his pickup truck and his mattress in the back.

[gatorboy]

19. It is a pretty progressive city.

But we obviously have our share of oddities, apparently.

I almost expected the man dressed as Jesus to go, "I died for your sins....U.S.A!!! U.S.A.!!!!"

[dbt]

23. Yo, gatorboy!

Hot Springs has always struck me as being about half Holy-Roller, half Libertine--but it's been a decade or two since I've spent any time there.

A parade like this would seem to be right in keeping with the fundy/hedonist schism that I have always cherished about Arkansas.

:evilgrin:
dbt

[Javaman]

18. Almost sounds like the Do-Da parade

[NoSheep]

20. Where the fuck do you live?

[John_Shadows_1]

21. Explains some things, though - ....

... how successful the GOP and the flag-waving media have been at selling the notion that America is "chosen by God" to lead the world. But something tells me that's not quite right - must be the pictures I see coming out of Iraq.

[theophilus]

25. Don't forget Uncle Sam on his knees (leaning over a prayer

bench) in front of a cross illuminated by white light bulbs around the
edges! I am afraid he also looked like he was about to be administered a spanking. A hope that doesn't come true!

Anyway, there was a slogan that I can't remember about nations being
Christian or something, I'm sure. It was just incredible but not new to the American expericence by any means. We have just gone bace about 100 years.

[donsu]

26. you witnessed religious insanity

following uncle sam and his cross should have been an angry mob wanting to clear their streets of religious nuts.

did these floats get booed?

[gypsy11]

27. I'm so glad I live

in New England. That's just crazy!

[mac56]

28. Our parade in Athens, GA last night

was awash in patriotic jingoistic imagery as well. Four guys in fatigues holding the Iwo Jima pose through the whole stop-and-go parade route. Owwwwch.

I applauded and called out "Bring our guys home!" Happy to say it got some other applause too.

[gatorboy]

29. Well, I talked to a photographer a minute ago

and looked at the photos he took. At the angle he took the WTC shot you couldn't see the plane and get the full disgusting affect.

He did get shots of Uncle Sam kneeling at the cross and Jesus waving the flags so I'll see if I can get copies of those.