The shoggoths are getting disturbingly clever.
Damn, I saw that and my first thought was “are they filming the Dr Who Christmas Special in America now?” Cause… that’s like, hide behind the couch creepy.
Masks are freaky to lots of people anyway, and most people don’t disguise themselves in order to “spread holiday cheer.” In fact, nowadays, about the only time it’s socially acceptable to wear a mask is the following:
Theatrical Events (I will include improv in this for **guizot’s **sake, but many people still find improv activities to be subversive to the social norms. That’s partly why people DO them.)
Halloween (trick-or-treating and parties)
Costume Balls (getting rarer, but still happens, especially in the South)
Political Activism (most recent example would be the Occupyers appropriating the Guy Fawkes V-For-Vendetta mask)
Illegal Activities (bank robbing, safe-cracking, kidnapping)
Wandering the streets as Frosty does not fall into any of the above categories, therefore the average person’s thought process is going to go: “Not normal, ergo - lunatic or criminal. Either way, 911 will know what to do with him while I GTFO.”
Right–which is just to say that context is everything, as has always been the case.
Hence the social norm is that, notwithstanding the above contexts, one enters the public arena by tacit agreement that one displays one’s face. In other words, you are violating this agreement if you don’t. However, in a recent federal court ruling, Hiibel v. Sixth Judicial District Court of Nevada, it was found constitutional that an individual is required to identify himself only if the police are in the process of some kind of "investigation."
So, we’re left asking, is wearing a Frosty the Snowman mask (in ordinary circumstances)–in and of itself–grounds for an “investigation,” when clearly there is no intent to defraud, etc.? What if it had simply been a mask with a regular face, and if he had been wearing regular clothes, without the hyperbolic hat? What if someone would like to go out in public, but simply doesn’t want to have his face recorded on every internet live broadcast, idle web cam, or Google street view that he walks by? Is he required to expose his face if he wants to go out in public?
short answer (I’m heading out of town, so no time for more)
Legally, no. Socially, yes.
In other words, well-meaning and confused persons will call the authorities when presented with something strange (yet not illegal) like this.
The authorities will come for said person, determine that there is nothing illegal going on (however long and comvoluted and jail-time-involving that process may be) and the person is then free to wander the streets masked until another well-meaning and confused person will call the authorities again.
Rinse and repeat until either all of the well-meaning persons or all of the authorities know about said weirdo and his inability to abide by social norms and they leave him/her alone from then on out.
Social obligations are not legally binding, but if not attended to they can be cumbersome, and cause inconvenience to the person who is not abiding by them. They are intended to be so, otherwise, what’s the point of having them if there are no consequences? The fear of “hassle” or “what people will think” is enough to keep most people toeing the social norm line. Those who choose not to need to realize that they are causing a stir in the people who interact with them, and the consequences may be some inconvenience when the authorities take it upon themselves (as they should) to determine that you are just weird, and not criminal.
You must be pretty freaked out every time October 31 rolls around.
That was absolutely horrifying. I wish I could unsee that photo. Cripes and crepes that is creepy!
That jumpsuit screams “Michael Myer’s long-lost brother” to me.
I wouldn’t have called 911. But if some shit had gone down right after I had seen that guy, I would have let the police know that I had seen a crazy snowman in the area.
How is this not a theatrical improv?
Personally, I can’t see how this is creepy in the first place, but even if it is, so what?
My mother once saw Santa and had probably been drinking too much eggnog (Yeah, Dad restrained her before the reindeer hit.)
As for Frosty, I had a hideous nightmare along the lines of “Frosty the Pervert” when I was a kid and you couldn’t fault me for freaking at something like that.
Guy definitely looks like he escaped from a mental institution
Let’s show some restraint, folks.
I’m certainly not prone to exaggeration, but that…thing (which henceforth will no doubt feature prominently in my nightmares), is no friendly Frosty…it’s a twisted perversion of all that is good in the world, an abomination of nature to the extreme. Had I the misfortune to see that abominable man of faux snow up close and personal, I’d not call 911, I’d call for a strike force of F/A-18 Hornets loaded with an air-to-ground ordnance of Raytheon AGM-65 Maverick infrared-guided missiles and a 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon. I’d show restraint in not calling for a nuclear first strike, however—that could be construed as an overreaction.
I’ve seen stranger getups in the U.K. and apart from some curious looks noone payed any attention, let alone called the police.
I have worn far stranger things in public without having the police called on me. To be fair, I did once have to remove a dinosaur mask to reassure some very startled joggers.
I bet he cackled, rather than said, “I’ll be back again someday!”
Scary guy. I hope they give him 10 years!
hh