That’s actually a proper name, it’s the start of the Kentucky Derby Festival and it’s a day long air show featuring various types of military aircraft and other air show craft as well as parachute jumpers, the odd hang glider etc held along the river front. The planes and such are pretty cool, but I don’t usually go down there as the crowds are huge (highest has been 500K) and the Thunderpots (the toilets) are never enough.
But we went last night. My daughter had the big idea when we were downtown earlier in the day and saw all the planes flying around. And she decided we really should see the fireworks. I was dubious due the last minute nature of the plans, the cold weather and the high chance of rain. But went anyway. And it was actually a pretty good time.
Except for the forced patriotism that was on display before the fireworks began. Helicopters flying slowly across the sky with huge flags hangig down, spotlights shining on the flags, and a recorded voice of the Declaration of Independence. And several lame country songs booming out across the gathered Americans. The applause was quite impressive.
And astronauts from the ISS gave the countdown to the start of the fireworks. I guess it’s because I am a liberal and therefore hate america that this annoys me, but whatever. It does. I think it’s great on July 4th, but that date has some national significance. A festival in a city to celebrate an upcoming horse race just doesn’t light my patriotic fire.
I guess this isn’t a rant, more of an exasperated sigh.
I can see what you’re saying, I lean conservative, I am also a little “whatever” at undue displays of military might and overtly patriotic flag-waving, but there’s a part of me that is always in awe of military machinery (since a young lad growing up in a military household, and served myself) in the sense of they are “great big toys”.
Of course I realize what they are used for now, I suppose it’s much like Cletus The Slack-Jawed Yokel masturbating over a monster truck rally.
Thank you for saving the rest of us the effort of pointing out that this was an anemic pitting.
I’m sorry, but exactly what level of intellectual stimulation or emotional complexity were you hoping to witness at an air show? I’ve entertained the possibility of attending one myself from time to time and might do so in the future, but the overwhelming purpose of an air show is to elbow your compatriot in the adjoining lawn-chair and declare, “yeah-buddy,” in between sips of Miller High Life served from a can in a bright pink neoprene beer-cozy while the noise from the afterburners shakes your bowels.
I would have hoped that you would have recognized that you weren’t exactly headed for an evening of Don Giovanni and saved us the bloviating, but if you can reinforce some stereotypes about liberals being whinny while en route, who am I to stop you?
This is the first time in several years I haven’t gone. They looked great on TV – some interesting new stuff and lots of bridge/fountain effects. But it was a little too cold and damp for me to drag my butt out last night…
My husband took me to Thunder Over Louisville a few years ago and the Thunderpots (apt name, DaddyTimesTwo) are the reason I refuse to go again. By the end of the night, the mound of crap and toilet paper rose up OVER the toilet seats. It was disgusting and it just showed how poorly this event is planned, IMO. I’d rather go pee behind a bush.
But hey, if I want to shell out $175 (non-refundable) or so per person, I can reserve a seat on one of the river boats. A seat, a meal and a clean toilet.
Meh. The fireworks are impressive but not worth that much money to me.
My point isn’t that I expect intellectual stimulation at an airshow and fireworks, threemae, but that at an airshow (which features many military planes, I realize) and fireworks that marks the beginning of a festival that “celebrates” a horse race, we get a bunch of patriotic malarkey where everyone gets to whoop and holler and shout “USA #1”.
Just show me the damn fireworks, and can the stoopid rah rah country songs.
The fireworks were pretty cool, I haven’t been down the riverfront for along time, and it was fun to see it all up close, I’ve been watching it on TV for the past, I don’t know, 10 years? There were fireworks I had not seen before, and my kids, of course, had never seen it either. It was chilly, but we had coats and hats and blankets, so the stiff breeze off the river was not so bad. And no one had to use a Thunderpot (and I didn’t make up that name, it’s common usage), which was a great fear of mine. I don’t know that I would call it poor planning,Little Wing, how do you plan ahead for crowds that could be between 300K and 800K? And my experience was nothing but positive, except for the forced rah rah rah-ing.
I should have added the thread in IMHO. I’ve ben trying to work up some steanm over it all, but it’s not coming.
Can I jump in and ask why they play the national anthem before a sporting event between two teams that are both American? Why, exactly, is a football game a patriotic event? Why not play it before a movie? Or before lunch?
Apparently the target demographic enjoys the pabulum. I think it’s sort of silly to use an airshow as a venue to point out your superiority to the hoi polloi.
There’s nothing inherently silly about enjoying the patriotic crap compared to watching stuff explode or airplanes fly around in tiny circles. I don’t have a cerebral explanation for why either is enjoyable, nor can I explain my affinity for LOLCATS, beyond that it must hit deeply at some atavistic part of our primate brains. So I think it’s tricky to justify all the exasperated sighing.
Like The People’s Court watchers condescending on Judge Judy fans.
Oddly enough, I’ve got some sympathy for the OP because my church celebrated Scout Sunday this past week. This means that the Boy Scout Troop which meets in the church did a flag ceremony, and the whole congregation said the Pledge of Allegience, followed by the Pledge of Allegience to the Christian Flag–which never fails to piss me off.
We did not say the Boy Scout Pledge-- or whatever it’s really called. I used to know, but now it’s slipped away.
I don’t mind pledging allegience to the Flag of the United States of America, although I’m not entirely convinced that church is the right place to be doing it. But the pledge of allegience to the Christian Flag is just anemic and stupid and I resent saying it. I’d a thousand times rather say the Apostle’s Creed, or the Nicean Creed or something. Something which reinforces my beliefs, and that we all share them, not just this anemic little thing based on the usual pledge.
And scouting, especially BOY scouting, got too much attention during the service. As a girl, and a former Girl Scout, I’d like a little more attention beyond the information that yeah, a couple of Girl Scout Troops meet in the church. Although in fairness, differences in style and organization between Boy and Girl Scout Organizations should probably get most of the blame–with a pinch to the church administration people who thought it made sense to give the Boy Scouts so much of the service.
But this is silly and petty, and I’ll try to forget my grievances, at least until Memorial Day, when we just might get the chance to pledge again.
Yes, the Christian Flag is white, with a blue field in the upper left hand corner, and that field has a red cross on it. Like so. Only, Wikipedia’s picture doesn’t really do it justice, because I almost always see it surrounded by gold fringe, topped with a gold cross, and standing perfectly, and thus invisibly, still at the front right of the sanctuary. (The U.S. Flag is perfectly and invisibly still at the front Left of the sanctuary.) I don’t know that all churches have such flags, but it’s pretty common in churches I’ve attended–mostly Methodist.
Excuse the hijack (in a thread about planes, no less) but this brings to mind a quote from the late, great, baseball team owner Bill Veeck to the effect that, “Look, we play the National Anthem before every game. You want us to pay taxes too?”
I don’t have too much sympathy for the OP, because it was an airshow, what did he expect? However I could completely relate to his sentiment were it directed at other events.
About a year ago we did a cancer walk in Dumas Texas with some students from my wife’s university. Before it began we got to sing the national anthem, say the pledge of allegiance, and pray with some minister. For entertainment there was a gospel band. It was over the top.
I’ve always found that a bit odd, too. My speculation is that it’s to remind us how grateful we should be to be able to pay hundreds of dollars to sit down and watch Great American Sporting Events with a bunch of other Great Americans, without fear of a bunch of Communists storming the venue and forcing us all to go home at bayonetpoint. Hell, I bet I’ve paid more for parking than some of those third-world nimrods make in year.
Yeah, I’d rather hear Jimi Hendrix’s version of The Star-Spangled Banner.
I’ve run into this sort of overhyped patriotism at a racetrack (the horsie kind) before. And there’s the obnoxious trend towards playing God Bless America during the seventh inning stretch at major league baseball games. Last time I checked, that was not the national anthem.
It really is possible to be quietly patriotic. And quietly religious. You don’t get extra brownie points for bellowing your convictions at every conceivable pretext.
