Wannabee Nazis in Hippieville

The BBQ Pit
1

Quick background - I live and work in a town about 1 hour north of San Francisco, where the majority of the town council are members of the Green party and the entrance sign states that we are a “Nuclear Free Zone”. We have all types of people around here, I just attended a local Cajun Festival, we’re about to have our Celtic Festival and an International Food Festival. In other words, we’re pretty darn tolerant and multi-cultural.

So why, when sitting on my motorcycle at a stoplight in the middle of town on the way home from work yesterday, did a pair of skinheads stick their arms out of the windows of their little red Ford something-or-other in a blatant Nazi salute and yell “white power” at me?

Was it something about the color of my skin (white)? I certainly don’t feel like a part of any “white power” movement (well, mabye when taking a dump a-la Austin Powers - “Who is #2!!!”). I ride a Honda Shadow, looks kinda like a Harley, but even among the hardcore Harley riders I know I’ve never heard of any claims of superiority due to skin color - is this a subset of the HOG scene I just haven’t witnessed?

They certainly didn’t notice the pony-tail dangling down to my ass…

It took all my fortitude as a pacifist to keep myself from racing after them and yelling “Get the FUCK OUT OF AMERICA you un-patriotic Nazi-Wannabee Scum! My Grandfather kicked your grandfather’s ass in WWII, hasn’t your family learned their lesson yet? Did you fucking expect me to salute you back, or was your entire purpose to raise my anger faster and stronger than anything else that’s happened in the past two weeks?” And on and on…

It’s really bizarre to me that these Swinging Dingleberrys would take a moment in our history when Americans of all types are becoming closer than ever in support of eachother in the wake of arguably the greatest single tragedy in our history, and respond with a salute to divisiveness in the middle of one of the most genuinely Liberal (in the classic sense) towns in this country.

So, to the Wannabee Nazis of Northern California: May your schlongs be burnt off by the crank that dribbles out of your nose when your heads implode deep inside your sphincters. When your shrunken cranium is forcefully ejected from your ass by the family gerbil, please remember to wipe the remains of your badly-shaven skull with your Iron Cross!!!

Aaaaahhhh… the wonder of Pit Rants! Why didn’t I do this last night when I needed it?

2

What an image! I’m visualizing a Disneyish cartoon rodent kicking his skull.

Despite using themes that are hardly original, that one is a 10.

3

Are you sure they were trying to express solidarity with you? P’raps they saw your pony tail and were trying to pick a fight with the hippy on the motorcycle. You’ve been a victim of a hate crime, dude! Track 'em down and whip 'em within an inch of their lives with a bike chain.

4

In the immortal words of Oderus Urungus of GWAR:

Thanks for the compliment!

Miller,

I have no idea what their real intent was, just that it pissed me off in ways I wasn’t prepared for. I was a fruitcake all evening, I even made it to the first part of Politically Incorrect before I finally passed out!

The shitty thing is, I really am a Pacifist, so beating them with a bike chain is out of the question. No, I’ll keep dealing with this one by:

a) ranting to anyone who will hear me, and
b) culling spare brain cells with my favorite intoxicants.

Peace,
CyberHippy

5

Band name!

6

I think the Swinging Dingleberries is the new incarnation of the Travelling Wilbury’s, without Roy Orbison (was he Lefty?)

7

My roomie and I have been knocking that around as a band-name for a while, along with Brutal Poodle, which has to be a Punk band.

8

I’ve mentioned it elsewhere on the boards, but I feel it necessary to bring up a one-night tribute band that my friends did. It was a punk rock set of old Motown covers.

They called it “Urethra Franklin”.

9

Wow. You really sound tolerant!

10

I’m with you, kalash. When will we wake up and realize that racist neo-Nazi thugs giving Heil Hitler salutes in the wake of national tragedies are decent fellow citizens who deserve our respect and love?

11

sigh Not Hamish. Cookies. Really me. Again.

12

I just wanted to say that based on your description, I know where you live. One of my exes is from there… no comment on what that makes my opinion of the place. :wink:

13

Refugees from Rohnert Park, Cyber. The White Trash Capital of Sonoma County. My family ran into some honest-to-goodness skinheads at the In-N-Out there, something I never thought to see in my nice little part of the world.

14

Well yeah being a pacifist really is a shitty thing. But even if you weren’t a pacifist it would be silly of anyone to suggest you beat them with a bike chain. While what they did was offensive they certainly didn’t threaten your life. I can understand being pissed off though. I’d probably feel really annoyed but I don’t know if I’d get pissed.
I am curious though. In the OP you say this has made you more angry then anything else in the past two weeks. I find it rather odd that an offensive phrase and gesture would anger you more then the deliberate murder of thousands. But then it sounds like your strong feelings were a result of recent events.

Face it there are assholes in the world and even San Francisco can’t avoid them all.

Marc

15

“But even if you weren’t a pacifist it would be silly of anyone to suggest you beat them with a bike chain.”

Are you calling me silly? That’s it! Where’s my bike chain?

16

Huh? How is being against violence a ‘shitty thing?’

Agreed. They just reminded me that there are idiots amongst us…

I think it angered me so much more because it happened here, to me. Most of what has happened during the past week and a half has made me sad, sometimes depressed, with only fleeting moments of anger. I don’t have any relatives in or around NY or DC, and only know of 2 people in my life who are indirectly affected personally by this situation, so my anger has so far been abstract and impersonal. The situation is real, but it has so far been on the other side of the continent geographically and therefore psychologically.

Mabye it’s because I was starting to feel better about things, seeing signs that people were being supportive of eachother, that Americans were coming together in some way. My idealism and hope for humanity have (once again) been shattered by the action of a few nimrods, and in that way it felt like a very personal attack.

It’s easy sometimes, living in a semi-rural area that practices tolerance, to believe that humans are inherantly good. That belief has been shattered, and that pisses me off.

Kalashnikov - Um, yeah, ok. My Sarcastometer had trouble with that one, should I get out the Faceciometer?

matt_hamish I guess that’s the essence of what Kala was saying, but I happen to think I am being VERY tolerant by ranting about it here instead of revving after them and yelling them down.

Kyla, yeah, I try not to stop on my way through RP, wouldn’t go anywhere near the place if I didn’t have gigs in Cotati…

Andygirl knows where I live! Oh no!!! :wink:

17

The ponytail thing no longer (if ever) represents tolerent behavior. Many “rednecks” wear long hair. Unfortunately, being a “biker” also carries the stigma of racism. I hang out at biker bars, they are cool to us skaters. But when I have brought black friends, they (the friends) tend to be a bit hesitant. The confederate flag displayed in these bars does not help. Never have I seen any trouble (except when their bikes are scratched), or even heard a racial slur from any of the bikers, but that is the steriotype to many people where I live.

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**

Pacifism isn’t simply about being against violence. A pacifist is against violence being used to resolve any dispute. That means if some thug is beating on your face then you can’t hit back and still be a pacifist. A blanket philosophy of pacifism is silly.

**

That pretty much sums up the way I feel as well. Other then the first three days after the 11th I really haven’t been depressed or overly sad. That isn’t to say I’m an insensitive boob and I don’t care. I do care but it didn’t affect me as much as it did others.

**

I don’t see why it had to be shattered. Even after what happened on 9/11 I still think most human beings are basically ok.

Marc

19

I’m pretty sure matt was being sarcastic, too.

That is pretty weird. I guess neo-Nazis are one of those things that, to me, I read about but they don’t really exist.

And I can understand your extreme anger at being included in his little “white power” solidarity. He didn’t even give you a choice.

Okay, I’m babbling.

20

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From Dictionary.com:
pac·i·fism (ps-fzm)
n.
The belief that disputes between nations should and can be settled peacefully.

Opposition to war or violence as a means of resolving disputes.
Such opposition demonstrated by refusal to participate in military action.
**

A blanket philosophy of pacifism would be silly, but I happen to subscribe more to the version in the dictionary which is specifically about disputes between nations. To the degree that I apply it to my personal life, well, I’ve never been in a fight, which I attribute to the fact that I try not to get into situations that might lead to violence. If someone attacked me personally, in a way that I could not escape, I would certainly fight back to the degree needed to fend off the attack, but hopefully no more (can’t say what I would do under the influence of adrenaline).

In this case, I believe I have handled the situation far better by ranting about it than by chasing them down and beating the crap out of them.

But, I don’t think silly = shitty…