Maine July 4th Parade Spectators Speak Out on Reagan Coffin Float of Bobbing Head:"Nancy Who?"

July 10, 2004 | fight_truth_decay

[fight_truth_decay]

Letters to the Editor of The Lincoln County News in Damariscotta, Maine speak out in July 8th weekly edition on "anonymous[4th of July]parade float" depicting former President Reagan bobbing in and out of his coffin with a reference to his Alzheimer's disease, "Nancy who"?

GOOD TASTE NOT CENSORSHIP

To the Editor:

I attended the 4th of July parade in Rond Pond this year for the first time. Even though I don't agree with their politics, I found the anti-Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld floats quite amusing. But the float showing Ronald Reagan in a coffin with a headstone was in extremely poor taste. Also the attached sign that said "Nancy who?", mocking Reagan's Alzheimer's disease was disgusting! In a nation of rapidly declining morals people not standing up/talking/wearing hats during the Star Spangled Banner and general disrespect for our country and what it stands for, I suppose one must not be offended. Whoever ran the parade should have had the decency to ban this flaot. That is not censorship, just good taste!

Jack Corson Pemaquid Lake

APPALLED BY UNPATRIOTIC PARADE ENTRIES

To the Editor:

It is always exhilarating to come back to Maine for the summer and see Mainers celebrating summer with such verve. To me this means houses being painted, gardens planted, flags displayed and the Round Pond 4th of July parade.

Yesterday I took friends from Florida to the parade, wanting to show them the wonderful spirit of the people of Maine. Instead I was terribly embarrassed and disappointed. Whas has always been such a fun, positive event was marred by serious negative attacks on the President of the United States.

Parades in the past have had positive political advertising and even fun political mockery. But yesterday, rather than positive or fun political floats, I was stunned by deeply negative and serious attacks on our president. These anonymously produced attacks were distasteful, inappropriate and unpatriotic. I was appalled as were my guests.

Betsy Kinkle Walpole

EDITORIALLY SPEAKING FREE EXPRESSION AND RESPONSIBILITY

Freedom of speech means allowing someone you disagree with to state their opinion. This is difficult if the ideology is the antithesis of what you believe.

Freedom of speech also means choices. Do you want to put things a certain way in order to elicit the most intense reaction to your words?

Suppose you area at a 4th of July parade, a very public venue, intending to celebrate the hard fought birth of American independence and these United States. Imagine your surprise that one flat depicts former President Ronald Reagan bobbing in and out of this coffin and there is a reference to his Alzheimer's disease, "Nancy who?"

The anonymous parade float creator has the right to promote a demean depiction of the moving and stirring national eulogy to Pres.Reagan last month. However, the right to free expression comes with the responsibility for good taste and acceptable behavior. The opposite is true in this case.

Those who temper their statements and opinions with less shock and stridency are much more likely to strike a chord with someone with a dissenting viewpoint. Exhibitionism for the sake of making a point is an immature affront to a very serious freedom we all share. (The editor)

Following the parade a crowd of about 100 (locals and tourists) took in the hard rock band -the Round Pond Rangers, ate blueberry pie and attended an art display on the pier.

Round Pond

[BykrBayb]

If flag burning is freedom of speech, why not float burning?

[Darksheare]

Checked out the "artsts" name.
And found some interesting crap about her..
POst 20 shows thr first two lines on her website.
Not even two lines into the spiel it says she does it all 'for the children'..

[Brad’s Gramma]

Between this and the desecration of the flag at the RR Ranch....I'm seeing red.

[Brad’s Gramma]

Bull PUCKY. She doesn't do ANYTHING for MY child!!!

These people are ....... oh never mind.

[Darksheare]

Yup.
Being an artist of a sort myself, I know that some of these people really ARE insane.
Considering the 'art' she's doing, she is more into politics rather than actual creativity and furthering someone's abilities in art.

It was interesting to see the liberal disclaimer not two lines into that site saying that she's doing it 'for the children'..

[fight_truth_decay]

from your site:

"Natasha had helped children and adults in scores of towns create murals. From Maine to Ohio, from the Soviet Union to Granada, Nicaragua - from Nigeria to our State Prison, She has helped people express themselves. Some of her most rewarding work has been with people at the Augusta Mental Health Institute."

However Mayers was not a part of the bobbing head Reagan coffin; remember that person or persons were anonymous. How the float drove itself must be another story.A good reporter would have sought out that information!

[Darksheare]

Not my site, HER site.
She was part of the mental Ipecac skits afterwards.

As for teh float driving itself, twas a miracle!!
*snort*
The reporter should be beaten with a typsetter's board, anonymity wouldn't have been possible had that float lampoon Teddy 'Swimmer' Kennedy's drive off a bridge or Clinton's 'tearful' Wellstone funeral walk.

[freekitty]

The person(people)responsible for this stupid display aren't operating with a full deck.

[Texas Termite]

How sad, how very sad.

America supports freedom of speech, but what does this say for our great country? People who "speak" this way are feeding those who want to take us down to our knees, to disembowel this great nation.

Liberals take note.... you're playing into the enemy's hand.

Logan's Nana (because he's too young to write this!!)

[Brad’s Gramma]

Liberals take note.... you're playing into the enemy's hand.

And what they fail to realize is the enemy would kill them, in a heart beat, the same as they would us.

[sauropod]

I remember this. It was in Cologne, Germany.

[Doe Eyes]

I'll bet, somehow, Clinton is responsible for this.

[stands2reason]

bttt

[Eva]

I guess you didn't read about the 4th of July parade on Bainbridge Island (Seattle), where they booed a Marine veteran, called him a murderer and a baby killer, after the MC called attention to him by asking him what he was a veteran of.

These people have all joined in the coalition of the wild-eyed and I suggest that we point that out, every chance we get. We should have people dressed as Al Gore, Whoopi Goldberg and Michael Moore at every election event, carrying a sign that says, "The coalition of the wild-eyed supports John Kerry."

[gentlestrength]

Freedom of speech doesn't mean you can say ANYthing you want. You can't yell 'Fire' in a crowded theater. Free to be rude? Free to be insulting? Free to lie? Is that the kind of freedom you want? "Freedom" has a meaning, a context.

I hope people watching the parade turned their back and continue to do so when the Reagan flat creator comes around.

[ZULU]

The sentiments I feel about these people and what I would I like to do to them I can't express on this board or the moderators would ban me.

I think things here in the U.S. are deteriorating rapidly to a point I have before witnessed since the Viet Nam War.

[Indie]

nobody wants the responsibility to stand up for our country.

It's coming bro......

[fight_truth_decay]

And what they fail to realize is the enemy would kill them, in a heart beat, the same as they would us.

Ironic that the terrorists hate the Western culture because of the liberalism, isn't it?

[OneLoyalAmerican]

Scratch the surface of a liberal, and you'll reveal a fascist.

[TexasCowboy]

Well, I always knew there was some reason why I missed Maine in my travels.
Now I know.