Hi Marie,
I was rather saddened to read your email over the last couple of FMLs about
Dancing Ferret.  You see, I am a Goth, and when I go out to nightclubs, I
am dressed much like the Dancing Ferret mascot (in fact, he and I have the
same boots).  I found him very amusing, and at the same time I recognized
that no-one in their right minds would actually try to dress a ferret up
like that.  Goth is a widely misunderstood subculture; for the most part,
adult goths are sensitive people much like any other people on the planet.
We just have different tastes, tastes that include thinking about who we
are and what we're doing here by looking at some of the aspects of life
that many others turn away from.  The music produced by Dancing Ferret
and by other Goth labels is not intended for children, any more than
Shakespeare intended Macbeth or Hamlet, two very bloody plays, for
children.  In my opinion, parents need to take much greater responsibility
for knowing what their children are listening to, and _talking_ to them
about it.  That goes not only for music but also for movies, video games,
and books, right back to the Bible which is full of violence.
 
I would also add that Goth is a widely misused label.  Marilyn Manson is
not goth.  The Columbine killers were not goths (in fact, their website
included goths as among the people they hated).  I am a 32 year old woman
who loves her ferret and her husband and her family and her friends very
much and cannot conceive of killing or hurting anybody, and I am a goth.
The gothic subculture is very inclusive and very much about mutual
tolerance.  And guess what?  I know of several goths who own ferrets,
because we appreciate difference and are willing to look deeper at things
that the dominant society may have misconceptions about :-)
 
Happy holidays to all, whether it's solstice, hanukkah, christmas, kwanzaa,
or anything else you can think of :)
 
Regina
 
Regina Harrison  [log in to unmask] or [log in to unmask]
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Lofts/1083
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Labyrinth/8096
 
...shadow, you're just a gallow that I hang my body from...
[Posted in FML issue 3277]