On Sun, 20 Aug 2000, Tim May wrote:
>I've seen ragheads^H^H^H^H^H Muslim chicks in front of me at the ATM
>wearing their Mohammed-decreed chadoors. No sirens, no cops arriving,
>but their money apparently arrives in a timely fashion.
Interesting. That makes it a religious freedom issue, as well.
How does that work in places that have laws against the wearing
of masks, such as Alabama? Do they just do selective-enforcement
and don't make arrests unless it's the KKK, or do they make a
specific exception for people who go masked for religious
reasons?
Hmmm. Wasn't there a group that wore masks -- highly individual,
recognizable masks -- as a form of identity that could be passed
from a person to that person's chosen successor, and had agreements
between various masks/personas that spanned generations? I think
I read something about this in a National Geographic once. IIRC,
the mask was considered a separate persona -- a separate set of
obligations, responsibilities, roles, reputation, and wealth --
from the (often completely anonymous) person who was the owner
of the mask.
Although the police got involved after one bunch of them lynched
an outsider who had cluelessly *copied* a respected persona's mask.
He thought it was a copy of a quaint native artwork, but they took
it as a very serious breach along the lines of identity theft.
>Likewise, I've seen punk/goth kids in white pancake makeup, black
>hair, rings through numerous facial features, and dark sunglasses. As
>much of a disguise as any mask. And yet they get their money, with no
>sirens, no Thought Police.
It's easy to dismiss these kids as mere meaningless idiots too
full of themselves to survive. But you've got to admit they do
create a "look" you can take on if you want to do stuff without
showing your real face.
Hmmm. Maybe we ought to be cultivating some retro-style things like
masked balls from time to time, creating social venues where masks,
or more elaborate full-body costumes are accepted/expected, just
to preserve people's right to *not* show their faces.
Bear
