Yeah, this year we had these stupid white wristbands that said "I'm in." Sucks because I liked having the physical ribbon attached to my pass. A badge of honor, as it were.

Regarding Spat's example, the Star Wars costuming group extends beyond just the 501st, the "other" Star Wars costumes march ahead of the troopers, this includes all other standard costumes, such as the Jedi, rebels, etc., as well as the ones to don't fit with the others, such as the "Box Troopers" from several years ago. You'd end up with them. Our group does not have that distinction. Behind our banner goes everything Alien/Aliens/AvP related, sometimes Hunter's Lair has their own group behind us, some years they're joined with us. Therefore we wind up with everyone.

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"Screen what? I wouldn't know screen accurate if it were driving a bus and ran me over during the parade."

LCpl. Av "Spectre" Taylor
Long Range Infantry Support

Truth be told, I don't mind the Predators marching "with" us. With four AvP video games out there, it seems to work.

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"A writer needs a pen, a painter a brush, and a filmmaker an army." - Orson Wells.

http://www.rookscastle.com
http://www.alchemyarms.com

I fully embrace the Predators being with us. Often we have at least one with us even when they have their own group, because it's one of our members who is not on the HL board. But if they want representation for their own group, Hunter's Lair, I respect that as well. Alien and Predator are culturally bound together, and people readily associate them with one another.

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"Screen what? I wouldn't know screen accurate if it were driving a bus and ran me over during the parade."

LCpl. Av "Spectre" Taylor
Long Range Infantry Support

If I may suggest, regarding the "members only" idea: at the very least, keep the option open for potential new recruits in an appropriate costume to join in. I think it'd go a long way to help bring in new blood.

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Patrick "Scout" Gerrity

"I see you had another visit from the 'good idea fairy', Lieutenant..."

Excellent point, and yes it's still the Yahoo Group.
This year I had just such an individual contact me about marching with us and she submitted photo's beforehand.
I'm amazed she hasn't signed up here or on the Charter because she had the armor and BDU's and slotted right in with us for the morning.

While the parade can (and has in the past) lumped people together (Predators being a great example) we can only control so much as an 'entry'. 'If' those individuals (who are put into our group by the parade) costumes falls below the acceptible line of costuming standards then I believe the parade liason is responsible for addressing that with the individual/s if they are not group members.

I can see a bunch of kids in their shiny new camo PJ's and freshly crayoned cardboard 'pulse guns', puppy dog eyes glissening brightly in the morning Atlanta sun at the thought of being able to march with the USCM.
This is just an overly exaggerated example of course, but I personally think 'hey guys, watch our tails' is sufficient and to let the parents know they must parade with them for safety.

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Why not have two sets of honour guards, one at the front and one at the back containing AL members, with klingon's at the back?

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AKA: Simon

That does sound like a good idea Reaper but is there enough flags and HonorGuard to do it.

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SGT Chris Kraemer "BIRD"
S/N: A07/TQ0.0.82154G1 Sgt Kraemer

That was kinda what I envisioned for the pinups if we had enough of them, the smaller flags would form a line of demarkation in the rear of the group

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"Chief Bartender for the Naughty Corner Bar"

Carpe Crustulum!! (seize the cookie!!)

Flags/Tasers/whatever...

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AKA: Simon

I can't count the number of times I've run into other people geared up in BDUs and armor and asked them what their board name was and they didn't have a clue about the site.

And then we sometimes encounter New people, welcome them at a con... and never see them again.

There was a guy in a grey urban camo pattern armor and BDU set at DC in 2006. I don't think I've seen him again online or at DC.

Having people in gear march with us is fine, but sadly not everyone wants to join the community.

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"A writer needs a pen, a painter a brush, and a filmmaker an army." - Orson Wells.

http://www.rookscastle.com
http://www.alchemyarms.com

That's exactly what I intend to do. As well as reserving 80 spots, so hopefully that will put off the airsoft guys who have a pulse rifle, for example.

I'll be upfront with the Parade organizer, see what I can do with them to make our standards as high as the 501st, - if they are able to keep out the riff-raff, no reason why we can't.

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USCM- The Colonial Marines- A Brotherhood of Bad Asses!

Maybe things have changed, but we ran into something similar in earlier parades and what we were told was that anybody with a paid membership to DragonCon can participate in the parade and that based on thier costume, they would be group with others like them. But once in their subgroup, they can organized themselves into however they want. So I would think that they group all of the Star Wars folks together, but let the 501st, Rebel Legion, bathrobe Jedi organized themselves into their own subgroups. But I could be wrong. I remember when they called for "The SciFiHero.Net group" to march ahead of all of the other Stargate costumers, which really pissed off the StarGate Atlanta group.

Does anyone know if the 501st and the Rebel Legion have thier own parade organzers and with their own headcount/ribbons for their groups?

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"Kill it before it dies!"
Daniel "Honcho" Kim
President & Founder
SciFiHero.Net & Alchemy Arms

heh, I remember that year. Those SG: Atlanta guys were kind of put out.

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"A writer needs a pen, a painter a brush, and a filmmaker an army." - Orson Wells.

http://www.rookscastle.com
http://www.alchemyarms.com

Maybe we should take a deep breath and walk away from this thread for a little while.

While away everyone decide what they want the group to really be like, what "rules" you want, and then picture that as a new possible member and see what you would think.

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Rob Slater
A08/TQ2.0.42136E1

Breath and walk away? It's what I've been doing.

It's physically impossible to do both at the same time.

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-Spat

Yet, somehow, Alien Resurrection both sucks and blows simultaneously.

Amen to that.

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"Screen what? I wouldn't know screen accurate if it were driving a bus and ran me over during the parade."

LCpl. Av "Spectre" Taylor
Long Range Infantry Support

ron pearlman can make any bad movie enjoyable EXCEPT for alien resurrection.

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PFC Mike Rizzuto MVM
USS Blackhawk
3rd Batt 12th Regt

Aww, now you guys have resorted to making up fake Alien sequels that don't exist! Too funny. Resurrection. Ha! You make me raff.

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-Spat

The 501st would make non-members march in the back. That's what I remembered from my first couple of years marching in the parade with them.

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~Jay

i agree 1000000000% with this. the day this happens, i will destroy my gear.

that is the reason i decided to NOT join the 501st.

with that said, i do agree with only allowing people in full correct gear to be part of the flag line and honor guard.

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the kilted smartgunner

Give me absenth I turn British.

I don't think it is an "us and them" type of mentality. One of our members goes through the trouble every year to make sure there is a parade sign up, all the paperwork with D*C and the parade yahoo group is done, organize everyone on the day of, and make it a point that everyone is ready to go. From the parade side, I think it is only fair.

As Aliens Legacy, we should have a spot in the parade as Aliens Legacy if that is what we sign up as. If there are random people that sign up for the parade, they should go in a "hey I wanna march too" random section and not be put with the groups that have gone out of their way to organize things. If we choose (as a group that has signed up) to accept other people to march with us, that should be our decision. Dot the parade people's. Overall, we are a very accepting bunch. They should as us if we want to say yes (which from the feel of this, 99% of the time we would). I just feel on D*C's side, that it is a courtesy. If not, why even bother having a sign up at all.

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"It is a pulse rifle, not a purse."

Paul, with all due respect I think there has been a great deal of confusion and over reaction here.

I don't think anyone is suggesting getting out a slide rule and making sure everyone's kit is as screen accurate as deemed necessary by a consensus, or secret committee etc.

What "I" believe this is about is how to deal with someone who "wants" to march with us, but who's apperance is so far removed from being remotely recognizably associated with the Alien series, as it would be confusing (and possibly embarrassing) for people observing our group during the parade.

And I'm talking the most extreme end of the spectrum- like camo shorts and body paint, or "joke" cardboard armour like the afore mentioned "Cardboard box Stormtroopers" who marched ahead of the 501st.

But just to be clear- if someone made their armour out of cardboard (or paper mache, or rubber bands) yet put forth their best effort to make it look as it appears in the film, I would be okay with pretty much any level of uniform.

We all started somewhere.

What "I" want to prevent is someone coming along with literaly "no" costume, OR a costume designed with nothing but contempt in mind---

By "contempt" I mean a costume (or blatant lack there of) that is controversial enough to immediately illicit feelings of distain or disgust for the sole purpose of seeing that kind of reaction from the crowd or fellow costumers.


I mean those here who are so vehemently opposed to "any" standards aren't suggesting that we should always have an unswerving "anything goes" open door policy for the parade right? Otherwise I should be able to wear my Admiral Kirk uniform during the parade.

But that would make no sense whatsoever right? Well that's partly my point- we can't just have this "whatever makes you happy" line of thinking as it is "another" slippery slope of just how extreme/controversial or done-in-bad-taste (or has absolutely nothing to do with the Alien series) a costume can be before someone finally says umm, no sorry we really can't allow this to be associated with our group.

However I also believe that none of us around here are going to wear something crazy enough to be "banned" from the D-Con Parade... Unless it was for no other reason than to be in direct protest to the suggestion of having some limits as to what is acceptable.



Kevin

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I told you I'd shoot, but you didn't believe me! WHY DIDN'T YOU BELIEVE ME!?!

I still like the idea that members of this group who sign up in advance get to march right behind the color guard. Anyone else can march behind them. And it's not a "Back of the Bus" situation. It's that we're all part of the group. Our members organized it, made the banners, shipped the flags and helped put on the presentation. If someone else who is not a member wants to march in an "Aliens inspired costume" (even if it's just Woodland Camos and carrying a Nerf Longshot painted green), they shouldn't get to march behind our banner. Nor should they want to.

The same way if I decided to do a Mass Effect costume for fun and then decided to march in the parade. Assuming there was a slot for those costumes to march, would I want to march behind the banner of the Mass Effect Costuming Club (assuming that exists) that I'm not a member of and have no affiliation with, or would I have the respect to march behind them with the other non-members? Or in front of them, or wherever.

The point is, if you're not a part of the group, should you be marching with them? Even if your costume is screen accurate? And should you just assume that you can? Or should you wait until you get there and see if they'll invite you?

How about this for an example.... There's a St. Patrick's Day Parade here in NY. Let's say it's open to anyone who wants to sign up to march, and I'm a Volunteer Firefighter from Alaska. I sign up and get to my spot in the parade with the other firefighters. But I see the banner and flags of the FDNY setting up. Should I just go insert myself into their ranks? I'm not with the FDNY, but I am a Firefighter. And we're all brothers in that regard. Would they let me? Should they let me?

Discuss.

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-Spat