Dealing with Ignorance

[BroosterB1]

Yeah, I had one of those today, myself. I was walking to 7-11 on my lunch break to get a cup of coffee, and some dimwit drove by me, yelled "Fag!" out his window, threw a cup of soda at me and drove away. Coward. I'd love to see how he would react to me face to face, given the fact that I'm 5 foot 10 and 280. It's great how he would attack my manhood while safely driving away. I made my bruised feeling all better by going to my 1.5 hour martial arts class and learning more ways to kill people like that!

So very Zen if you......"I know at least 187 ways to kill you with out raising as much as a sweat, now be gone, you bother my sense of Karma".....That's our Nighthawk!

[sathor]

, and some dimwit drove by me, yelled "Fag!" out his window, t

that only happens to me when I am riding my bike. Which is not when I am wearing a kilt.

[Bugbear]

I suppose it's better than getting into a life-long tic-tac-toe game of "I know you are, but what am I?"

Poor Nighthawk, he's so misunderstood...

[OC Richard]

some dimwit drove by me, yelled "Fag!" out his window, threw a cup of soda at me and drove away. Coward. I'd love to see how he would react to me face to face...

This reminds me of what happened to a drummer in our Pipe Band back in the early 1980's.

We had just played a fairly late gig so it was near midnight when, on the way home, he found he was low on gas and stopped at an all-night gas station, the sort with the cashier behind a bulletproof window, the sort common here in LA.

He had come to the gig alone so there he was putting gas in his truck in his kilts at midnight in a bad neighborhood.

Suddenly a big pickup truck full of young drunk yahoos pulled up near him. They began taunting him about his kilts. He just smiled at them and kept pumping gas.

Next one of the yahoos pulls a length of pipe from the back of their pickup and starts walking towards our drummer, saying "I'm going to put you in the hospital".

"I don't think so" said our drummer, smiling, and kept pumping.

What the yahoos didn't know, but soon found out, was that our drummer was a Police Officer.

I've often thought about that incident. I'm thankful that such a thing has never happened to me. I'm not a police officer and if that had been me pumping gas the outcome would have been very different.

[Spectre]

If only the homophobes would read a book from time to time instead of playing Halo on X-Box, maybe they could have their eyes opened to the VERY masculine warrior heritage we so proudly display....
I never hear much flak, though. I wonder if its the scooter, or the fact that I like the axe-murderer look?

[sp00ky]

As a recent kilt wearer I have only so far had positive experiences to the few times I have had the opportunity to go out and about:

I have seen people double taking, but no comments made.

Walmart, a few looks, and one guy clapped me on the shoulder as I passed and said "Good man!"

Goth girl working at Halloween store said she liked my kilt.

Went to a historic fort for a "Fort Fright Halloween" no comments, but I did catch one woman in a group of three who walked by me mimick lifting up my kilt as she walked by, and then giggle with her friends (I took it as kind of a complement). Drinks afterwards with friends, no comments made even though surrounded by half drunk University students.

Picked my 10 year old up at a birthday party, my son simply said "people are going to talk about this at school..." they did, his friend said it was cool!

So far, that's it. Could be the fact that I live in a region with a moderate about of Scottish desendants, as well as since I live in Stormont Dundas and Glengarry county we are used to seeing the SDG Highlanders at parades, and rememberance day events and such.

Not to hijack the thread, I was wondering for people who wear both traditional and modern kilts, have you noticed a different reaction to each one.

The traditional plaid is recognizable to most, but I can see the modern kilts being incorrectly labelled "skirts" more often..

Thoughts?

[Kilted Rogue]

Not to hijack the thread, I was wondering for people who wear both traditional and modern kilts, have you noticed a different reaction to each one.

The traditional plaid is recognizable to most, but I can see the modern kilts being incorrectly labelled "skirts" more often..

Thoughts?

I wear both types of kilts. I do wear my UK's a bit more regular, but thats due to the fact that i have 2 modern kilts and one tartan kilt that is bit err small.
I think i do get more grief when i my UK's than when i am in a Trad kilt. Still mainly its the ones that dont know any better and allow there ignorance to speak when they should remain silent. I do however take the time to educate them on what the garment is and its history.

[NewGuise]

I was wearing my newest kilt* at a bar last night (attending "beers for queers" night with my partner and daughter!), and suddenly felt a slight tug below - the guy next to me had leaned over and was checking out the fabric. "What's the tartan?" he asked, then quickly added, with a smile, "I'm not really trying to check what's underneath." I told him it was the Maple Leaf tartan as he stood back up and said "Nice dress. Sharp." He then introduced me to everyone at his table, one of whom, as it turned out, used to do highland dancing but has not worn a kilt in years; he, too, asked about the tartan, wondering why I was entitled to wear it. But ... more compliments all around.

[*I know: no pictures; this 5-yard 'casual' from Burnett's & Struth doesn't yet exist. But then I hardly believe it does, either; I ordered it just two weeks ago, and it cost just over $200 including shipping and the optional flashes...]

[csbdr]

Not to hijack the thread, I was wondering for people who wear both traditional and modern kilts, have you noticed a different reaction to each one.

The traditional plaid is recognizable to most, but I can see the modern kilts being incorrectly labelled "skirts" more often..

Thoughts?

I wear both, and have never had anyone over the age of 7 yo mistake my contemp. kilts for a skirt. I always get "Nice kilt!" with my UK's. I think the compliments come from a younger demographic when I'm in a UK vs a trad.

[Monkey@Arms]

I wear both, and have never had anyone over the age of 7 yo mistake my contemp. kilts for a skirt. I always get "Nice kilt!" with my UK's. I think the compliments come from a younger demographic when I'm in a UK vs a trad.

Ditto. Its been said before, the type of idiot that hassles kilt wearers doesn't discriminate between modern and trad.

Best regards,

Jake