Multiple Cultures
One Nation
I really didn’t do much of a report on the Reno Gun Show last weekend cuz it was so overwhelming. I never saw so much interesting stuff in one place before—two whole giant hotel ballrooms worth! Wow. Brain blowout.
But one thing I did note was the behavior of the crowd; despite the narrow aisles and the traffic jam spots where people were stopped 3-deep to look at interesting items, there was no pushing, no disgruntled mumbling, no cranky snapping. I cannot count the times I overheard, “After you,” “Please,” “Thank you.” It brought on a [for lack of a better term] body memory of a time long ago when I would go out with my folks and people would act this way—gentlemanly. Ladylike. Civilized.
This even extended to the sandwich shop in the lobby, the coffee bar, the giant-but-crowded hallways leading to the ballrooms and the narrow entry points into the rooms. Fulk© who were at the hotel for reasons other than attendance at the show were conspicuous in their ...uhm, different approach to being in public.
And there were all sorts of people there—from Mr. & Mrs. ‘Burbs to folk who looked like they just came in from the Backcountry and were dressed in their best feathers and leather for the trip to town. All behaving in a civilized manner. All in all an incredibly enjoyable experience.
We also went to The Palomino Valley BLM Wild Horse Adoption Center. Waaaaay kewl!! Lots and lots of burros—even some pinto burros! I sense more hossies in my future…
I’ve been to many gun shows. What you experienced at the gun show is generally typical of the group as a whole. They all know that an armed society is a polite society - and practice politeness out of habit even when they aren’t armed.
Nice habit, isn’t it?
Posted by on 11/26/05 at 10:55 AMIt’s delightful! And most comforting. And makes life a whole lot easier. Maybe the idea will spread. again....
Posted by Claire on 11/27/05 at 10:09 AM
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