Hicks hilarity

If Fair Day is -“ as Leo Schofield suggested in last week’s Bulletin -“ a kind of twisted regional fete, then what is the Mardi Gras parade? A Brazilian-lite bacchanal? A Christmas pageant in March? A chance to show the world that gays are both as abnormal and as normal as everyone else?

It is, of course, all of this and more. Though the last point is debatable, as the mainstream generally gets to see more furries than families. And if the media coverage is an accurate representation of the make-up of either the parade or our community, there should be a shit-load more drag queens sashaying around.

Anyway, it’s definitely Mardi Gras outside my window right now. The sun is shining. The wind is howling. Partygoers are lamenting the loss of days gone by, when a pair of supportive undies was all you needed to hide your drugs on the way in.

Meantime, parade spotters are arguing in the Star‘s letters page over the value or otherwise of a David Hicks float.

I have a few concerns about the validity of a David Hicks float myself. Not with the message itself. Mardi Gras has long provided an opportunity for people with concerns about the wider world to have a go at the powers that be. My main concern about a Support David Hicks float is the lack of opportunity for camp (unless there’s a joke to be made about Camp X-ray. Actually, that’s terrible.)

Forget the fact he was allegedly working with the Taliban, an organisation that supports putting gays to death. There’s only so much fun you can make of the poor bastard’s plight in Cuba. Even the war parade back in 2003, with its countless anti-war entries and protest floats, managed to pull out some camp. A gigantic tank. Kissing Georges and Saddams. Problem is, four years later, it all just seems a bit sad.

But I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt. If anyone can make David Hicks’s situation into an irreverent political statement, it’s the brave and hilarious Mardi Gras paraders. March on!