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Whilst on the toilet.

Really good medications

I believe the inspiration comes from all of the above. I've seen it in many of the top DCI corps as well as WGI Guards and percussion...as well as great bands...............everyone takes from everyone................I have no doubt about this, I see it as well as been in on that process many many times............and of course insperation also comes from the past, where some want to go in the future and also outside sources removed from our activity.

Without picking a fight about mythical weapons, it does seem to me from what I've read that you interpret PC as whatever you personally disagree with. I'll only speak for myself, but I'm hardly a politically correct person and I find more bunk in your objections than in the objects of those objections. Whoops, guess I did pick a fight. But at least I wasn't PC about it.

He was also instrumental in the success of the Kansas Skyriders through many eras ... :-)

Oh... signature wasn't correct. It's Chris formerly (and possibly potentially again) from the drumline.

Why does it have to be either/or? IMO the best visual designs are those that utilize ALL methods of movement throughout the course of their program. I would say that a group that does zero choreography is not preferable to a group that does choreography AND traditional marching. Vice versa, a group that does zero marching is not preferable to a group that does choreography and traditional marching. In this day & age, I think we are accustomed to getting it all: groups that only give us some are not cutting it

If you go to your profile page, to the left "overview" there is a tab for "likes". Brings up all of your posts that have been liked by others.

According to the data "in which you cite" only 0.2%, that is less than one quarter of one percent, of the youth mortality rate comes from accidental shooting from a firearm (which includes hunting accidents, weapons cleaned while loaded, mistaken identity during a home invasion, and a plethora of other activities along with kids 'playing' with guns), and it is three times less than youth death by burning in a fire which is 0.7%. Youth suicide by a firearm is only at 0.8% of all deaths and is less than self-strangulation at 0.9%. As for youth homicide with firearm, it is only 2.7% of all youth deaths (and this included all drug and gang related homicides like what is going on in the south side of Chicago). So, if you consider the PC complaints and 'banning' of things like wooden rifles and plastic sabers is correct the logical conclusion would be that you also favor the PC banning of any item on the MCH Center list which cause a higher youth mortality rate than firearms; like things associated with swimming (ie drowning) and motor vehicles which comes in at 8.1% of all youth fatalities. So, thanks for the data; it actually shows the outrageousness of the PC panic concerning firearms.

Love watching the Marine D&BC! But modern drill? lol Also, as much as I hate saying this, if they did exactly the same stuff but had no military affiliation, their crowd reactions would be nowhere what they are now. Being Marines is good for some kick-### bonus points with crowds. :)

I appreciate your drama, but you need to do a little more research. From an interview HERE (http://bluedevils.org/news/story.php?newsID=27 ), GH said (emphasis mine): "Longer term, more needs to be done to keep drum corps vital, says George Hopkins, Director of the Cadets. In fact, if DCI stays the same and doesn’t play down its military heritage, it will continue to be plagued by declining crowds, he believes. Interviewed at a picnic hosted by the Blue Devils for the Cadets in Walnut Creek, CA, Hopkins said the call to no more arms should be a serious one for fans who care about drum corps. “We grew up with it, so we don’t think anything about the fact that we use swords and rifles, but people who are new to the event can’t understand why we use weapons,” Hopkins said, citing the example of TV talk show host Rosie O’Donnell, who refused to do a promotion for Blast!, the Broadway-based show that grew from the Star of Indiana, because it uses guns and sabers. In the Cadets 2001 show there are no rifles. Instead the guard spins the much-talked-about apostrophe like devices. Swords will be the thing next to be replaced by some less warlike performance prop. He hopes to create a sabre-like device that will still require the same kind of skills to toss but doesn’t have the association with violence. But wholesale change, Hopkins says, even in a guard where he has the final say can sometimes take longer than he’d like." This thread was "founded" on the fact that GH made comments in 2001 about the need to eliminate using "weapons" in order to keep drum corps vital, and that there are indications that society is moving more towards his thinking. Was he a soothsayer? Possibly he was just good at guessing about the future. But, in that regard, this thread's "founding" statement is possibly more accurate than you give credit.

This thread is founded on complete lies, misrepresentations and sensationalism. Lets not forget that George Hopkins didn't actually say "weapons of war"... and that he didn't actually say anything... And ACTUALLY the original term was "IMPLEMENTS of war" NOT "Weapons of WAR". The only instance of "implements of war" being used was in an article/advertisement on the YEA website and it wasn't a direct quote of hopkins and there is no way to say that hopkins even wrote the article himself. And its use in the article was as a descriptive distinguisher from the new guard equipment they were selling. The term in question itself connotates old fashioned, out-dated, militeristic, uncreative, barbaric... and OF COURSE if you are selling something NEW and DIFFERENT (like their HOOKS and BOLTS guard equipment which is the REAL context of what was written) you want to make your competition (sabres and rifles) to look inferior and play up on what distinguishes your product! It's simple marketing. By a) lying about what was actaully written b) lying that GH actually said it and c) taking it out of the context of AN ADVERTISEMENT... you completely blow up the situation and start injecting vile "politics" and "political correctness" where none actually exists. The drama is manufactured here on DCP not by George, YEA, or anyone else. Also, this thread happened last month and this discussion is more stupid the 3rd time around...

Crown will try to get away with classifying their tuba line as members of the pit by stationing each one behind a tympani or two on the sidelines. Every once in a while, they'll apply the bells of the tubas to the tympani heads, and blow.

I think the Blue Devils are absolutely amazing this year. I wouldn't like other groups to try to copy them, though, because nobody else could do what they do that well. There are a lot of good designers these days, but the folks at BD are on their own level.