{"id":15403,"date":"2015-05-21T21:58:53","date_gmt":"2015-05-22T02:58:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.panicstream.com\/vault\/?page_id=15403"},"modified":"2015-05-22T10:56:48","modified_gmt":"2015-05-22T15:56:48","slug":"do-what-you-like-wsp-in-ob","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.panicstream.com\/vault\/do-what-you-like-wsp-in-ob\/","title":{"rendered":"Do What You Like – Widespread Panic in Orange Beach"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"floppers3\"JD Crowe \/ jdcrowe@al.com<\/em><\/h6>\n

RELATED<\/span>:\u00a0Original article on AL.com<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Do What You Like – Widespread Panic in Orange Beach<\/strong><\/p>\n

by Andy Roo Mowery<\/em><\/p>\n

Almost 10 years ago, I found myself heading out to the Upper South Parking Lot at Red Rocks before a Panic show early in the morning to solve a problem: The fans and security weren\u2019t getting along, and some people the night before got hurt in a stampede. It bothered me so much; I stayed up all night thinking about it, and without telling anyone else, I decided I had the solution.<\/p>\n

It was based upon 3 principles: That strangers would tend to be slightly less of a dick to one another even if they were in competition to get to the front row once they knew each others\u2019 name, and even less so if they introduced themselves with a hug; That those who think they are working against one another often find themselves aligned if they simply communicate; And, that when people respect each others passions and act out of love and respect for those passions, anything and everything is possible.<\/p>\n

And, rather than 300 people trying to climb over each other and security, we found that everyone pretty much was targeting different spots, and if we were nice to security, we could work out a system where we could get our tickets pre-checked, and make the process of getting a spot at a GA show fun and less stressful. It\u2019s a long story, but bottom line is that it\u2019s worked for 10 years and kept peace where some thought none was possible.<\/p>\n

I woke up today thinking I was writing an article about how we\u2019ve successfully overcome a challenge with another Panic show tomorrow in Orange Beach. And, I am quite proud of how the Panic Community has once again come together to overcome negativity, and shine their light on a little beach community in the Gulf that so many of us have grown to love. Unfortunately, I got an unexpected email from the Mayor today, so my enthusiasm is going to come with an asterisk, and subsequently a call for those attending to be aware of a small minority who may be looking to scapegoat fans to justify their bias and prejudice.<\/p>\n

A month ago, while I was still in bed, my phone began vibrating with notifications from Facebook. I found that several of the Widespread Panic Facebook Groups I participate in were lighting up with messages about the show at the Wharf in Orange Beach, AL. I had fond memories of going there in 2007 and 2008, and wondered what all the hullabaloo was about.<\/p>\n

There was an article about a city council meeting in the small 6000-person town of Orange Beach in which a couple of the council members were quoted saying some derogatory things about the fans. But, one word stood out more than any other \u2013 Floppiness. And, within a few hours it and all it\u2019s floppy variations went viral. A whole slew of Internet Memes, T-Shirts, Hats, and Stickers were designed by mid-afternoon.<\/p>\n

Now, some reacted with a great sense of humor, and all the proposed merchandise\u00a0was a sign of that. However, in other corners of the Internet, particularly Facebook, some were quite angry. Some recalled that there were questionable police tactics used in 2008, where fans\u2019 privacy was violated while driving to\/from the show, in the parking lot, and even in the venue. There were reports of undercover police inside the show entrapping fans with enticements to buy, sell, or use illegal drugs. And, as a result, there were some arrests. Well, a lot of arrests, depending on who you talked to.<\/p>\n

So, after following this band for 24 of their 28 years, and having traveled all over the country (and even a few international locations), I\u2019ve seen my fair share of police abuse in and around rock and roll shows. I\u2019ve seen tear gas used unnecessarily, I\u2019ve witnessed beatings, and I\u2019ve seen cops destroy video cameras of those who have attempted to document the abuse. And, I\u2019ve largely managed to stay out of the fray.<\/p>\n

However, I thought it would be a good idea in this case, to go to the parties that made the statements, and see what their side of the story was. I spoke with Jeff Silvers, creator sans trademark of the word \u201cFloppiness\u201d, and he was really easy to talk to. We found common ground in minutes, and had outlined the positive things we could do to make this a great event for the fans and communities. I then called Jim Bibby at The Wharf, and had an equally positive reception. Nothing but a recognition that we could improve upon the past.<\/p>\n

I posted these efforts back into one of the Facebook groups for Panic fans, and I had many people voice their support for keeping it positive. I wasn\u2019t the only one, and within a matter of a couple days, we had fans self-organizing to create an event called the Flopper\u2019s Ball, a food drive, a beach cleanup, and more. It was really nice to see our community come together to make a positive out of a negative.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/span> Preshow & Aftershow; Food Drive; and Beach Cleanup Info<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

But, then the Mayor doubled down on his comments, and actually put an exclamation point on them by publishing a letter on their website, which subsequently got copied into mainstream and social media sites, making some pretty aggressive claims. The claims boiled down to trying to isolate the fans of Widespread Panic as being categorically different than the fans of any other band. Nevermind that most people listen to music from many sources, and that it was timed the same day as a concert at the Wharf celebrates a guy who is backed by the Coral Reefer band sings about finding his lost shaker of salt, and is considered to only to attract sober angels from heaven, aka as Margaritaville.<\/p>\n

So, I took the time to talk to Mayor Tony Kennon too, and found that he was a bit more difficult to work with. In summary, he felt he was elected by the people of Orange Beach to enforce Biblical Law that made clear that any form of intoxication was against God\u2019s Will. Furthermore, he believes in profiling the fans and subjecting them to extra scrutiny because \u201cYou are who you associate with.\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve since pointed out that Jesus turned perfectly good non-intoxicating water into not just wine, but the best wine that you usually serve first. And, that if hanging out with undesirables was a bad thing, then Jesus associating with prostitutes and tax collectors wouldn\u2019t make much sense. Oh, by the way, isn\u2019t a Mayor a tax collector?<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t able to get too far with the Mayor, but I made a formal FOIA request to check the facts made in the Mayor\u2019s 4\/24 statement. He said:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile I appreciate that there are good and decent people that cause no trouble at Widespread Panic concerts, the facts about the negative impact of Widespread Panic concerts in the City of Orange Beach speak for themselves:<\/em><\/p>\n