new thread
I always see pictures of concerts (metal ones which generally will have long haired metalheads :P) and even outside of concerts that the men will have longer hair, or there will be a bigger number of long hairs. Am I crazy or is it real? Maybe people over there aren't so judgemental against guys with long hair?
Is it possible that long hair is accepted in Metal, and there's just more of it going on in Europe than in North America or Australia?
Although, Australia has that surfing thing going for it too, and as I understand, long hair is popular in the surfing circle. :)
Well, americans tend to bunch up all european countries into one big Europe. Tha fact is, there are huge differences between the countries in europe. For example, I live in sweden and we have a high tolerance level for just about everything when it comes to looks. If a guy didn´t get a job for his long hair, I bet there would be an outrage and articles in newspapers about discrimination. Though if you have lots of tatoos and piercings, it will be very difficult to get a job where you sit in the reception and such.
However, I think the longer south you get, the tolerance level will be much lower. I´m not sure, but I think it´s much harder to be a longhair in for example Spain and Portugal. And also Turkey. And yeah, people listening to metal often have long hair. :)
I think there are especially two things that makes long hair unaccepted in USA. First of all you have/had the hippies. Asociated with drugs and such. Also, in america you have lots of soldiers and wars, and long hair is not okay in the army.
That´s what I think anyways.
I agree with Eriks words, heck, here in Sweden we can even have long hair when doing military service, as long as we keep it secured in a tail or hairnet, but i was so lucky i didn't have to do military service because i didn't have enough good grades from the scool, not too many guys nowadays need to do it anyway, they're even talking about removing the general military service in sweden.
Erik you are correct. Europe is a big place and in some countries longhairs would have a bit more of a tough time. As for America well it is much more conservative than most of Europe and some of my countrymen have this everybody should live as we do attitude.
Instead of being open minded and tolerant. Aw well we do tend to go to war a lot and at last count I believe the standing military is something like 1.5 million. not counting reserves.
Fortunately there are regions or cities that are liberal and longhairs can live in relative peace, San Francisco an obvious one.
So longhair being better accepted in most of Europe and even in countries like Sweden or the UK there are people who are disapproving of us, luckily they are the minority there.
Kevin
Indeed, America varies a lot, as you go from one place to another. The politics varies, the speech varies, the weather varies, the popular music varies, the predominant religion varies, what people do for a living varies, even the food varies. There have been no internal immigration controls inside of America for over 200 years, so people have been able to migrate to where they find all those things more to their liking. This polarizes America even more.
These variations don't just occur as you go from one state or region to another. They can vary from one county or city to the next. California, where I live, is seen as a liberal state, but it has some very conservative pockets too.
Long hair (and the same can be said for beards) is seen quite a bit in some areas and hardly at all in others. I remember once when on vacation with three San Francisco friends, a waitress in a small town in Arizona came up to our table and exclaimed, "How unusual, you all four have beards!" We looked around the large restaurant, and indeed we were the only men with beards in the whole place. Thoughts about us all being bearded had not crossed our minds, and it would not have gotten any comment from anyone back home in San Francisco.
If being around other longhaired men is important to you, in America you can always move! No place are we going to be a majority, but in some places we may be ten percent instead of one percent, and the improved treatment one gets when your group is more common will be substantial.
Bill
Thanks to all that replied!
Your so right Bill so why not move to Europe..:-)
John.B
San Francisco is actually to my liking!
If a man can't find SOME place in the U.S. or in Europe to his liking, he is probably too damned picky. [grin]
The guys I really feel sorry for are the ones who are hemmed into a very small place due to overly limiting immigration laws. Over the years I've met guys from places like Egypt and Singapore, and places they could move to and not be hassled as a long haired man were non-existent.
Bill
The US also sees itself as the nucleus of the financial and business world. Which could be a valid conclusion.
But this also contributes to the lack of longhair tolerance. If the national aspiration is to be the king of the board room, long hair has no place nor do tattoos, piercings, crazy fashion choices, facial hair, or really anything individual. The mentality is to become the faceless corporate robot who looks and acts like he is supposed to...with the end goal of being the head robot.
Or maybe I am a bit cynical...
Well stated, friend, although this aspect of "the American way" does seem to have spread itself around the globe over the course of the past half-century. You'll find CEO-bots at the tops of their towers on every continent but Antarctica... and even that is sure to follow, eventually. I think our best hope for a more tolerant, future society lies with the youth of today... of course, that's what the children of the 60's thought, too, before succumbing to the allure of Reaganomics.
--Val
My sister's exact words about that is that they sold themselves to the estabishment.
Carol
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Whether anyone else does is a matter for great debate!
Well, business world nucleus may be in contention. But the US, I think, is the king of playing around with everyone else's money with all the financial firms and the stock exchanges. At least that is one of the thoughts for the future regarding who will control what in the global economy...factories will go elsewhere but US will maintain financial dominance.
Its making quite a good job of losing it at the moment - sub primne lending indeed.
No, you are not being cynical, you are being realistic. The corporate entity is an ever-looming presence, and more and more are being assimilated into the corporate collective. (with apologies to Star Trek's Borg). Resistence is NOT futile, I plan on resisting, kicking and screaming to my grave. Too many peoople are blindly accepting the corporate control on society and our government. Unless there is a revolution by a future generation, the cororate entities will exercise even more control, and our individuals rights and freedoms will slowly be eradicated. I'm an optimist, and rarely cynical, but don't wear rose-colored glasses either.
Carol
Evidence for Urban Cowboy's climate theory!
I think that the UK is becoming very tolerant of long hair in many places and walks of life. As a result long hair and pony tails are becoming a common sight. Having lived through the first long hair era (1970s and early 1980s) there was considerable antagonism back then. Having regrown in my mid-50s in the last two years, not only do I see more people in varying walks of life but many fewer now see it as exceptional. I am quite comfortable with it and work in a senior environment at Director level. Perhaps it is because those who might complain today are themselves former long hairs who are sympathetic as a result I don't know but the 'noise' is so much less.
The odd school moans and there are a few shops (usually the down market ones) who see it as an issue but places that merit respect seem quite happy.
Doubtless someone will now produce some newspaper article which proves me wrong but my impression is that this is the exception to prove the rule.
Having had Gordon Brown as Chancellor for ten years, and now as Prime Minister in UK, taxes and stealth taxes are so high no one can afford a haircut anymore. Whoopee!
Geneva is fantastic! I'm working here at a massive bank doing a one month internship and haven't received a SINGLE comment about my hair in the workplace. I always keep it in a neat tail.
Although, I'm not sure if the acceptance is genuine or because they're providing allowances for my age (17). In any case, I see lots of long hairs walking down the streets, intertwined with masses of bankers in suits. Although I've seen only one other person dressed like me (suit & tail).
When I finish school in Belgium, and then do my Uni course in the UK, I may very well move to Geneva, at least for a few years.
I am glad that you did not have a problem with the bank. I was wondering how that problem went.
Hi David,
Here in Europe there is a very liberal attitude to people with longhair. For example in the Netherlands you will see alot of people on the services with longhair. Come over and visit your yourself.
John.B