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Oops.

Some hippie, probably naked and on drugs, thought it would be fun to set the Burning Man sculpture on fire (ahead of time) probably to commemorate the lunar eclipse. This is bad for all the naked goofs out there, but not as bad as that time when Burning Man was accidentally cut up with a chain saw when he was in storage. I hate it when that happens.

MAN TO BE REBUILT AFTER FIRE

(Black Rock City – August 28, 2007) The Man at the center of Black Rock City will be rebuilt after an overnight fire which damaged the effigy at the center of the Burning Man event. Rebuilding is expected to take about two days.

An arson investigation is underway, and one arrest was made shortly after the fire was set. No charges have been announced, and the name of the suspect is being withheld. There has been no discussion of motive in the episode.

“We have the means and the will. The event continues on schedule, and the Man will burn on Saturday night,” said Andie Grace, Communications Manager for Burning Man LLC.

The theme for this year’s Burning Man is “Green Man” to highlight environmental issues. As their website notes:

The Art Theme for Burning Man 2007 is “The Green Man”. Our theme concerns humanity’s relationship to nature. Do we, as conscious beings, exist outside of nature’s sway, or does its force impel us and inform the central root of who and what we are? Learn more about the greening of Burning Man in our new Environment Section and our Enviroblog.

There is no word yet on how burning up Burning Man twice will affect the ozone layer and the ever-fragile climate. The conventional wisdom is, two burnings will make things twice as hot and make twice as much smoke. The fact that no one is wearing clothes, driving to and from work, or doing anything else productive may create enough carbon offsets to make the difference, letting all the hippies off the hook.

Related Post:

What Is Burning Man?

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5 Comments | Leave a comment
  1. Trinity says:

    By LISA LEFF Associated Press Writer
    SAN FRANCISCO Aug 28, 2007 (AP)
    Font Size

    “Burning Man became Burnt Man four days early on Tuesday, and a San Francisco performance artist was arrested on suspicion of igniting the signature figure of the counterculture festival in the remote Nevada desert. “

    You called it Tammy..
    From http://www.abcnews.com
    Here you go..http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=3534978

  2. camperdude says:

    Hmmmm… getting charged with arson 4 days before it was scheduled to be burned. Which brings up another argument – would it be murder if you shot a guy 4 days before he was planning to commit suicide? Of course it would. He might have had big things planned for those last 4 days….

  3. brutepcm says:

    Arson investigation? Arrest? I thought there were no rules at “Burning Man”.
    Am I the only one who thinks it absurd that burning the effigy on schedule is a celebratory and symbolic act, but touching it off early is a crime?

  4. HibernianAmerican says:

    Because you have to bring everything you need for the entire week to the festival (all food, water, etc.), a lot of Burning Man participants drive RVs or other large vehicles to the site and use the air conditioning while there. Can’t say that I blame them, but it reminds me of the hypocrisy of Live Earth concertgoers burning fossil fuels to attend concerts warning about the alleged threat of global warming.

  5. MayBeYou says:

    >There is no word yet on how burning up Burning Man twice
    >will affect the ozone layer and the ever-fragile climate. The
    >conventional wisdom is, two burnings will make things twice as
    >hot and make twice as much smoke. The fact that no one is
    >wearing clothes, driving to and from work, or doing anything
    >else productive may create enough carbon offsets to make the
    >difference, letting all the hippies off the hook.

    By the tone of your sentences, you seem to be expecting something or some kind of action from the Burner society; more specifically, you are expecting an action in response to this year’s theme. As mentioned above, the theme only highlights environmental issues. By highlighting environmental issues, hopefully some of us will find a way to reduce our carbon footprint. There is no intent to change the way the festival will be held. If you think a theme is a requirement to act, then that’s your expectation and I hope you succeed in acting; that’s not how we saw it.

    >Arson investigation? Arrest? I thought there were no rules at
    >”Burning Man”.

    There are a lot of rules at BM. Some are written down on the Burning Man website. However, the most important rules are following your own moralistic actions.

    >Am I the only one who thinks it absurd that burning the effigy
    >on schedule is a celebratory and symbolic act, but touching it
    >off early is a crime?

    When The Man burns, almost a 100 firemen organize a safe burn. This guy started a fire while spectators were under the effigy. He put innocent people in mortal danger. Thus, he committed a crime and should be prosecuted for his actions.

    >BRUTEPCM,
    >it reminds me of the hypocrisy of Live Earth concertgoers
    >burning fossil fuels to attend concerts warning about the
    >alleged threat of global warming.

    I don’t know what is expected of Live Earth concertgoers but as I mentioned above, living Green is neither a requirement of Burners nor attendees of Burning Man. Despite whether you believe global warming exists, I hope you will agree that learning about your environment would be a good use of time.

    RS

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