By Michael Collins
Los Angeles CityBeat/ValleyBeat – September 13, 2007
Every fall comes a bevy of bombastic events that blow away folks like me and my gun-lovin’gal: war reenactments. The Marching Thru History Exposition at the Prado Regional Park in Chino, October 21-22, is billed as an “educational tribute.” It’s also a chance to see warriors through the ages go at it without actually killing each other. Nearly 1,000 “historical interpretive specialists” – in other words, dudes dressed up as soldiers, sailors, and scallywags from different periods of world history – shoot, shell, and stab each other for their and our satisfaction.
Watch as the English Navy, using their Jolly Boats, sweeps ashore and kidnaps Colonial-era Americans to serve as slaves – one of the reasons for the War of 1812, in which we whipped British butt after they torched our White House. Or enjoy watching trench warfare from World War I like the Verdun and Sommes River battles that saw 500,000 soldiers slaughtered in three days. Educational, indeed. (Info: Marchingthruhistory.com.)
If you’re hankering for the best Southern California reenactment of our bloodiest conflict, the Civil War, head to Moorpark November 10-11 to “The Blue and the Gray – Frontal Assault!” hosted by the Richmond Howitzer Battalion. Five battles, including one blazing into the night, add to the festivities, as Americans butcher each other with a vengeance, rewarding by the sight of the Confederate Army’s Gen. Robert E. Lee laying down the sword for good at Appomattox. Some wars are worth fighting. (Info: Forttejon.org/moorpark [Link now disabled])
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