If you head out into the California desert in early fall…you might stumble upon legions of tatterdemalion youth,
decked out in colorful garb and wearing greasy dreadlocks as they worship a pagan god in the shape of a stickman. We
here in the US are proud to say we have Burning Man, a celebration for the side of the America psyche whose idea of
worship has little to do with singing hymns. And apparently the Swedes are jealous. Yes, in Sweden they are
trying to make a burning man of their own…except that they are
burning a goat.
Yes, the authorities are saying it’s vandalism, but that’s basically what they said about Burning man at first. What
happening is that there are these 43-foot high goats, erected as decorations. And every year in Gavle, 150 kilometers
(90 miles) north of Stockholm, someone sets fire to them. Since 1966, just 10 of the 43-foot-high goats have survived
beyond Christmas Day. Most are torched, but one was hit by a car and one ruined by fireworks.