Anyone who has been paying attention to the news lately has heard about the Columbine Massacre where in 1999, two alleged goths killed a bunch of students, then themselves. It was shocking to all of us, so assured that our schools were safe.

As in all tragidies, people wanted answers for why this happened. They blamed the two boy's love of the video game Doom, Marilyn Manson, and the goth culture they were supposed to belong to. Kids so much as wearing a Korn shirt to school were expelled. Had the press been paying attention, they would have realized that the real culprit was the endless bullying they had to endure, their parents ignoring their son's cries for help, and the fact that one of the perpetrators was put on an antidepressant known for causing psychotic episodes.

And still, we carry on. Hot Topic stores still do a booming business. Marilyn Manson became even more popular, especially for his speech in Bowling for Columbine. Goth has become popular as of late, especially for the disaffected youth. With that, I give advise to the Newbie Goths of the world. And, of course for their worried parents.

For the Newbies:

1. Enough with the Crow makeup! You know the look, white makeup with black eyeliner looking like tears down to your cheeks. It gets its name from the Brandon Lee title character gothic movie, The Crow. Look, only few people can do that look and not look stupid, and people who have chubby faces aren't one of them

2. Shut up about how good things were in the eighties. Most of the people who say that were little kids in the eighties. Unless you were there personally there, you have no right to say that!

3. Marilyn Manson isn't Goth. Sorry to break it to you, but even Brian Warner himself claims he isn't, and admits he doesn't know why people think he is.

4. Hot Topic isn't the only place that sells Goth-related things. I like going there myself, but I don't delude myself into thinking its the only place. Try the Internet. Read Gothic Beauty, which does articles about Gothic-related stuff, including fashions.

5. Its ok not to like the old stuff. Me personally, as blasphemous at it may sound, I don't particular like the eighties Goth bands. I much more like more recent bands like the Cruxshadows.

For the Parents:

1. Don't believe the propaganda. Your kid isn't going to start shooting up a school, join the vampyre movement, or get into BDSM just because he dresses in black.

2. Deal with it. I'm fortunate enough to have parents so used to my eccentricities they don't mind. I am, however, forbidden from wearing my over-the-top stuff to family gatherings.

3. Use it as a bargaining chip. The woman who does Gothic Charm School, an advice column on the Internet (gothic-charm-school.com) tells how her parents used to bribe her into good behavior as a child by promising to buy her a piece of gothic clothing if she did as she was told.

4. Understand it might not be a phase. I've heard of some Goths being parents and having corporate jobs.

Thank you

Learn more about this author, Ariadne Shadowfire.
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