That's Entertainment

For the Halloween season, local amusement park Valley Fair has turned into Valley Scare! In addition to rides and strolling ghouls and goblins, this entertainment is offered:

Live Killer Shows and Entertainment

In addition to haunted rides and wicked attractions, ValleySCARE?s Halloween Haunt also offers killer, side-splitting shows day and night.

Killer entertainment, you say? Who knew we were supposed to take them seriously. From City Pages music critic Jim Walsh:

I'm here to say that Ike Reilly stood on a stage at an amusement park in Shakopee, Minnesota last night, in front of 200 or so hardy souls in f*cking hats and gloves and down coats, fending off winter and celebrating Halloween and Friday the 13th, and sang "Who says you can't take a shot at a president?" and "We're drinking to your assassination" three weeks before Election Day. And those might not have even been the best moments

Given recent stories about Secret Service interest in similar threats against the President, ol' Ike seems to be taking some risks here. Oh well, "art" is supposed to be dangerous, isn't it? But maybe he's more of a student of federal law than I would expect. My reading of US Criminal Code Chapter 41 section 18 tells me he skates on this one:

a) Whoever knowingly and willfully deposits for conveyance in the mail or for a delivery from any post office or by any letter carrier any letter, paper, writing, print, missive, or document containing any threat to take the life of, to kidnap, or to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States, the President-elect, the Vice President or other officer next in the order of succession to the office of President of the United States, or the Vice President-elect, or knowingly and willfully otherwise makes any such threat against the President, President-elect, Vice President or other officer next in the order of succession to the office of President, or Vice President-elect, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

Just don't drop those lyrics in the mail any time soon, Lee Harvey.

Criminal or not, family-friendly Valley Fair seems like a rather strange outlet to stage a celebration about assassinating the President. But I guess people were warned:

Daytime entertainment is suitable for guests all of ages. Nighttime entertainment is not recommended for young children.

Middle-aged children and above, come on down and sing along!

Anyone who has had the experience of attending an Ike Reilly concert (as I endured about 5 years ago at the Turf Club) knows this Valley Scare disclaimer was probably more apt:

From the moment guests enter the gates ... over 200 ghosts, goblins, mutants and other strange creatures will be lurking in the fog to scare YOU!

A world of horrifying mazes and shocking scare zones will bring your worst fears and phobias to life ... a place where screams of sheer panic will pierce throughout the Minnesota River Valley.