The Goat is upon us!

[Maniakkid25]

Congratuations, everyone! This year has finally neared the end, and now, it's the most wonderful time of the year! Gather your flaming arrows and ready your santa outfits, because the Gävlebocken is upon us!

...What's that? Y-you don't know what the Gävlebocken is? Oh, you are missing out on a treat!

So, in the Swedish town of Gävle (pronounced "yev-lay"), they have an interesting Christmas tradition. In the center of town, they erect a gigantic goat scupture made of straw. It's actually prettt neat, and you can see pictures of it on its twitter page. It's a tradition that stretches back over fifty years, in fact.

And every year, the citizenry bands together to try to set it on fire.

Yes, you read that right. Arson as a christmas tradition! In what can only be described as a Monty Python sketch made manifest, there are a myriad of ways this goat has been destroyed. You can watch the goat for yourself here, assuming they haven't DDoS'd the webcams again before burning it down. Believe it or not, if it survives the year, it will be the first time the goat has ever survived 4 years in a row. Last year was the first time it survived 3!

This year has been pretty crap, all things considered, so I hope this silliness has brightened your day up a little bit.

[queenzelda]

I am a huge fan of the animated Disney series, Phineas and Ferb & this town sounds like someplace that Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz might have walked through on his way out of his homeland of Drusselstein. XD

[Moonface]

They try to burn it down? What's stopping them exactly? Is it designed to just be very fire retardant or are there goat worshippers that fight for its survival?

@"Christmas Queen": I haven't watched that show but would Heinz have a way to destroy that goat? XD

[Maniakkid25]

Both, actually. They've attempted multiple times to fireproof the goat; it has burned down every time. They now settle for keeping it under armed guard 24/7 with cameras, K-9s, and enough security to make a President envious. Also, when fires do start, the local fire brigade is only a few minutes away; one year the goat survived after 3 attempts to burn it down.

[Moonface]

So is it supposed to be burned down or did people just try it one day and turned it into a tradition of trying to beat the security? I'm so puzzled. XD

[Maniakkid25]

No, it's not supposed to be burned down; again, it's ARSON to burn it down, and Arson is a crime. It's just, for whatever reason, people see this 10+ meter goat and say "it must BURN!"

[Moonface]

They should just give them a goat they can burn down to satisfy them.

[Mr EliteL]

I heard of this but forgot about it, so I didn't realise the goat has managed to survive for the past three Decembers now. Ah yes, Tom Scott informed me. His video on the 2016 one, spoiler alert a few hours after filming the video, the goat was burned down. Amazing they've kept it up, but perhaps frustration from this year someone may have the plan of attempting the inevitable.

[ShiraNoMai]

I'm unsure whether or not it should be a telling sign or realistic sign of 2020's shitiness on whether the citizens decide to go over the top with this year or completely ignore it. I'm not sure what side to vote for, though the destructive part of me hopes it's the former

[Moonface]

I could see this year encouraging them to try harder because of not wanting something else not going great for 2020. The only issue is whether social distancing is going to be ignored to achieve their goal.

[Maniakkid25]

Well, there's always the "dress up as santa and fire a flaming arrow at it." Which is what happened in 2005.

[Moonface]

Well, there's always the "dress up as santa and fire a flaming arrow at it." Which is what happened in 2005.

Is that their craziest way to burn down the goat out of all their attempts?

[Maniakkid25]

No; two guys tried to steal the goat with a helicopter once. Also, the goat had been burned down before it has officially been displayed at least once in the time this has been going on.

[Moonface]

I'm just picturing some guy dropping from a helicopter like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible trying to grab the goat.

I think @Mr EliteL should go over there and try to steal it with his monster truck.

[Mr EliteL]

Dang, I'll need a bigger truck....or just a flatbed trailer.

Has it been burned down yet before I make the steal though *checks*, hmm a 20 hour ago update could still mean something happened in the 20 hours. Otherwise it's still there.