What a reader saw today, and why it gave her hope
Sophia A. writes:
Business took me to a part of town I rarely go to. On the side of a bus shelter, I saw an offensive ad for a television show called “Hung.” I do not have cable, but I’ve heard of the show. The name leaves little to the imagination.
It so happens I saw this ad in my part of town, and I was disgusted by it. But I did nothing except get disgusted and shrug my shoulders. A little more public space ruined. Add it to all the other little outrages we have to endure.
But in this part of town, someone didn’t put up with it. He wrote with an indelible black marking pen in large letters the following:
IMMORAL. INAPPROPRIATE FOR PUBLIC SPACE. SHOULD NOT BE NEAR A SCHOOL.
(There is indeed a school two blocks south of this bus shelter. Even before I passed the bus shelter I noticed a lot of school aged kids about.)
I rejoiced in reading those words. I suggest that we all start to fight back in little ways. I don’t know if I have the guts to deface a repulsive ad and I do realize that it’s technically illegal, but I am considering it.
Here is an example of what each of us can do. A few weeks ago, in my local library, a bunch of free papers were available in the lobby. The paper was called “Gay Parent.” I looked at it—it was full of advertisements for egg and sperm donation, law offices to facilitate “gay adoption,” and so on. I was disgusted but what could I do? I just didn’t know what to do and at the time my motivation to object creatively wasn’t as high as it is now.
If it were now, I’d have taken the entire bunch of papers, and thrown them in the nearest garbage can.
Let’s get creative. We must stop putting up with the pollution of our public space.
I am strongly considering buying myself an indelible marking pen.
LA replies:
Those ads for “Hung” are all over town.
I noticed them in particular the day I went to the 9/11 demonstration.
I thought about that ad while hearing patriotic speakers at the Spencer/Geller demo repeatedly and unqualifiedly praise “freedom” as the thing threatened by Islam. Is the freedom to have ads for “Hung” pasted at bus stops all over the city the “freedom” that we stand for against the “unfreedom” of Islam?
It is this kind of mindless acceptance of systematic decadence and this deep unthoughtfulness on the part of even the most “conservative” and “patriotic” among us that makes me doubt that we have our act together enough to survive and prevail.
September 27
LA writes:
See follow-up to this entry here.
Posted by Lawrence Auster at September 26, 2011 07:27 PM | Send