[DirkFTW]

Have we gone too far to where civility and unity are impossible after this election?

Not only are we French economically, but now we're freaking Soviets politically. Way to go everyone. I'd rather we ended up with some sort of Machiavellian Prince.

Vandals destroy, deface political signs across Dallas-Fort Worth

01:21 PM CDT on Wednesday, October 1, 2008

By DAN X. McGRAW / The Dallas Morning News
dmcgraw@dallasnews.com

Joseph Paranteau woke up on a recent morning and realized that the John McCain sign on his front lawn was nowhere to be found. In its place stood a Barack Obama sign.

At first, the Plano homeowner thought it was a joke from of one of his friends, but as he looked down the street he knew something was amiss. Dozens of McCain signs on Belgium Drive had disappeared overnight and been replaced with Obama signs. Others were defaced to say “McPain.”
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“The reason it bothered me was the people who did it — whether they be juveniles or adults — tried to take away someone’s political voice,” said Mr. Paranteau, 41, who reported the crime to police. “It saddens me. I would have rather have someone knock on my door and ask me about John McCain.”

Police in North Texas say what happened to Mr. Paranteau is fairly common, particularly during presidential elections. But it’s hard for authorities to quantify the problem or catch the culprits because many people don’t report it.

Jonathan Neerman, the Dallas County Republican Party chairman, recently experienced the issue first hand when someone stole three signs from his front yard. Still, he said he encourages supporters not to bother police.

“Police have other things to worry about,” he said. “We encourage them to get new signs, and we try to take note of the cases so we have anecdotal evidence.”

Political leaders say it’s hard to tell whether there has been an increase in vandalism during this year’s election, but many of them have received dozens of reports in recent weeks.

Money isn’t the issue — McCain signs are free and Obama signs cost $5. But replacing lost signs is both irritating and offensive to many people.

Dan Dodd, chairman of the Collin County Democratic Party, said the public needs to remember that defacing or destroying political signs is against the law. It can lead to a misdemeanor charge of criminal mischief and a fine of up to $500.

“Signs have been defaced on both sides,” Mr. Dodd said. “It is against the law. People should promote their party, not deface the other side.”

Mr. Dodd has drafted a letter to raise awareness about the crime and hopes other political and civic leaders will sign it. He said posting the letter next to political signs might help deter people from destroying them.

Fred Moses, chairman of the Collin County Republican Party, said he knows of at least 30 signs that have been destroyed or defaced recently, but he doesn’t think a letter will make a difference.

Mr. Paranteau has his own solution.

“I set up a motion activated camera, and I am going to put one of my signs out there as bait,” he said. “Maybe it will be a 70-year-old lady.”

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Vehicle defacing in Minnesota



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Vandals Tag 60 Cars with Anti-Obama Messages

By Michael Lang on Jun 29, 2008 in POLITICS

VANDAL -OBAMA1 Vandals, aka, ignorant, racists have come out from the slimy rock they live under to paint 60 cars with derogatory [tag]anti-Obama[/tag] messages. No big surprise as it was just a matter of time that this sort of thing would happen with all of the as*holes in the world.

Police on Sunday were investigating [tag]vandals[/tag]‘ spray-painting of dozens of city vehicles in Orlando Florida, some with disparaging messages about the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.

Authorities think the vandalism to about 60 vehicles, estimated at $10,000 in damage, was done Saturday afternoon, police spokeswoman Sgt. Barbara Jones said.

The vehicles were parked across from City Hall and investigators said culprits tagged messages including "Obama smokes crack" and a racial epithet. What a shocker!

They even left business cards on the vehicles that disparage both the Illinois senator and his rival, Republican John McCain. The cards voice support for Sen. Hillary Clinton, Obama’s former opponent.

Mike Lowe, a videographer working for The Associated Press, first told police about the damage. He saw three cars with anti-Obama VANDAL -OBAMA2messages, while the others were just heavily painted.

Police also found that many of the vehicles had open gas tanks.

Clinton won the Florida Democratic primary, but the contest was held early in violation of party rules. Party leaders initially said the state’s delegates would not be seated as punishment, then eventually agreed to seat half of them at the national convention.

Clinton’s supporters wanted the state’s delegation fully restored. Instead, the compromise pushed Obama toward the nomination.

Vandal Makes Crack at Obama’s Expense
- Anti-Barack Obama vandals spray-painted 60 vehicles last night at Orlando’s city hall — with enlightening and grammatically comments like "Oboma smoke crack" and racial slurs. The… Read more.

Barack Obama SUV Vandalized with Spray Paint
- Barack Obama was not in Orlando, Florida last night, but people in the city were still thinking negative thoughts about him. At Orlando City Hall 60 SUVs were vandalized, and spray painted with comments like "Obama Smokes Crack." …

Vandals target Senators Obama and McCain
- Police on Sunday were investigating vandals’ spray-painting of dozens of city vehicles.

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