Political Yard Sign Wars Wage as Election Nears

Published on October 20, 2004 By blogic In Politics

There's been lot's of JoeUser buzz about dirty tricks, as we near the election. Tempers are high, and I think we'll all be relieved when the election has passed. And I guess any following fights between the parties regarding recounts, hanging chads, voter intimidation, and voting of the dead.

Mrs. blogic's parents live in Pennsylvania, and have had their Kerry signs stolen several times. We've traveled to PA several times, mainly to register voters, and the excitement there is palpable. The political ads are constant in PA, but in NYC we were shocked when we finally saw an ad, last week: Chuck Schumer ran a Senate spot. Does anyone even know the name of his opponent?

I gather this is also happening on the other side, which is no surprise. I've never claimed Democratic zealots are any less nuts than Republican ones. Does anyone really think that stealing these signs will affect the election? Then again, why put up the signs in the first place? I can't imagine they make any real difference. Maybe it's all irrational.

Anyway, Reuters has a good piece on this:

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Reuters) - Two weeks before a tight U.S. presidential election, tension among bitterly divided voters is translating into a barrage of attacks on political targets that can't talk back - yard signs.

[snip]

"I was outraged," said Lis Ross of Fairway, Kansas, whose "Kansans for Kerry" sign disappeared last week. "What made it worse was that they replaced it with a Bush-Cheney sign. I ran out there and ripped it into little pieces."

[snip]

In Ohio, two men were reportedly caught on videotape urinating on a Bush-Cheney sign, and in Madison, Wisconsin, someone burned a swastika into a lawn with a Bush sign.

Some people are working overtime to protect their signs. Mark Shemet of Jaffrey, New Hampshire, has had to replace two stolen Kerry signs in the last week alone. Pennsylvania Democrats have threatened to spread itching powder on signs to keep the opposition at bay, and an Illinois family last week covered their yard sign with petroleum jelly to repel thieves.

Comments (Page 1)

sandy2

on Oct 20, 2004

My yard signs were stolen 3 times. I ended up tying it down. I think they realized I wasn't going to give up, and that I had a stock pile of them. My next step was to buy a fake video camera for $20.. put it up and put up a sign saying warning video security systems are active... and also a note saying the police had been contacted (which they had).

philomedy

on Oct 20, 2004

While I have not had any experience with signs being stolen, I have noticed the Bush/Cheney signs are oppressively huge. Plant life behind these things is dying because they block all the light. Hmm, maybe there's a metaphor there. Anyways, it just seems like the Republican Party's gotten desperate since they lost the debates. Like they think, at least our signs are bigger. That'll swing undecideds.

blogic

on Oct 20, 2004

Sandy2: that was smart with the fake video camera and warning. Air America Radio was talking about how that had to be some way to boobytrap signs, to make the thief regret his or her action.

Philomedy: I hadn't noticed that the Bush/Cheney signs were any larger -- I'll pay attention to that the next time Mrs blogic and I go to PA.

The NY Times had a short piece on the layout of the Bush/Cheney logo vs the Kerry/Edwards logo. The graphic designer preferred the Bush signs, and I have to admit I agree. I mean, the Kerry logo is fine, and I never would have thought about it if I hadn't read the article, but the Bush logo is cleaner and more modern looking.

InfoGeek

on Oct 20, 2004

It was probably rhetorical but:

Shumer's opponents:

Howard Mills - Republican

Marilyn O'Grady - Conservative

Donald Silberger - Libertarian

IG

sandy2

on Oct 20, 2004

The NY Times had a short piece on the layout of the Bush/Cheney logo vs the Kerry/Edwards logo. The graphic designer preferred the Bush signs, and I have to admit I agree. I mean, the Kerry logo is fine, and I never would have thought about it if I hadn't read the article, but the Bush logo is cleaner and more modern looking.

Honestly I liked the original John Kerry signs, the blue ones with white text from before John Edwards. That was clean and slick.

blogic

on Oct 20, 2004

You mean this one?

sandy2

on Oct 20, 2004

yeah yeah that one. I like that one. I have his signature on the back of one of those.

blogic

on Oct 20, 2004

This is the current Kerry/Edwards logo:

And this is the Bush/Cheney one:

Like I said, I like the Bush one more.

philomedy

on Oct 21, 2004

Perhaps the Bush/Cheney signs being larger are specific to Illinois. Most of the Kerry/Edwards signs I've seen are also a split endorsement for Barack Obama, who is perhaps the fastest rising Democrat in recent history. Maybe this has something to do with it. If I was a Republican, I'd be wary of putting a split endorsement for Alan Keyes on the Bush/Cheney signs too, considering Mr. Keyes is a raving lunatic.

blogic

on Oct 21, 2004

Yeah, I was reading through Free Republic today, and even they don't want to get near Keyes with a ten foot pole.

Mitch21

on Oct 21, 2004

Plant life behind these things is dying because they block all the light.

which is.....

Anyways, it just seems like the Republican Party's gotten desperate since they lost the debates.

yet Bush is still ahead in the election, which matters more?

at least our signs are bigger

this has nothing to do with anything.... there are no standards for signs, and if someone wants to buy a bigger one whose to stop them? You can go buy a huge Kerry sign if you're that worried about it.

blogic

on Oct 21, 2004

Hi Mitch21,

I think you're taking the topic more seriously than we were.

"yet Bush is still ahead in the election, which matters more?"

As I said, I think this discussion is a light one. But according to the national polls coming out right now, Kerry and Bush are basically tied, and the electoral vote count sites seem to show the same thing. Of course, those number fluctuate a lot, and I'm not saying Bush couldn't still win in a landslide.

Mitch21

on Oct 21, 2004

I think you're taking the topic more seriously than we were.

uhhh sorry?

blogic

on Oct 21, 2004

Oh, it was no problem. I rarely have a problem with a coversation going in a new direction.

Grim Xiozan

on Oct 22, 2004

Bet my Badnarik sign is bigger than your Kerry or Bush sign!!

- Grim X

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