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Believe it or not, some gaggle of idiots is trying to drum up support for the idea that since the Statue of Liberty was given to us by the French, we should send it back.
(Maybe it’s just one person. Anent which, I can’t tell whether the Josh Wander who created the site is the same guy who writes for the Jerusalem Post.)
Whoever it is, the campaign is abysmally stupid. Liberty fries, liberty poodles, liberty ticklers, good; Statue of Liberty, not good? How can anyone care this much about symbols while having so little sense of them? (via a comment in Space Waitress)
i thought that about the flag burning amendment folks as well.
Since most of the western United States was bought from the French, maybe we should send it back, too. (Of course, our refund would only be worth about $180 million at today's prices, but with all these tax cuts, we need to take what we can get.)
Looking at the signatures, I find myself no longer worried.
In addition to the xenophobia, there's an abuse of language issue here:
I'm sick and tired of people sticking "Liberty," "Patriot," and "Freedom" on any goddamn thing.
I mean, jeeze, the current security crackdown has been labeled "Operation Liberty Shield."
Cripes for dumb. I suppose war protesters will soon be restrained with "Liberty Shackles" or somesuch rot.
Well, according to the GiveItBack.net web site, "[the] Statue of Liberty... is one of the most universal symbols of political freedom and democracy... Now it is time to give it back!"
That statement could be taken in two ways. Frankly, I've said the same myself. Since we obviously aren't interested in freedom and democracy any more, we might as well send the Statue of Liberty back to someplace that still cares about those principles.
Of course, the line "Boycott the French & Contact Chirac" on the same page rather argues that their intended interpretation is not the same as mine...
I love the mix of comments, some are serious, some think this is a satire. . .
"this is the funniest satire . . .this is a satire, right?"
I can't tell if it's serious or a satire, either. However, the online petition site (a third-party) is no longer showing who signed anything, so I can't tell what prompted Jon's remark...
Much of the American public seems not to understand symbols. Particularly the difference between symbols and the actual thing symbollized.
MKK
According to the TV news item mentioned on their site (maybe it wasn't there when you looked) this Josh Wander is from White Oak, Pennsylvania, a small town southeast of Pittsburgh (it's on the county line between Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, and only a couple of miles from where I grew up). And he seems to be more or less serious, but at least not about sending the Statue back! He tells WTAE-TV (Channel 4 to people from our neck of the woods):
"Most people think it's a crazy idea and it is, I admit. But this crazy idea is necessary at this point in order to give such a strong response to France," he said.
Actually, I don't think we should give it back -- I think France should come and take it back. The ideals the Statue of Liberty symbolizes have been categorically rejected by the ruling party of this country, and if I were Chirac, I'd *insist* that the US return or destroy the Statue, rather that letting it stand while mocking and trampling over everything the Statue stood for.
Ad for drugs.
My, vioxx, haven't we been a busy bee. A search on Google reveals 53 hits for one of the phrases in your post. And it's all badly mangled.
Spam killed; spammer banned from Making Light and Electrolight. Thanks for the heads-up.