Next Time, Use Spray Paint

Next Time, Use Spray Paint

They won't put so much energy into finding you. From the August 13, 2009 Orlando Sentinel:

CLERMONT - Clermont police have interviewed one suspect who is admitting to putting up the dozens of posters pasted around the city depicting President Obama as the Joker character from the Batman film The Dark Knight, city officials confirmed.

Assistant City Manager Darren Gray said city officials have an individual "admitting to putting up 500" of the posters.

Clermont Police Capt. Eric Jensen said the male individual has admitted to putting up some signs, but investigators suspect others were involved and their investigation is continuing.

"We have talked to an individual," Jensen said. "He only admitted to some of it...We're still tracking down leads and talking to folks. We have not arrested anybody."

At this point officials are not sure how much damage was caused by the signs or the dollar amount associated with the clean-up.

Dozens of the posters were pasted around the city earlier this week. A pair of the posters were pasted to a Clermont Post Office collection box. They prompted the postmaster to contact the Postal Inspector's office, which is looking at potential federal crimes for defacing federal property.

City officials, meanwhile, are trying to determine what local crimes might be associated with the posting of the images on public and private properties. They've also been busy ripping down the sticky signs because they're a violation of city ordinance regarding illegal signs.

Yes, this is illegal. But if they had been spray painting gang tags, instead of a funny, but not terribly thoughtful attack on Obama, would there have been an "investigation"? Of course not. Unless the police actually caught someone in the act, it would have been ignored.

Now, I don't think much of this poster as political commentary. (As humor, it is quite well done.) But you could make a case that putting up these posters is a form of protected free speech--at least as much as burning an American flag. I'm not expecting the ACLU to come to the defense of these jokers putting up these Jokers, however.