Like George Lucas, of late I've been engaged in an epic battle on a planetary address far too close to home--my yard. And the bad guys just broke out the Death Star. And they are at it again!
I'm in Wisconsin--Green Bay, to be exact. I've got 5 political yard signs. For the past three election cycles, I put similar signs on the corner of my lot. I'm in an old Victorian house near downtown, about 2 blocks off Main Street and Broadway. We get our share of car and foot traffic in the neighborhood, which is graced by enormous oak and maple trees and wide sidewalks.
Apparently, I'm upsetting neighborhood republicans, because my yard signs have been stolen twice. Oddly, the last time, the neighborhood prankster left a single sign behind--the one for the local assemblyperson.
I was at a party with him at Democratic HQ last week and told him that somewhere there was a rebublican jerk who liked him, and why I knew this, and he laughed uproariously.
I got all the signs replaced, and on Sunday morning I was awakened by the sound of a nightstick beating on my front door--in fact, it sounded just like a cop's knock (if Law & Order is accurate.) I staggered to the door in my PJs--in October in Wisconsin, they provide more coverage than daywear in the south at any time of year, so modesty wasn't an issue. Sure enough, there was a cop out there.
He tells me it's illegal to have political signs on the corner--it's city terrace land. I figure he's right--but tell him no one's ever said anything before. A neighbor complained, he said. Which is funny, because we've all got democratic signs on our terraces--I'm the neighorhood Obama booster, and I've been effective. I can't imagine who'd complain. I offer to move the signs if he dosn't mind waiting for me to get dressed.
Fine, he says. I get dressed and I head out to move the signs--and discover a mess of camp[agn literature for the Rupublican challenger for my local assembly person's job rolled up in my door handle--and the cop going down the block rousting the rest of my neighbors.
Now I'm pretty sure I know who complained.
Our signs have all been moved away from the streetside now. Although the Republican cluster on the other end of the block remains intact. I could turn them in, but I refuse to play by Rebublican rules of retribution.
But I did make a giant new Obama sign to hang off my balcony. I wonder if the cop will be back, claiming I'm breaking some new neighborhood code?
By now, between the thefts and the cop, I'm working on Sign Wars, volume 4.
The epic adventure continues.
Latest round--My signs for Obama and Kagan were stolen again last night! I concreted them in, as someone on this list suggested, so the rats just ripped the plastic banners off the metal sticks. Any new ideas? I'm putting up new ones tonight.