This page contains a single entry from the blog posted on October 12, 2006 11:38 AM.
The previous post in this blog was That's more like it.
The next post in this blog is One out of 10.
Many more can be found on the main index page or by looking through the archives.
I still say three cheers for the man. I hope he'll continue to get out there with his paint and cover up the mess left in our public places by mentally ill people who think they're artists. Maybe he can do it by the city's rules, and maybe he has to take matters into his own hands sometime, but he's doing us all a service, and long may he keep it up.
Just don't engage the cockroaches in a discussion. They'll come by and see their handiwork gone, and that's message enough.
And keep taking the "before" photos, and send them to the city's graffiti abatement officer, Marcia Dennis. When they bust one of these people (and they do from time to time), a record of their "portfolio" will do wonders for their prosecution.
Comments (18)
well said.
the trick is to make tagging BORING. this guy was doing the community a service in the short run. but at the same time, he was making it more FUN for the kids ("lets piss off old man beige squares").
having respect for the artists in that movie would involve you appreciating an art form invented after 1975. i know not to ask for that much out of life!
OK, grafitti/tagging may be an art or dumb or whatever, but only acceptable if it is done on the 'artists' own property. They have no right to deface (decorate?) on property that does not belong to them. That act makes them criminals. When they buy their own homes, warehouses, garages or whatever, they can have at it. In the meantime, they have no more right than I have to steal someone elses's property.
Have an art show, but knock it off on someone else's property!
No kidding. I would support setting up some kind of system wherein some of these people could paint their murals legally. We ought to try to tap the energy and talent of the best of them. But most of the handiwork is empty vandalism, and it's all illegal. Jail or treatment is what these folks need.
And George, gee whiz, I think blogging qualifies as an art form, and it's a 21st Century thing. But taggers are mentally ill.
Calling tagging a mental illness is ridiculous. It certainly shows either a lack of respect or an active disrespect for other people's property rights, but that is not a mental illness. It may show lack of talent, in some cases, but that is not a mental illness either.
Perhaps it is the (admittedly rare) cases where the works are beautiful murals, and they show a bit of genius with a spray can that tagging could be considered a mental illness.
Sorry, but I've got to side with those who don't agree with the "mental illness" comments you've made. Really uncalled for, however much you despise vandalism.
If I may be devil's advocate for a second, as I have no strong opinion favoring either side of the issue:
If it's not your property that's been vandalized, but you paint over it anyway without the owner's knowledge or permission, aren't you also a vandal? For all you know, the owner prefers the graffiti to an unsolicited, perhaps imperfect cover up job.
Unlike the PC police on this thread, I agree the taggers are mentally ill. I simply submit the whimsical musing that perhaps the unsolicited tagbuster suffers from a similar illness.
Charamba, Douro 2008
Horse Heaven Hills, Cabernet 2010
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills Pinot Grigio 2011
Avignonesi, Montepulciano 2004
Lorelle, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2011
Villa Antinori, Toscana 2007
Mercedes Eguren, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Lorelle, Columbia Valley Cabernet 2011
Purple Moon, Merlot 2011
Purple Moon, Chardonnnay 2011
Abacela, Vintner's Blend No. 12
Opula Red Blend 2010
Liberte, Pinot Noir 2010
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Indian Wells Red Blend 2010
Woodbridge, Chardonnay 2011
King Estate, Pinot Noir 2011
Famille Perrin, Cotes du Rhone Villages 2010
Columbia Crest, Les Chevaux Red 2010
14 Hands, Hot to Trot White Blend
Familia Bianchi, Malbec 2009
Terrapin Cellars, Pinot Gris 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2009
Campo Viejo, Rioja, Termpranillo 2010
Ravenswood, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2010
Waterbrook, Reserve Merlot 2009
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills, Pinot Grigio 2011
Tarantas, Rose
Chateau Lajarre, Bordeaux 2009
La Vielle Ferme, Rose 2011
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio 2011
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir 2009
Lello, Douro Tinto 2009
Quinson Fils, Cotes de Provence Rose 2011
Anindor, Pinot Gris 2010
Buenas Ondas, Syrah Rose 2010
Les Fiefs d'Anglars, Malbec 2009
14 Hands, Pinot Gris 2011
Conundrum 2012
Condes de Albarei, Albariño 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2007
Penelope Sanchez, Garnacha Syrah 2010
Canoe Ridge, Merlot 2007
Atalaya do Mar, Godello 2010
Vega Montan, Mencia
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir, Marlborough 2009
Portuga, Rose 2011
Revelation, Chardonnay, Pays d'Oc 2010
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 2005
Monte Alto, Tinto Reserva 2005
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Cabernet, Indian Wells 2009
Espiral, Vinho Rose
Vin-Koru, Pinot Gris 2011
14 Hands, Hot to Trot Red 2009
Rodney Strong, Cabernet, Sonoma 2009
Abacela, Vintner's Blend #11
Portuga, White 2010
La Bourgeoisie, Red 2009
Januik, Red 2009
Three Rivers, River's Red 2008
Kirkland, Alexander Valley Merlot 2008
Muga, Rioja Rose 2010
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2009
Mauro Molino, Barbera d'Alba 2009
Garda Chiaretto Rose
Columbia Crest, Two Vines Vineyard 10 White
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Pinot Gris, Columbia Valley 2009
L'Hortus, Rose de Saignee 2010
Maculan, Pino & Toi 2008
McKinley Springs, Bombing Range Red 2008
Trader Joe's Pinot Gris 2009
Montes Alpha, Cabernet 2007
Gran Sasso, Sangiovese, Terre di Chieti 2009
Garda, Classico Chiaretto Rose
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 1999
Picos del Montgo, Tempranillo 2008
Chateau de Montmirail, Vacqueyras 2008
La Granja 360, Syrah 2009
Montgras, Carmenere Reserva 2009
Lange, Pinot Gris 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet 2008
Kirkland, Pinot Grigio 2010
Trader Joe's Coastal Syrah 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Merlot 2008
Trader Joe's Coastal Chardonnay 2009
Vieux Papes Red
Domaine de l'Aujardiere, Chardonnay 2009
Santa Rita, Cabernet, Medalla Real 2007
Penfold's, Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet 2008
Guild, Red, Lot #02 2008
Dievole, Dievolino Sangiovese 2008
Laforet, Burgogne Chardonnay 2009
Columbia Winery, Merlot 2007
Bonterra, Cabernet 2008
Elk Cove, Pinot Gris 2009
Maquis Lien 2006
Scott Paul, Pinot Noir, Le Paulee 2007
The Occasional Book
Neil Young - Waging Heavy Peace
Mark Bego - Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul (2012 ed.)
Jenny Lawson - Let's Pretend This Never Happened
J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey
Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol
Timothy Egan - The Big Burn
Deborah Eisenberg - Transactions in a Foreign Currency
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. - Slaughterhouse Five
Kathryn Lance - Pandora's Genes
Cheryl Strayed - Wild
Fyodor Dostoyevsky - The Brothers Karamazov
Jack London - The House of Pride, and Other Tales of Hawaii
Jack Walker - The Extraordinary Rendition of Vincent Dellamaria
Colum McCann - Let the Great World Spin
Niccolò Machiavelli - The Prince
Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird
Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus - The Nanny Diaries
Brian Selznick - The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Sharon Creech - Walk Two Moons
Keith Richards - Life
F. Sionil Jose - Dusk
Natalie Babbitt - Tuck Everlasting
Justin Halpern - S#*t My Dad Says
Mark Herrmann - The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law
Barry Glassner - The Gospel of Food
Phil Stanford - The Peyton-Allan Files
Jesse Katz - The Opposite Field
Evelyn Waugh - Brideshead Revisited
J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
David Sedaris - Holidays on Ice
Donald Miller - A Million Miles in a Thousand Years
Mitch Albom - Have a Little Faith
C.S. Lewis - The Magician's Nephew
F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
William Shakespeare - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Ivan Doig - Bucking the Sun
Penda Diakité - I Lost My Tooth in Africa
Grace Lin - The Year of the Rat
Oscar Hijuelos - Mr. Ives' Christmas
Madeline L'Engle - A Wrinkle in Time
Steven Hart - The Last Three Miles
David Sedaris - Me Talk Pretty One Day
Karen Armstrong - The Spiral Staircase
Charles Larson - The Portland Murders
Adrian Wojnarowski - The Miracle of St. Anthony
William H. Colby - Long Goodbye
Steven D. Stark - Meet the Beatles
Phil Stanford - Portland Confidential
Rick Moody - Garden State
Jonathan Schwartz - All in Good Time
David Sedaris - Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
Anthony Holden - Big Deal
Robert J. Spitzer - The Spirit of Leadership
James McManus - Positively Fifth Street
Jeff Noon - Vurt
Road Work
Miles run year to date: 21
At this date last year: 52
Total run in 2012: 129
In 2011: 113
In 2010: 125
In 2009: 67
In 2008: 28
In 2007: 113
In 2006: 100
In 2005: 149
In 2004: 204
In 2003: 269
Comments (18)
well said.
the trick is to make tagging BORING. this guy was doing the community a service in the short run. but at the same time, he was making it more FUN for the kids ("lets piss off old man beige squares").
Posted by george | October 12, 2006 1:40 PM
Hey not well said - retract your comment about "mess left in our public places by mentally ill people who think they're artists."
Not true, not witty, not okay. Not for people with mental illness and not for artists.
Posted by Jason Renaud | October 12, 2006 2:31 PM
Not well said - retract your comment about "mess left in our public places by mentally ill people who think they're artists."
Not true, not witty, not okay. Not for people with mental illness and not for artists.
Posted by Jason Renaud | October 12, 2006 2:32 PM
I've got to side with Mr. Renaud on that phrasing.
Posted by ellie | October 12, 2006 2:40 PM
No. Graffiti tagging is a mental illness.
Posted by Jack Bog | October 12, 2006 2:56 PM
yea, actually, i meant just part of it is well said.
the vast majority of tagging in portland right now is freakin dumb. but graffiti is a pretty important form of art from a historical perspective.
its one of the foundations of hip hop culture, and is a powerful expression of inner city life in the 70's and 80's.
i dare anyone to watch Style Wars (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0177262/) and not come away with respect for those kids.
Posted by george | October 12, 2006 5:05 PM
I have none. Get a life.
Posted by Jack Bog | October 12, 2006 5:36 PM
having respect for the artists in that movie would involve you appreciating an art form invented after 1975. i know not to ask for that much out of life!
Posted by george | October 12, 2006 8:00 PM
OK, grafitti/tagging may be an art or dumb or whatever, but only acceptable if it is done on the 'artists' own property. They have no right to deface (decorate?) on property that does not belong to them. That act makes them criminals. When they buy their own homes, warehouses, garages or whatever, they can have at it. In the meantime, they have no more right than I have to steal someone elses's property.
Have an art show, but knock it off on someone else's property!
Posted by Portland Is Crazy | October 12, 2006 8:57 PM
No kidding. I would support setting up some kind of system wherein some of these people could paint their murals legally. We ought to try to tap the energy and talent of the best of them. But most of the handiwork is empty vandalism, and it's all illegal. Jail or treatment is what these folks need.
And George, gee whiz, I think blogging qualifies as an art form, and it's a 21st Century thing. But taggers are mentally ill.
Posted by Jack Bog | October 12, 2006 10:21 PM
Story this AM that the police are looking for this guy.
It is SO nice to know that ALL other crime in the city has been solved and put down that our cops have NOTHING better to do then look for this guy!
Guess that means it will also be standing room only at the local donut shops....given the cops have nothing else to do.....
Bad Cop | No Donut
Posted by thaddeus | October 13, 2006 9:38 AM
blogging as an art form is pushing it a bit, but yea, i agree it qualifies.
however, looking to the column on the right there you gotta admit, it looks like someone enjoyed music in their youth and just FROZE.
and really- Style Wars is a great documentary. everyone should check it out.
Posted by george | October 13, 2006 9:43 AM
Persistent comments about me, my age and my musical taste?
It's been fun having you here, but you are gone.
Posted by Jack Bog | October 13, 2006 9:54 AM
How is graffiti tagging a mental illness?
Posted by ellie | October 13, 2006 10:44 AM
Calling tagging a mental illness is ridiculous. It certainly shows either a lack of respect or an active disrespect for other people's property rights, but that is not a mental illness. It may show lack of talent, in some cases, but that is not a mental illness either.
Perhaps it is the (admittedly rare) cases where the works are beautiful murals, and they show a bit of genius with a spray can that tagging could be considered a mental illness.
Posted by Kevin | October 13, 2006 4:22 PM
Sorry, but I've got to side with those who don't agree with the "mental illness" comments you've made. Really uncalled for, however much you despise vandalism.
Posted by Silver Fox | October 13, 2006 4:37 PM
If you need to creep around in the middle of the night spray painting on other people's property, you are mentally ill.
Posted by Jack Bog | October 13, 2006 6:17 PM
If I may be devil's advocate for a second, as I have no strong opinion favoring either side of the issue:
If it's not your property that's been vandalized, but you paint over it anyway without the owner's knowledge or permission, aren't you also a vandal? For all you know, the owner prefers the graffiti to an unsolicited, perhaps imperfect cover up job.
Unlike the PC police on this thread, I agree the taggers are mentally ill. I simply submit the whimsical musing that perhaps the unsolicited tagbuster suffers from a similar illness.
Have a great weekend!
Posted by Sam | October 13, 2006 11:16 PM