Peace is now... Satanic!? WTF?

[quamp]

story here

DENVER - A homeowners association in southwestern Colorado has threatened to fine a resident $25 a day until she removes a Christmas wreath with a peace sign that some say is an anti-Iraq war protest or a symbol of Satan.

Since when was peace satanic? Isn't one of Jesus' monkiers the Prince of peace?

Lisa Jensen said she wasn't thinking of the war when she hung the wreath. She said, "Peace is way bigger than not being at war. This is a spiritual thing."

Apparently, they don't want to give peace a chance.

"Now that it has come to this I feel I can't get bullied," she said. "What if they don't like my Santa Claus."

Are we becoming a nation of bigots here? I certainly hope not.

[Guest echtrae]

This is too funny, I was contemplating posting this as well.

Here is a blog entry that I ran across on the same topic.

Colorado Homeowner To Be Fined For Peace-Sign Wreath

[Guest Alien Pirate Pixagi]

People are so STUPID! Where have these people BEEN for the last 40-50 years? People have been waving around peace signs since the Vietnam war, where the hell did these people get a "It's Satanic!" thing from this? Furthurmore, unless it's a hate-symbol, you can put whatever the fuck you want on your door.

[Guest Helluin]

Oh well, the government now arrests and fines people for wearing peace t-shirts, didn't you know?

It's a funny ol' world.

[NightScribe]

Jesus Christ on a pogo stick! WTF???? Uh, hey, guys, when the hell did we start living in a fascist nation? Huh? Huh? (I think it was 2000, how 'bout you?) I sure hope that vet finds a lawyer who'll take his case pro bono, just on principle.

[Guest Alien Pirate Pixagi]

Greeting from the land of doublespeak...

[StoryJunkie]

The subdivision's rules say no signs, billboards or advertising are permitted without the consent of the architectural control committee.

Sorry guys, she should have agreed to the rules before putting that up. If she's part of the community there, she must have had to sign an agreement to keep it in such and such a way. If she signed it, she's liable. Sure reminds me of that old X-Files series/program/show (what's the word I'm looking for?) Imagine now, though, the thoughts going through her mind. ("Wow, 200 people here don't agree with me, that's a lot of negative energy, man") I'd move if I were her. (but only because I'm chickenshit) I wonder if her neighbors even know her? Maybe they've got a grudge against her from somenthing else.

I'm going to go look up the "Satanic" roots of that symbol, and see if there's any foundation to their claim.

The CND or Peace symbol

The CND or Peace symbolThis forked symbol was adopted as its badge by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in Britain, and originally, its use was confined to supporters of that organization. It was later generalised to become an icon of the 1960s anti-war movement, and was also adopted by the counterculture of the time. It was designed and completed February 21, 1958 by Gerald Holtom, a commercial designer and artist in Britain. He had been commissioned by the CND to design a symbol for use at an Easter march to Canterbury Cathedral in protest against the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston in England.

The symbol itself is a combination of the semaphoric signals for the letters "N" and "D," standing for Nuclear Disarmament. In semaphore the letter "N" is formed by a person holding two flags in an upside-down "V," and the letter "D" is formed by holding one flag pointed straight up and the other pointed straight down. These two signals imposed over each other form the shape of the peace symbol. In the original design the lines widened at the edge of the circle.

Semaphore 'N' Semaphore 'D'A conscientious objector who had worked on a farm in Norfolk during the Second World War, Holtom later wrote to Hugh Brock, editor of Peace News, explaining the genesis of his idea in greater depth: "I was in despair. Deep despair. I drew myself: the representative of an individual in despair, with hands palm outstretched outwards and downwards in the manner of Goya’s peasant before the firing squad. I formalised the drawing into a line and put a circle round it." He also mentioned that he had intended its obvious resemblance to the anarchy symbol

Okay, the first thing on the 'google' list was actually some "Christian" site which vociferously claimed that the peace symbol (using the fingers, not what she had on her wall) was used in secret Masonic and witchcrafting events. They used Winston Churchill and Nixon as an example. Oh yeah, I believe, I believe. Sheesh.

And for good measure, here's the symbology behind the Anarchist symbol:

The Circle-A is almost certainly the best-known present-day symbol for anarchy. It is a monogram that consists of the capital letter "A" surrounded by the capital letter "O". The letter "A" is derived from the first letter of "anarchy" or "anarchism" in most European languages and is the same in both Latin and Cyrillic scripts. The "O" stands for order. Together they stand for "Anarchy is Order," the first part of a Proudhon quote.[1]

This character can be written as Unicode codepoint U+24B6: Ⓐ. In addition, the "@" sign or "(A)" can be used to quickly represent the circle-A on a computer.

The Circle-A is almost certainly the best-known present-day symbol for anarchy. It is a monogram that consists of the capital letter "A" surrounded by the capital letter "O". The letter "A" is derived from the first letter of "anarchy" or "anarchism" in most European languages and is the same in both Latin and Cyrillic scripts. The "O" stands for order. Together they stand for "Anarchy is Order," the first part of a Proudhon quote.[1]

This character can be written as Unicode codepoint U+24B6: Ⓐ. In addition, the "@" sign or "(A)" can be used to quickly represent the circle-A on a computer.

[polywolly]

*sigh*

A part of me agrees that she should have considered the rules set by the community board that pertained to the decoration/ornamentation of her property before displaying the peace symbol/satanic wreath. When you move into a neighborhood where you must sign a document declaring that you agree to abide by a specific set of rules, you should prepare yourself for the inevitable moment when the people in charge decide to pull the rulebook out of their collective ass.

This is when we learn how short the grass must be when cut. This is when we learn at what times you can start the lawnmower--(see: Be Quiet, Be Courteous Clause). On Sunday, the lawnmower should be neither seen nor heard. Although your fancy riding mower has a headlight, inhabitants are strictly prohibited from mowing after dark. Add these up and the working folk in the community have 15.25 minutes each week in which to mow their little slice of heaven. Please refer to Section 7, Subsection B, Article iii, Paragraph 2 entitled “Timmy Jones: Why I Should Pay An Eleven Year Old $40 To Scalp My Lawn Once A Week.”

Another part of me says that, as long as she owns that damn door the wreath is attached to, she should tack a sacrificial chicken to the lintel and say damn the consequences. It’s her door and she can do what she wants with it. Paint it plaid if she likes.

SJ, I was reminded of the same X-files episode--was that the word you wanted?--where "bad things" happened to the neighbors who did not follow the rules. And, you know, those rules have a place. They keep those people obsessed with the 3-story inflatable snow globes in check. However, there has to be a limit to the freakishly inane rules. Let’s say, when the house pets start snickering, maybe it’s time to dial it back a bit.

There is a giant--read: life size and illuminated by twelve 1000-watt floodlights--nativity scene across the street from my house. What is to stop me from saying that, to me, it looks like those three wise men brought those gifts in order to distract the parents so that they could steal the Baby Jesus and sell him into prostitution, and by displaying this horrible possibility, they have offended me to no end! Nothing, except the thought of sounding like an idiot.

I think the poor, persecuted peace sign person should go around her neighborhood with a bullhorn and shout, "Hey, Masters of Misinterpretation, your icicle lights are pissing me off!"

*sigh*

Since everyone’s crazy these days, it’s just a matter of who has more crazy. If you squint at them, the crazy kind of glows. Okay everyone, let’s all squint at the crazy people.

[StoryJunkie]

SJ, I was reminded of the same X-files episode--was that the word you wanted?--where "bad things" happened to the neighbors who did not follow the rules. And, you know, those rules have a place. They keep those people obsessed with the 3-story inflatable snow globes in check. However, there has to be a limit to the freakishly inane rules. Let’s say, when the house pets start snickering, maybe it’s time to dial it back a bit.

Yes! YEs!! Oh, my sanity has returned!

[Guest echtrae]

For me, the kicker is this passage.

Kearns ordered the committee to require Jensen to remove the wreath, but members refused after concluding that it was merely a seasonal symbol that didn't say anything. Kearns fired all five committee members.

Teh guy didn't get his way, so he decided to change things so he could.

[polywolly]

Teh guy didn't get his way, so he decided to change things so he could.

Isn't that "The American Way"?

[Guest echtrae]

I've always ascribed to the concept that when you agree to a set of rules, you do what you can to comply with them. If you don't like the rules, you do what you can to have them changed. But I suppose that's why I don't fit too well all the time in American society.

[WotanAnubis]

Since when was peace satanic? Isn't one of Jesus' monkiers the Prince of peace?

Apparently, they don't want to give peace a chance.

Of course peace is Satanic. Nothing could possibly be worse, really.

You see, the world is more or less destined to get worse and worse and worse and worse. Wars, plagues, pollution, famine and so on will tear the world apart. And then the Rapture will occur.

This is all according to God's plan, by the way.

So having more wars, more plagues, more famine, more death is a Good Thing (and therefore peace, vaccines and adequate food supplies are all Bad Things going against God's plan), because that means the End Times are coming and Jesus will soon make His glorious reappearing and establish his 1,000-year Kingdom.

And I really wish I was making this stuff up, but I'm not. Apparently, there are people out there who really believe this.

So that's why the peace symbol is Satanic. According to some people.

[Guest Alien Pirate Pixagi]

Of course peace is Satanic. Nothing could possibly be worse, really.

You see, the world is more or less destined to get worse and worse and worse and worse. Wars, plagues, pollution, famine and so on will tear the world apart. And then the Rapture will occur.

This is all according to God's plan, by the way.

So having more wars, more plagues, more famine, more death is a Good Thing (and therefore peace, vaccines and adequate food supplies are all Bad Things going against God's plan), because that means the End Times are coming and Jesus will soon make His glorious reappearing and establish his 1,000-year Kingdom.

And I really wish I was making this stuff up, but I'm not. Apparently, there are people out there who really believe this.

So that's why the peace symbol is Satanic. According to some people.

[Oishiichan]

I think a lot of you missed the part where the guy fired the committee so he could have his way. The original committee set up to decide these things did not view the wreath as a sign or offensive but as a holiday decoration.

If they are going to start banning peace signs because they resemble the Anarchy symbols, will they start banning the Baha'i and Jewish stars because they resemble pentagrams as well? The guy in charge is forcing his own religious views and personal beliefs on an entire neighborhood going so far as to fire those who set down the rules to get his own way.

This is not the woman breaking her contract, this is someone else trying to change it. He had to use a rule on the contract stating the Christmas wreath was a sign, when under most neighborhood contracts those items fall under holiday symbols. He is construing the rules for his own agenda.

[Guest echtrae]

Thank you Oishiichan, that is exactly the point I was trying to get across.

[AmyMcClair]

You know, she could possibly sue under these circumstances for 1st Amendment infringement, because the guy went out of his way to make it so that what she did would be construed as breaking the contract. Of course, in the American justice system her options are limited to small claims court or paying out the nose to file in a court that will probably dismiss her claim as petty.

I have learned, by living in another country, that America's rules are most flexible and it is a damn good place to live. However, sometimes, the rules make it nearly impossible for some people to experience the same rights and freedoms as others. The effort to make everything fair eventually backfires and someone has to lose. Unfortunately, I think this poor wreath woman is one of those losers. It sucks.

[Guest Big Samurai]

The air in Colorado is rather thin, apparently. A lack of oxygen in the brain can cause stupidity.

[AmyMcClair]

I don't know if it was lack of oxygen or just the lack of a brain.

[WotanAnubis]

I don't know if it was lack of oxygen or just the lack of a brain.

I think that's probably something of a chicken-and-egg situation, isn't it?

[quamp]

I'm thinking it's more of a "I'll swallow anything they'll tell me because I believe them because they're in charge and they wouldn't lie to me, right?" These people should take a refresher course in 1970's history, beginning with Watergate. They may be too young to remember these times - I only vaguely recall them myself - but they should never be forgotten. Also give them a lesson in 1980's history with the Iran-Contra affair.