Our Lady of the Underpass, part 2

[emw]

Looking some more, now I'm sad it's gone. Clearly it was a picture, not of the Virgin Mary, but of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Look at it. See - it's a Jedi. See the beard? Use the picture below for reference.

Hey, any way to get those geeks out of the movie line so I can get a ticket, I'm game for. Nice one.

 

[stubeeef]

I think I see obi on your car! I hate obi, I shouldn't have to look at an obi, obi makes me insane! I must de-obi you and your vehicle! Black paint should do, btw I am homeless and pennyless.

 

[MongoTheGeek]

Looks like an ad for The Vagina Monologues.

Thank you for that distressing bit of visual imagery. I don't think I will ever be able to look at a catholic church the same way. On those lines I wonder how Dan Brown missed that amazing bit of symbolism in the Da Vinci Code.

 

[leekohler]

I am in no way rejecting their beliefs, nor am I condoning the actions of the person who painted over the stain.

But what if I see the Virgin Mary in an asphalt patch on I-90? Should I expect the police to barricade off a lane for me so that I can stare at it? What about providing escorts to people who want to cross traffic to get over there?

What if I saw Satan in that patch? Or some other religious icon? Or of a non-mainstream religion? Would the state have done the same thing, or would they have kicked me out and told me to go home?

Exactly! That is my point. This has been going on for a month- enough is enough.

And Stubeeef- I think memorials to rock stars are just as silly.

Would I have painted over Our lady of the Underpass? Probably not.

 

[stubeeef]

And Stubeef- I think memorials to rock stars are just as silly.

OK for you rappers, the ones still dead anyway!

Please don't miss understand my feelings here. I understand the silly-ness of this but silly things go on everywhere everyday all day. Some are harmless or nearly so.
If you are for traffic relief then maybe the LA solution is for you? Traffic is way down on the freeways as of late you know.
I can make allowances for people who are harmless, who want "good" it is the "know it alls" that want to negate everything that drive me wild.

 

[emw]

I think I see obi on your car! I hate obi, I shouldn't have to look at an obi, obi makes me insane! I must de-obi you and your vehicle! Black paint should do, btw I am homeless and pennyless.

Easy, tiger (can I say that, or will TigerDirect sue me?). Anyway, none of us - or at least only a few - have supported the defacing of the, um, stain. I think the guy should be fined just the same as if he had scrawled something anywhere else.

 

[jsw]

Thank you for that distressing bit of visual imagery. I don't think I will ever be able to look at a catholic church the same way. On those lines I wonder how Dan Brown missed that amazing bit of symbolism in the Da Vinci Code.

Sorry! I wasn't referring to all Virgin Mary images... just this one, which clearly could be interpreted as more than just an image of the Virgin Mary. I can't look at it without, at a minimum, seeing a beard - that is, when I look at it as something other than a salt deposit.

 

[stubeeef]

Easy, tiger (can I say that, or will TigerDirect sue me?). Anyway, none of us - or at least only a few - have supported the defacing of the, um, stain. I think the guy should be fined just the same as if he had scrawled something anywhere else.

I know, just being silly, sorry it did not come through, better stop here for awhile.

 

[leekohler]

OK for you rappers, the ones still dead anyway!

Please don't miss understand my feelings here. I understand the silly-ness of this but silly things go on everywhere everyday all day. Some are harmless or nearly so.
If you are for traffic relief then maybe the LA solution is for you? Traffic is way down on the freeways as of late you know.
I can make allowances for people who are harmless, who want "good" it is the "know it alls" that what to negate everything that drive me wild.

I hear you- people can do what they want. That's fine.

But the next time I feel like taking me and my friends for a picnic in the middle of the street because, well really, all property belongs to the people right? I hope that the police would protect us and you would support it.

Silly right? I think so. The point is I don't care what people believe, so long as it's within reason and doesn't try to directly affect others' lives.

 

[MongoTheGeek]

Sorry! I wasn't referring to all Virgin Mary images... just this one, which clearly could be interpreted as more than just an image of the Virgin Mary. I can't look at it without, at a minimum, seeing a beard - that is, when I look at it as something other than a salt deposit.

Yeah but with concealed arms and flowing robes tapering to the bottom and the color contrasted center with the hooded head above...

Good thing most Mary's are dressed in blue. Then again that must be what Kirk woke up to in the morning...

 

[Hemingray]

Finally, someone had the balls to put this ludicrousness to rest!

I'd personally throw in a couple bucks to help with this guy's fine. I'm sure a lot of others out there would too.

 

[stubeeef]

I hear you- people can do what they want. That's fine.

But the next time I feel like taking me and my friends for a picnic in the middle of the street because, well really, all property belongs to the people right? I hope that the police would protect us and you would support it.

Silly right? I think so. The point is I don't care what people believe, so long as it's within reason and doesn't try to directly affect others' lives.

If you believe in mid-freeway picnics and are willing to risk it for the few hours till the police (read-mental health authorities) come to your rescue, then go for it. The majority of these people were off the road, atleast at first, it was the "on-looker" drivers that started some of this. It is why police put up screens at accidents now, and medians are getting taller (blinders).
I didn't say "people can do what they want." I was saying I could make allowances for people that are harmless but wanting "good".

 

[FoxyKaye]

That is what no one here gets, they weren't praying TO a salt stain, they were praying TO God, and to the Virgin Mary. The stain made them think about someone important to them.
Like I pointed out in the previous post, becareful which destroyers you cheeron, for the next sighting might be on your house.

Let them pray to whomever they want, just don't do it in the middle of a freeway. And please, before we talk about burning down people's houses, lets remember that the only legitimate charge against the guy who spraypained over the stain is defacing public property. Maybe Chicago should ask everyone who held up traffic over the past few weeks to pay for the additional costs to the Police and Traffic departments for staffing and partitioning off the stain so no-one got killed standing in traffic?

The issue I saw was that the state (in the form of police, barricades, traffic control, etc.) took it upon themselves to disrupt the lives of others (those wanting to use the underpass for that it was created) in favor of the relative few who wanted to pray to this vision.

Uh huh, I don't care if those wackos were Catholics, Baptists, or any other flavor of the cult of Christianity. The point here is that because it was a Christian thing that somehow the whole world had to stand still and witness. I highly doubt there would have been nearly the same hooplah if this were related to any other religion. Its the holier-than-thou theocratic Christian America that thinks it is entitled to this country's laws and social programs that allows this kind of crap to happen. This is a tiny, tiny example of a much larger iceberg - hasn't anyone else noticed how suddenly emboldened the entire Christian cult has become in this country?

 

[leekohler]

If you believe in mid-freeway picnics and are willing to risk it for the few hours till the police (read-mental health authorities) come to your rescue, then go for it. The majority of these people were off the road, atleast at first, it was the "on-looker" drivers that started some of this. It is why police put up screens at accidents now, and medians are getting taller (blinders).
I didn't say "people can do what they want." I was saying I could make allowances for people that are harmless but wanting "good".

Ok- but do you really think it's acceptable for this to go on for a month? Do you seriously think the police would make that allowance for any other "harmless", "good" group? I don't think they would.

 

[leekohler]

Let them pray to whomever they want, just don't do it in the middle of a freeway. And please, before we talk about burning down people's houses, lets remember that the only legitimate charge against the guy who spraypained over the stain is defacing public property. Maybe Chicago should ask everyone who held up traffic over the past few weeks to pay for the additional costs to the Police and Traffic departments for staffing and partitioning off the stain so no-one got killed standing in traffic?



Uh huh, I don't care if those wackos were Catholics, Baptists, or any other flavor of the cult of Christianity. The point here is that because it was a Christian thing that somehow the whole world had to stand still and witness. I highly doubt there would have been nearly the same hooplah if this were related to any other religion. Its the holier-than-thou theocratic Christian America that thinks it is entitled to this country's laws and social programs that allows this kind of crap to happen. This is a tiny, tiny example of a much larger iceberg - hasn't anyone else noticed how suddenly emboldened the entire Christian cult has become in this country?

I really need to work on my communication skills. You made my point so much better than I did. What if this was a Muslim symbol on the freeway? I can guarantee you no gathering would last long if that were the case.

 

[emw]

I really need to work on my communication skills. You made my point so much better than I did. What if this was a Muslim symbol on the freeway? I can guarantee you no gathering would last long if that were the case.

Do you really think you'd see Muslims out there doing stuff like this? Perhaps I'm ignorant, but I don't read much about other religions (beyond Christians) that do this sort of thing.

 

[MongoTheGeek]

I really need to work on my communication skills. You made my point so much better than I did. What if this was a Muslim symbol on the freeway? I can guarantee you no gathering would last long if that were the case.

Personally I want to see people set up a shrine around something that looks like Lenin. We'll have red candles and soviet flags and little cups of Vodka.

 

[jayscheuerle]

Do you really think you'd see Muslims out there doing stuff like this? Perhaps I'm ignorant, but I don't read much about other religions (beyond Christians) that do this sort of thing.

I don't think any physical representations of Allah or Mohammed are allowed in Islam, so this particular kind of sighting would not be possible.

 

[FoxyKaye]

Personally I want to see people set up a shrine around something that looks like Lenin. We'll have red candles and soviet flags and little cups of Vodka.

Stoli, of course!

 

[rainman::|:|]

yeah, no other religion would have gotten away with it, although most other religions wouldn't even try...

i've been having fantasies about taking a firefighter's hose to the stain... would have been fun.

If this guy was defacing the wall, then so were all the people that left candles/ribbons/paintings of mary/etc. hell! maybe this guy was just adding his own to the "tribute site".

 

[emw]

yeah, no other religion would have gotten away with it, although most other religions wouldn't even try...

i've been having fantasies about taking a firefighter's hose to the stain... would have been fun.

If this guy was defacing the wall, then so were all the people that left candles/ribbons/paintings of mary/etc. hell! maybe this guy was just adding his own to the "tribute site".

Quite true - I hadn't though about that, but there were a number of other "scribblings" on the wall. Bring 'em all in!

 

[MongoTheGeek]

I don't think any physical representations of Allah or Mohammed are allowed in Islam, so this particular kind of sighting would not be possible.

I agree with you there. From what I have heard physical representation of people/Allah are forbidden in Islam. Like some conservative christian groups who shun all symbols (even to not displaying crosses) because it smacks of idolatry. Things like this even helped cause the reformation.

You might get a similar Muslim response if the text of the Koran and the name of Allah appeared spontaneously.

 

[leekohler]

Do you really think you'd see Muslims out there doing stuff like this? Perhaps I'm ignorant, but I don't read much about other religions (beyond Christians) that do this sort of thing.

I don't think so-but shouldn't they be able to if these people are? And if they did, would they be able to? I seriously doubt it.

 

[stubeeef]

Ok- but do you really think it's acceptable for this to go on for a month? Do you seriously think the police would make that allowance for any other "harmless", "good" group? I don't think they would.

I don't know why it went on as long as it did. As I thought too, it was pretty silly to me. I just wasn't happy with the ending, the "solution" was a bit unacceptable, and rejoicing in others folly isn't very nice. That's all.

 

[leekohler]

I don't know why it went on as long as it did. As I thought too, it was pretty silly to me. I just wasn't happy with the ending, the "solution" was a bit unacceptable, and rejoicing in others folly isn't very nice. That's all.

What "solution" would you propose?