Bumper Sticker Blight

Bumper stickers can be fun, cool even; especially if you drive a junker.  Why not sass it up with something funny like “Buckle Up. You never know when an Alien might suck you out of your car”?   Hilarious.    Stickers with political jokes are sticky but thought-provoking, favorite countries or towns- fine, sport’s teams- okay.  I even like a good offensive religious jest from time to time.  It’s important not to take our views too seriously, after all.

These car badges are a small glimpse into someone’s personality, their belief system, or better still, their sense of humor.  That being said, I have to draw the line somewhere.  Calvin & Hobbes decals peeing on things aren’t funny- they’re trashy.  And then there’s a personal favorite of mine:   “How’s my driving?  Call 1-800-Eat-Shit”.  Is this the badge of honor you wear proudly for the world to see?

Then there’s a whole other level of stupidity.  I was sitting in drive-thru at Dunkin’ Donuts in the process of buying an iced coffee, (neither my beloved Starbuck’s, nor a local coffee shop could be found for miles), when I saw it.  A rusted white Chevy had two stickers which read:  “Fuck the French” & “Freedom Fries”.   I’m assuming this was put on the guy’s truck during Bush’s era of “Freedom Fries”, which happened to be one of the most embarrassing and idiotic phases in our nation’s recent history.  But seriously, couldn’t he remove it now?

It screams ignorance, a townie mentality, and a complete lack of cultural understanding.  Never mind the fact that fries were invented in Belgium- that’s an entirely different matter.  I haven’t recovered from the fact that this person would display his blatant ignorance and prejudice front-row and center.

Maybe I’m too uptight.  It’s quite possible that I have my own warped sense of humor.  I’m also trying to put aside the fact that I love the French; find their culture fascinating and influential, and their contributions to civilization invaluable.   (Yes, they’re not perfect- DUH)

So I approached this idea from a different angle.  If someone had a sticker on their car that said “Fuck Americans” or “Fuck the British”, or ohhh, ever so hot topic, the Muslims- would I be offended?  The answer is YES.  Absolutely YES!

People, please stop displaying your hatred for others.  Is this what you really want people to know about you in the thirty seconds they sit behind you on the highway?