Atheist Billboard Defaced by God

It seems that billboards are becoming fashionable again.  We’ve seen billboards attacking Bush and Obama, celebrating the dedication and sacrifice by our troops, and promoting various social issues over the past few years.  So when a billboard in Charlotte, NC promoting a secular organization, it was within the trend of recent political messages as of late.  Unfortunately, someone felt that the message on the billboard wasn’t complete.

The billboard in question reads “One Nation Indivisible” which is a reference to the Pledge of Allegiance prior to 1954.  After that, two words were added to the Pledge that created a controversy that continues today.  Those two words are “under God.”  Someone felt it was their responsibility to climb up the billboard and, using black spray paint, insert these two words into the phrase.  And while they might be correct, they are wrong.

I don’t care who you are or what your positions are on the issues, but vandalizing private property is wrong.  There could be a picture of Bush made up like the Devil or Obama looking like Hitler, both of which are distasteful and offensive.  However, you are no more in the right for going of there with a can of paint to deface the images than the person who paid to display the ad on the billboard.

It is my hope that the person responsible for this act steps forward and apologizes for their actions and offers to make amends.  I doubt that the secular organization behind the ad would want cash for damages, as their message has now made national news.  In addition, they have become “the victim,” making it seem that their First Amendment rights were being infringed upon because their message runs contrary to the generally accepted position.  May this serve as a lesson to everyone out there who feel that defacing personal property is OK.  Just put yourself in their shoes and see how you like it.