SEMPER ‘FIE’: Julius Spohn, outraged by the gross Santa display...ripped it down, but later apologized. Photo: Rick Dembow
Posted on 12/19/2005 4:32:33 AM PST by Liz
SEMPER ‘FIE’: Julius Spohn, outraged by the gross Santa display...ripped it down, but later apologized. Photo: Rick Dembow
A former Marine took a stab at saving the Christmas spirit yesterday — knocking over a bloody, knife-wielding Santa that was part of a controversial display outside a Manhattan home.
Julius Spohn, 64, of Newark, said he had read about the display in The Post and wanted to see the macabre scene in front of the East 18th Street brownstone belonging to Joel Krupnik and Mildred Castellanos.
Curious after seeing it, he opened the gate, walked into the small front yard and knocked down the "Bad Santa." "I think it's atrocious," said Spohn of the display..............
Krupnik has said he erected the sickening Christmas display in protest against the commercialization of the holiday.
But Spohn called it "an insult to people on this block, to the community in general."
.....Krupnik's 16-year-old daughter, Darla, was inside the tony brownstone — and confronted Spohn. When she demanded to know what he was doing, Spohn said he replied, "I'm ripping this piece of garbage down."
Darla called the police.
"Somebody taking [Santa's head] off and his body down — that's creepy," Darla said later. Darla said the entire display — which she claimed is welcomed by most people — will go back up. The family is even discussing next year's display, she said, which may include one of Santa's elf helpers driving a hammer down on another elf's severed noggin.
On Saturday, the family hung a new doll head on the tree after the original head was stolen last week by a Brooklyn group calling itself The 7th Avenue Boys for a Merry Christmas.
Spohn said.....the display wasn't considered the sort of freedom he was protecting while serving in the military, he added.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
From the article:
Krupnik has said he erected the sickening Christmas display in protest against the commercialization of the holiday.
Sounds to me like they are making a valid point in a non-conformist way.
Hate-filled?
I think not.
I don't think anyone wants to open that can of worms -- especially since the ultimate extenstion of that idea is complete legal chaos.
At any rate, the basic notion of "inflammatory speech" stops at the property line, and this guy had no business trespassing and destroying someone's personal property to make his point.
Oh, ok.
We are not protected from the repercussions of hate speech.
These people are anarchists- that is what motivates people to do these kinds of things.
"Fair enough. As long as you're charged with first-degree pomposity, Bill."
Actually Bill is right on the money. If this former Marine was caught on MY yard destroying anything, He probably would need medical treatment.
Just last week we were excoriating a Jewish women in North Carolina who was "outraged" over a Christian sign at a McDonald's. The vast majority of us sided with the McDonald's owner. In my opinion, this is the same thing. That is the homeowner's right of free speech. We can be outraged but we do not have the right to destroy his property. If we are to have credibility, we should strive for consistency. Pomposity? If you think so that is your right, but you cannot damage me or my property over it.
I would imagine they have seen worse things on TV or at the movies.
This is harassment, hate speech, nothing more. It is meant to anger and hurt people.
IT is meant to frighten children and inflame their parents.
And when our society gives an OK to things worse than Hollywood could invent we are in sad shape.
I believe that while it was trespassing and destruction of property and should be subject to law, he did the right thing.
I don't necessarily think though he should be prosecuted. if anything, give 'em both d.c. tickets--IMHO, if he didn't do it, someone else eventually would have. Plus, it's not like Julius saw a brownhouse and vandalized it. That would be trespass and destruction of property. He walked through a gate and put the display on the ground.
If these Nutts were able to hang their gory display back up, folks, did he really destroy any property? IMHO, not at all.
However, free speech is not absolute, and Uncle Joel here needs to learn that. Speech that is hateful, gruesome, obscene, or depicts something clearly beyond poor taste is generally held NOT to be protected speech.
What Joel should have realized is that by displaying such a perverted display, he'd be instigating his own problem. It's a lot like yanking the dog's ears and tail until he bites you, then trying to have the dog put down because he bit you.
Having a beef about Christmas is his own can of worms. If that's what this Scrooge thinks, fine. While I'm sorry he believes it, that's his problem to deal with, not mine. But setting up a grisly fake murder of Santa Claus in public sight is a different case entirely.
Especially when this Moonbat's teenage daughter came up with the idea. That's what makes it even more disturbing.
And I thought "conservatives" were against hate-speech legislation.
Try to keep to the topic at hand if you can.
I guess vigilante justice is more to your liking.
If you don't like the laws that protect property owners from vandalism, work to get them changed, instead of encouraging lawlessness.
I find it interesting that you do not support their property rights.
LOL> Ok ,now I know who I am dealing with. It has been fun (*rolling eyes*) to say the least. I would like to add: Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy New Year. ;]
And a happy Festivus holiday season to you as well.
I know it's from Seinfeld, but what's Festivus?
LOL> Be careful- your agenda is showing.. ;]
A Fesivus...for the rest of us.
It was a holiday made up by Frank Costanza when George was a little boy.
It consisted of a Fesivus pole, and "airing of grievances" and "feats of strength"
I think it was a protest of the commercialization of Christmas, much in the same way as this family in the article is doing.
Nope...no agenda...just looking for a fight.
Seriously...Merry Christmas to you and yours!
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