RSS FeedComfort Vs. Litter
Walking around Friday night we noticed each of the grass-filled barriers around the FBI building contained mini booklets of bible versus. We’ve written about litter in the PQ before, probably will again, but this time it’s touchier. How to condemn littering without condemning the message of the litterer?
This is not a complaint against the Bible, Christians, or any god loving people. Some of us, some of our family, and some of our best friends are any/all of the above. But does the message excuse the litter? If these pamphlets produced comfort for some, does that make the littering ok?
The distributor of these mini pamphlets is not identified (the “complements of” section on the inside cover was not filled out). They were printed by Sowers of Seed, Inc out of Fort Worth, TX (whom you can contact for extra copies). Our preference would have been to contact the person/organization who left these pamphlets in our neighborhood to ask them about any litter concerns they may have had.
We know that not everyone sees littering as a big deal. You could certainly argue that there are bigger issues that need to be addressed. But don’t these little things add up, and impact our everyday lives in a big way?
If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
Comments
Not only are the religious pamphlets litter, the security “planters” they were dropped in around the FBI building are an eyesore, as well. It’s time they were replaced by more low-key security barricades, or if there really are truck bombers lurking around every corner, the FBI should decamp for a secure compound on the outskirts of town, and allow this central site to be redeveloped.
It’s litter and no different from posters wheat-glued to lampposts or election signs: the poster is responsible for removing it. If they don’t, they’re subject to a fine.
But good luck enforcing anti-litter laws in DC. It is to laugh.
I agree with Mr. T. Let’s ship the FBI on out of here. Maybe park them next to their friends in Langley. We have the DC branch of the FBI in PQ as well (on 4th). They can hold down the fort and we can tear down the Hoover building and put something else in that actually fits the neighborhood. No more planter boxes for litter to get stuck in.
Actually, see this story from the Post last week–the departure of the Hoover building might not be as far off as you might think.
I agree with Mr. T. The planters in front of the FBI and other buildings are an eyesore. I think they were meant to be temporary, but have ended up being permanent.
Why would you want to move the FBI building out of downtown? Its a permanent fixture here and should be downtown, remember it was here before you yuppies moved into the neighborhood! The primary purpose of the District is for federal government departments and agencies to be centrally located. I think its ridiculous that Chip Akridge, a private developer, is the head of the National Mall Trust….too much confict of interest issues here.
agreed….the FBI needs to decamp for points suburban.
and i don’t care what the message is….it’s litter. they could be $100 bills for all i care, they don’t belong on the ground or in planters.
also, just a question….can you set things up so comments can be subscribed to, either by email or RSS? seems most blogs have that functionality these days.
The chances of 1/8 of the major projects in that planning report ever taking place are slim to none-sorry folks, but brutalism is here to stay in downtown.
IMGoph: You can subscribe to comments here.
It’s on the sidebar at the very bottom and we realize it’s not the best placement.
Litter is litter. And,I also think that the planters are an eyesore. I have been campaigning to get more flowers and flower baskets in our neighborhood. If those planters had flowers in them, they may not look so bad. Please, tell everyone that will listen that we need more flowers in the neighborhood.
While we’re beautifying the FBI grounds any chance they’ll stop parking their vehicles in the bike lane along E St?
the FBI building on Penn Ave could be used by another less “security intensive” federal or city agency that wouldn’t mind having some ground level retail. that’s what totally kills that block…no retail + no restaurants + no FBI tours = no street life. make no mistake…the discussion isn’t about yuppiedom…it’s about swapping out a real urbanscape dead zone for some street life.
I, for one, would enjoy a tour of the FBI building but I think those days are now long gone. to quote the tours page on fbi.gov, “The FBI Tour is presently closed. No date has been set for its reopening. In the meantime, please learn all about the FBI on this website.” the most fun I’ll have and the closest I’ll get is to visit the Kids Page on fbi.gov.
as much as I’m glad they keep tabs on federal threats and they expand police presence in our ‘hood, I’m sure the FBI would be able to find space in another part of the District that works.
The FBI Building isn’t going anywhere, it has been and will remain a fixture in PQ for years to come. Not only can they “not afford it” it would be a logistical nightmare to move everyone and everything, then secure the building for destruction. The fact that there’s constant construction going on around the building should be a hint. As for the Cars in the bike lane, they’re not going anywhere either for quite sometime. I would guess they’ll be left there until the city finishes its construction on 10th and Penn, and they can be moved back to their regular location. Lastly, have you ever noticed the construction of the building on Pennsylvania Ave? You’re looking at a new Visitor Center being built.
When the FBI building was constructed, they wiped out 100 small retail businesses, destroyed dozens of attractive, historic buildings, and even closed off part of the street grid to make a super-block. Talk about a logistical nightmare! It’s just a matter of erasing the mistakes of the past and restoring a huge tract at the very center of the city into a vibrant, inviting mixed-use area. The FBI building was folly from the beginning, brutalist hubris at its worst, and though it may prove tough to demolish, it can be done.
The original plan for the building was to have ground-level retail, but J. Edgar Hoover killed that idea for “security reasons.” Sound familiar?
The FBI needs salvation, because they have bungled so many cases in recent history. This includes their shameful harassment of Dr. Steven Hatfill in the anthrax mailings since 2002, because they had no leads at all.
Not a problem, though; then-attorney general John Ashcroft simply declared Hatfill a “person of interest,” then sicced the sorry FBI on him, depriving him of many rights as a U.S. citizen.
Just think if the FBI had instead concentrated on smoking out all of the traitors in their own midst who sold out our country for money. Some of these guys went on for year and years, selling out every conceivable secret they could. Meanwhile, the FBI merrily trailed Dr. Harfill, “protecting” our country from an innocent citizen.
We should all put religious pamphlets in their planters. They need it; it’s their only chance.
Liter is liter. It’s tacky, wasteful, and fairly useless as evangelism technique if that is what one is after.
The FBI Building is just plain ugly. I would mind seeing it replaced with something nicer. The FBI Washington Field Office, while not exciting is not so blatantly ugly. However, probably not very likely to happen anytime soon. Money being a fairly big reason.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
The message of the litter and the intent of the litterer are immaterial. This is no different than any other trash and should be removed.