# Arkansas sets them up, some guy takes them down **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 28, 2017, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056 "2017-06-28T15:25:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2017, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/21 "2017-06-28T23:30:58Z")
You’d think God would have protected the monument better. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/22 "2017-06-29T03:54:39Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > What is–the world’s least popular bumper sticker, Alex? 😃 Just for that, I’m having a gross custom printed! ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/23 "2017-06-29T04:18:26Z")
You’re cracking me up, **Darren**. Was just going to quote one post, but you have too many good one-liners today. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/24 "2017-06-29T11:35:06Z")
Creating and displaying the monument violates my personal religious belief. I have to power to remove it. Just like the guy who put it up, because he was motivated by a religious belief to do so. It’s a simple, old-fashioned standoff, to see which individual’s religious belief is to hold sway, and both exercised the power they are in possession of. The only reason there is a law against one of them and not the other just reflects which one has predecessors who had the power to enact laws to support their own religious principles. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/25 "2017-06-29T11:40:11Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > /me is relieved to see that the guy [isn’t on](http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2017/06/28/a-christian-man-vandalized-the-ten-commandments-monument-at-the-arkansas-capitol/) TeamAtheist. Some of the comments below the article are highly amusing; most notably > [@](#): > > “Sorry officer, Jesus took the wheel.” ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/26 "2017-06-29T11:45:09Z")
The most interesting part of the story lies with the construction of the monument itself. The designer and creator took the trouble to make it exactly 2,721 kilograms, which comes within one pound of being exactly 6,000 pounds. That by itself would be a more interesting feature, than the ultimate drama that surrounded the fateful day of its display. The way he whittled it down to meet those exacting specs. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/27 "2017-06-29T13:55:26Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > Creating and displaying the monument violates my personal religious belief. I have to power to remove it. Just like the guy who put it up, because he was motivated by a religious belief to do so. It’s a simple, old-fashioned standoff, to see which individual’s religious belief is to hold sway, and both exercised the power they are in possession of. The guy has the right to get it removed. He doesn’t have the right to destroy someone else’s property. As you indicate, it could have been placed somewhere else, where people can admire its construction without the state endorsing a religion. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/28 "2017-06-29T15:43:35Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > The guy has the right to get it removed. He doesn’t have the right to destroy someone else’s property. As you indicate, it could have been placed somewhere else, where people can admire its construction without the state endorsing a religion. The installer and the remover were both wielding the only power available to them in order to enforce their spiritual convictions. The fact that the two forms of exerting power were not mechanically analogous doesn’t diminish the fact that both were exercising power. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/29 "2017-06-29T16:49:50Z")
I think we’ve all broken a commandment or two in our time. Although 10 at once seems rather extreme. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/30 "2017-06-29T18:25:39Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Probably [this guy](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+32%3A19%2CExodus+32%3A20&version=KJV). Nah, [this guy.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXeTsWGPT0w) ---
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/31 "2017-06-29T22:41:25Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > I think we’ve all broken a commandment or two in our time. Although 10 at once seems rather extreme. Y’know… That sounds like a Purity Test challenge… –G! ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/32 "2017-06-29T22:45:00Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > The installer and the remover were both wielding the only power available to them in order to enforce their spiritual convictions. The fact that the two forms of exerting power were not mechanically analogous doesn’t diminish the fact that both were exercising power. How easily you excuse terror tactics. You do not have the right to use violence to destroy public edifices unless you own them. We have a legal system you may take advantage of in these situations. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/33 "2017-06-29T23:02:45Z")
Reed was arraigned today. One crazy mf. Talking over his attorney. Talking to the judge He pulled the same crap in OK. [https://www.google.com/amp/amp.arkansasonline.com/news/2017/jun/29/accused-ten-commandments-destroyer-interrupts-judg/](https://www.google.com/amp/amp.arkansasonline.com/news/2017/jun/29/accused-ten-commandments-destroyer-interrupts-judg/) > [@](#): > > Public defender Peggy Egan told the judge there may be some “mental health concerns” regarding Reed. She asked Gruber not to consider similar allegations against Reed in a different state before she requested a $10,000 bond. > > Reed was previously accused of destroying a Ten Commandments monument in Oklahoma in a similar fashion, after which he was hospitalized for mental evaluation and treatment, according to the Tulsa World. > > As Egan was speaking, Reed continued to interrupt her. Only snippets of what he said could be heard inside the courtroom. Gruber told Reed not to make any remarks that could be used against him at a later date. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/34 "2017-06-29T23:08:45Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > How easily you excuse terror tactics. You do not have the right to use violence to destroy public edifices unless you own them. We have a legal system you may take advantage of in these situations. Are these really terror tactics? I mean, if a guy wants to destroy stuff _for the sake of_ destroying stuff, that seems different from destroying stuff to terrify folks. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/35 "2017-06-29T23:19:48Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Are these really terror tactics? I mean, if a guy wants to destroy stuff _for the sake of_ destroying stuff, that seems different from destroying stuff to terrify folks. I define terror as the use of violence in the pursuit of a political or religious cause. He had plenty of other ways to express his displeasure at the statue short of destroying it. Its really low level terror but terror nonetheless imo. > [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Are these really terror tactics? I mean, if a guy wants to destroy stuff _for the sake of_ destroying stuff, that seems different from destroying stuff to terrify folks. I define terror as the use of violence in the pursuit of a political or religious cause. He had plenty of other ways to express his displeasure at the statue short of destroying it. Its really low level terror but terror nonetheless imo. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/36 "2017-06-29T23:33:45Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Reed was arraigned today. One crazy mf. Talking over his attorney. Talking to the judge > … Well good for him, the crazy bastard, that it was his one brief flash of lucidity that brought him fame. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2017, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/37 "2017-06-29T23:42:50Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > How easily you excuse terror tactics. You do not have the right to use violence to destroy public edifices unless you own them. We have a legal system you may take advantage of in these situations. Pretty sure he is playing Baphomet’s Attorney. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2017, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/38 "2017-07-01T22:53:36Z")
I’m surprised a Dodge Dart could knock over that much stone. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2017, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/39 "2017-07-01T23:00:38Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > I’m surprised a Dodge Dart could knock over that much stone. Probably got 'em from [Design Toscano.](https://www.designtoscano.com/product/ten+commandments+sculptural+tablet+-+db43010.do?sortby=ourPicks&refType=&from=Search) > [@](#): > > Celebrate the text that has withstood the test of time—the words Moses brought down from Mount Sinai. Our faux stone tablet is both historic and inspiring, and makes a defining statement in your home or garden. **Cast in quality designer resin** exclusively for Design Toscano, the scripture is written in English on one side and an ancient Hebrew dialect on the other. **Sand can be placed in the base for extra ballast.** > See alternate views for detail of Hebrew Side. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2017, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056/40 "2017-07-01T23:57:30Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Smashing his car into stone tablets? Repeatedly? How does his auto insurance company react to this? Most likely, he doesn’t have insurance. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arkansas-sets-them-up-some-guy-takes-them-down/790056.md?page=1)