Regarding the OP, I’ve always tried to have stickers on my car that represent some of the things I enjoy in my life:
[ul][li]Queer issues (usually just the rainbow flag, also a pink triangle hanging from my rearview mirror)[/li][li]Two-stepping (once had a rainbow boot, also the ASGRA logo)[/li][li]The SCA (shield w/“SCA” on it)[/li][li]Unitarian Universalism (the chalice)[/li][li]Scotland (had a sticker of the flag)[/ul][/li]
Never had anything negative happen (but then, I hang out/park next to other queers, two-steppers, SCAdians, UUs and Scots). In fact, the SCA sticker and the queer stuff have gotten me friendly honks (mostly from lesbians). I know I always notice rainbow stickers.
I will say, however, that overtly conservative bumper stickers piss me off - Icthus, “pro-life,” Republican, etc. Turns my stomach. Gut reaction. I promise I don’t run into them on purpose, though.
Most annoying bumper sticker I ever saw: “You’d smile, too, if you were going to heaven.” :mad: Sanctimonious son of a… carpenter.
I gotta get me down to Democratic HQ and get a Gore/Lieberman sticker to make me feel better. Must be like a smoker on the patch… “Aaaaaah…”
I don’t think it’s “in your face” at all. I think it’s a praise issue – recognition for kids who do well in school. Lord knows, the way the country looks like it’s about to pick the dummy for president, we need some sort of recognition for smart kids!
True, but just because someone’s on the Honor Role doesn’t always mean they’re smart or successful. I myself struggled to get there and only made it three times…I’m not stupid, but I’m learning disabled, and in my school, there was a real stigma about it.
Regarding the honor student stickers, my feelings are mixed. Praise is very motivating to all people when it is heartfelt and comes from the right people, but I would hope people might carefully consider the possibilities before putting these stickers on their cars. F’rinstance, what about the sibling who doesn’t quite measure up to the honor roll, but still has to look at that sticker every day? Or what about the kid who barely manages honor roll, and feels enormous pressure to measure up to that damn sticker every time afterward? Or who never gets there again after one great semester? Oh I’m not saying that any of this would be terribly traumatic. But still, the sticker, meant to be an attaboy, something to encourage kids to do well and show your pride in them, could easily end up having a discouraging effect instead.
I have always wanted to make little stickers of screws. That way when someone has a “I heart my poodle” bumpersticker, I’d put the screw over the heart.
That’s probably unfair. I don’t choose to have any religious identification on my car, but like the nice person said above, the Jesus fish means “Jesus, son of God, Savior.” You’d be surprised how many moderate and liberal folks also believe Jesus is the son of God and the savior (not to mention Catholic Libertarian types like me…who knows, even Unitarian Universalists might have a nice thing to say every once in a while about Jesus). Now, they may or may not choose to put the fish on their cars, but I’m not sure it’s immediately a dead giveaway that one is overtly conservative because his or her car bears a Jesus fish.
As an evolutionist, the Darwin fish annoys me because it’s bad science and makes a connection that is not logical (Christians=creationists). However, I do find a way to get on with my life when I see one.
All I’ve got is a Harry Browne for President sticker (and as far as I can tell, I’m the only person in St. Louis to have one).
Yup - lots of Christian UU’s. It’s a totally visceral thing; sadly, when I meet a Christian, I assume we’re not in agreement on social issues until proven otherwise. Fine, call me jaded, I can live with it.
I’ve only defaced someone’s bumper sticker once, and it was an act of sweet, delicious revenge.
I had a rainbow-flag/pink-triangle sticker on my car. One day i found it half-torn off. When I found out who had done it, I changed his “RAPTURE” bumper sticker to “RUPTURE.” (I’m an artist, so I did a real good job.)
The guy didn’t notice it till someone brought it to his attention. I bet it got a few laughs in the meantime.
After I attended the Libertarian national convention in Chicago 3 elections ago or so, I put an “I Support the Bill of Rights” bumper sticker on my car.
You wouldn’t believe the questions I got about something so simple.
“What does that mean?”
“Everything?”
“Even the 2nd Amendment?”
Jeez, people, was this so difficult to understand?
Well David, considering the arguments we have around here about just what the Bill of Rights entails, I can understand that some folks might wonder at what statement you are trying to make. That statement could be construed as being for or against gun control, for or against abortion rights, for or against the banning of schools posting the Ten Commandments, and probably a host of other political and social issues.
Maybe people just want more clarification of why you posted it because the statement is so broad.
I’m tempted to get a Darwin fish for my car, but I have one small nitpick about them: By displaying a symbol representing evolution in place of a religios symbol and invoking the name of Darwin in place of Jesus, you run the risk of reinforcing the notion that evolution and science are a competing religious belief system and that Darwin is a false prophet.
But how about those bumper stickers that say, “God said it, I believe it, that settles it.” What these people seem to be saying is, “I really enjoy pissing people off with my closed-mindedness, but I don’t get to do it often enough, so I’m taking it to the streets”.
What I’d really like to get is a bumper sticker that says:
I don’t care much one way or the other about the fish/darwin fish symbols–
but I do hate car tags that say “Jesus” Seems more than a little disrespectful to me to plaster God’s name on a car that is subject to dirt, traffic, bird poop and even being smashed in a car crash!
The ones that make me a little queasy are the downright nasty ones about your college’s major rival–Like Friends don’t let friends go to Chapel Hill, Go to Hell Ole Miss, Don’t tell your mama you go to Penn State, etc. I’d prefer to just be FOR something. I like alumni bumper stickers that just say your college name or University of Georgia Mom or Go Cornhuskers.
I always wanted a My child is an honor student at X Elementary–but never got one (boo hoo). Now that she is an honor student in high school–they don’t give them out
