Desecrated Darwin Fish!

[Bella Fortuna]

http://www.flascience.org/wp/?p=1362

Escalating vandalism at Florida Museum of Natural History

There’s something unsavory, and I dare say cowardly going on behind the Florida Museum of Natural History. The facility located at the University of Florida, Gainesville is a gorgeous one with an entrancing butterfly rainforest exhibit and a Hall of Florida Fossils that a person can easily spend an entire day in alone. I visited the museum with my wife and kids a while ago and we all felt that it was worth the day trip drive. But we didn’t know that a unique predator of sorts had been prowling nearby.

The researchers who work at the museum and the adjoining Bartram-Carr Hall are proud of their work and aren’t shy about letting the world know what they do. They display Darwin Fish emblems on their cars and some even have bumper stickers along the lines of “Smile, you are an ape!” and “Evolution is a fact.” But it’s obvious that someone isn’t amused. Vandals have struck.

It started small. Darwin Fish emblems would be ripped off cars a few times a year. Undeterred, the victims would simply replace them. Then bumper stickers were scraped off. Then notes containing prayers were left on cars. And now the vandal has apparently taken the next step: driving nails into tires. One researcher said she discovered a long nail had been deliberately forced into the side rim of her new tire, destroying it. Another researcher had both front tires ruined by long nails. These incidents all happened in a parking lot behind Bartram-Carr Hall.

[edited to add: There is erroneous information going around that the victims had never reported these incidents to the university police department. In fact, there were multiple reports filed. The latest incident was filed with the police on June 23, 2011. Case report number was 11-1178. ]

So far, there appear to be no leads on who the vandal is, or even how many vandals there may be. Please spread the word about this and if you happen to be in the area be vigilant. Ripping an emblem off a car and leaving notes full of prayers is annoying and wrong, but destroying tires is on another level. And who knows if the vandalism will escalate even further?

Somehow I'm not surprised.

[Gallstones]

"Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 7:12)

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Posted to a few other forums.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

Hasn't CCTV evolved in Florida yet?

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Hasn't CCTV evolved in Florida yet?

There was a serial killer there a few years back. They have video cameras in the toilet stalls.

[Feck]

It would be fun to booby-trap a Darwin fish badge .

[Ian]

Hasn't CCTV evolved in Florida yet?

There was a serial killer there a few years back. They have video cameras in the toilet stalls.

So it's like London now?

[MrFungus420]

http://www.flascience.org/wp/?p=1362

Escalating vandalism at Florida Museum of Natural History

There’s something unsavory, and I dare say cowardly going on behind the Florida Museum of Natural History. The facility located at the University of Florida, Gainesville is a gorgeous one with an entrancing butterfly rainforest exhibit and a Hall of Florida Fossils that a person can easily spend an entire day in alone. I visited the museum with my wife and kids a while ago and we all felt that it was worth the day trip drive. But we didn’t know that a unique predator of sorts had been prowling nearby.

The researchers who work at the museum and the adjoining Bartram-Carr Hall are proud of their work and aren’t shy about letting the world know what they do. They display Darwin Fish emblems on their cars and some even have bumper stickers along the lines of “Smile, you are an ape!” and “Evolution is a fact.” But it’s obvious that someone isn’t amused. Vandals have struck.

It started small. Darwin Fish emblems would be ripped off cars a few times a year. Undeterred, the victims would simply replace them. Then bumper stickers were scraped off. Then notes containing prayers were left on cars. And now the vandal has apparently taken the next step: driving nails into tires. One researcher said she discovered a long nail had been deliberately forced into the side rim of her new tire, destroying it. Another researcher had both front tires ruined by long nails. These incidents all happened in a parking lot behind Bartram-Carr Hall.

[edited to add: There is erroneous information going around that the victims had never reported these incidents to the university police department. In fact, there were multiple reports filed. The latest incident was filed with the police on June 23, 2011. Case report number was 11-1178. ]

So far, there appear to be no leads on who the vandal is, or even how many vandals there may be. Please spread the word about this and if you happen to be in the area be vigilant. Ripping an emblem off a car and leaving notes full of prayers is annoying and wrong, but destroying tires is on another level. And who knows if the vandalism will escalate even further?

Somehow I'm not surprised.

Neither am I.

I've worked at a couple of "Gentlemen's clubs" and there were a few times that we were able to catch parking lot vandals...upstanding Christians all.

Lying for Jesus...vandalism for Jesus...

Anything is acceptable if you do it in the name of Jesus.

[Feck]

Anyone messing with car tyres should be charged with attempted murder .

[Robert_S]

I want to go down there, park, and hide in my trunk so I can catch one of those fuckers.

[Gallstones]

I want to go down there, park, and hide in my trunk so I can catch one of those fuckers.

Uhm fun idea, but this is the wrong time of year to be in a car trunk.
I'm not sure there is ever a good time of year to be in a car trunk.

[Robert_S]

I want to go down there, park, and hide in my trunk so I can catch one of those fuckers.

Uhm fun idea, but this is the wrong time of year to be in a car trunk.
I'm not sure there is ever a good time of year to be in a car trunk.

I won't be able to get down there 'till summer's over anyway.

[Gallstones]

I want to go down there, park, and hide in my trunk so I can catch one of those fuckers.

Uhm fun idea, but this is the wrong time of year to be in a car trunk.
I'm not sure there is ever a good time of year to be in a car trunk.

I won't be able to get down there 'till summer's over anyway.

Winter will be a better time to be in a trunk?
I don't think so.

Hide in the bushes instead.

[Atheist-Lite]

I'm sure it'll all improve with the coming austerity.

[Robert_S]

I want to go down there, park, and hide in my trunk so I can catch one of those fuckers.

Uhm fun idea, but this is the wrong time of year to be in a car trunk.
I'm not sure there is ever a good time of year to be in a car trunk.

I won't be able to get down there 'till summer's over anyway.

Winter will be a better time to be in a trunk?
I don't think so.

Hide in the bushes instead.

Or better yet, a grassy knoll.