Confessions of a Lawn Sign Stealer

The Patriot Room ^ | October 31, 2008 | Bill Dupray

[Bill Dupray]

Okay. It's time to play a little pile-on-the-jackass. This smug sonofabitch is a professor who admits to stealing lawn signs. His name is PHIL BUSSE.

Self-described Thief and Tresspasser, PHIL BUSSE

Highway 19 is a busy six-mile stretch of meandering road that links to main interstate artery in southeast Minnesota. More interestingly, the road connects rural, and often conservative, Minnesota to the liberal college town of Northfield. Rolling through pumpkin patches and apple orchids, the highway is postcard beautiful. This summer and autumn it was speckled with McCain signs, their cobalt blue squarely set against the gold and red of fall foliage.

By early October, however, there were no McCain-Palin campaign signs on the eastbound stretch of Highway 19. It wasn't because loyalties had switched, but because I pulled them out.

And that goes for the oversized 4 x 8 foot mini-billboard in front of the ranch-style farm house. It barely fit in the back of my Subaru. But I carted it away with seven other lawn signs that, like a ninja under the cover of cloudy Minnesota night, I "removed."

By the way, Doofus, it's an apple orchard, not an apple orchid.

Anyway, where might we find this guy, PHIL BUSSE?

He tells us in the article that he is a visiting professor at St. Olaf College.

And here is his smiling boss; Dean of St. Olaf College, James M. May.

More contact info follows . . .

[Arrowhead1952]

Here is one of the threads in chat. It probebly was a 120VAC, but just a pet fence shocker.

>>Turschak, with a degree in electrical engineering, hooked up a third sign to a power source for an electric pet fence Monday and also put up a surveillance camera.<<

See the video in reply # 38

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2120000/posts?page=38#38

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2120000/posts?

[denydenydeny]

Sorry to ruin the mood and actually talk about the article instead of chat about Subarus.

And, yes, stealing campaign signs is a crime. But because campaign laws regulate that candidates cannot give out gifts or anything beyond “de minimis” value, a political lawn sign, by its very definition, has no value. Technically, according to the Minnesota sheriff’s department, I could be charged with misdemeanor theft or trespassing.

This is actually a revealing comment about what the Left really thinks about the First Amendment. Suppressing someone else's political speech? It's just a misdemeanor.

Back to everyone's reminiscences of favorite Subarus.

[libertarian27]

St Olaf's website:

http://www.stolaf.edu/about/ THIS IS ST. OLAF St. Olaf is an academically rigorous, nationally ranked liberal arts college in which coursework is integrated across disciplines to develop individuals who think broadly and deeply.......... St. Olaf is a college of the church where conversations about faith are part of campus life..... St. Olaf inspires students to act on intellectual ideas and ethical ideals to better the world at home and abroad..... St. Olaf students become part of an enduring community that takes pride in its traditions and its innovations.... St. Olaf fosters the development of the whole person in mind, body and spirit....

Need to add St. Olaf Professors are self professed thieves that question and trample on 1st Amendment rights

[mywholebodyisaweapon]

I can’t find him on the St. Olaf College website. I wonder if this is a prank, designed to draw us off-target.

St. Olaf is a legitimate school. I can’t imagine the guy would keep his job after the piece I read in The Patriot Room.

If he is (was) affiliated with St. Olaf, then it must have been as an adjunct, which, in the world of academics, is a nobody (although some of the most valuable faculty members on earth are adjuncts).

[libertarian27]

From the Huffington article he said he ran for Mayor in Portland OR

http://www.whynot.net/ideas/1307

http://wweek.com/wwire/?p=11085
[His pic is on this link]

http://www.kgw.com/news-local/stories/kgw_042904_politics_mayoral_debate.17211df13.html
Article on the Mayoral race

[Sopater]

How do such stupid people become college professors anyway? Does he think that his criminal behavior is going to help the Obama campaign in any way? Who votes for someone because they saw a yard sign?

Back in the day, before I had any real political leanings at all, I used to say that I'd like to vote for the candidate who would insist that his/her campaign signs be removed the day after election day.

[Old Professer]

Low voltage transformer with rectifier powered by 120 house power delivers a designed, non-lethal voltage; i.e. Pet-fence.

[B-Chan]

My e-mail to St. Olaf:

On Fri, Oct 31, 2008 at 7:34 AM, [B-Chan] wrote:

Dear Dean May:

In a blog entry posted 30 October at the Huffington Post website (:Confessions Of A Lawn Sign Stealer", http://www.huffingtonpost.com/phil-busse/confessions-of-a-lawn-sig_b_139179.html), the following statement was made by a member of the St, Olaf's faculty, visiting professor Phil Busse:

"Highway 19 is a busy six-mile stretch of meandering road that links to main interstate artery in southeast Minnesota. More interestingly, the road connects rural, and often conservative, Minnesota to the liberal college town of Northfield. Rolling through pumpkin patches and apple orchids, the highway is postcard beautiful. This summer and autumn it was speckled with McCain signs, their cobalt blue squarely set against the gold and red of fall foliage.

"By early October, however, there were no McCain-Palin campaign signs on the eastbound stretch of Highway 19. It wasn't because loyalties had switched, but because I pulled them out.

And that goes for the oversized 4 x 8 foot mini-billboard in front of the ranch-style farm house. It barely fit in the back of my Subaru. But I carted it away with seven other lawn signs that, like a ninja under the cover of cloudy Minnesota night, I 'removed.'"

(Note: The spelling and grammatical errors in Prof. Busse's statement are as posted.)

My question: As the dean of a Christian college, are you going to allow Prof. Busse's illegal and uncharitable actions to go unpunished?

Sincerely,

[B-Chan]

Their reply:

Pamela D______
Office of the Provost
St. Olaf College
1520 St. Olaf Avenue
Northfield, MN 55057

507-786-6799

Dear [B-Chan],

I am contacting you on behalf of Dean May who is out of town today.

Thank you for expressing your concern.

Mr. Busse has a one-semester temporary visiting appointment to teach one course in media studies for the college. His actions, which the college learned of through the Internet, are in direct conflict with the college's values and mission, and we do not in any way condone them.

St. Olaf College deplores unlawful interference with political campaigns and expressions of speech.

We have referred the matter to local law enforcement authorities and will take appropriate action of our own when an investigation has been completed.

Sincerely,
Pamela D_____
Executive Assistant to the Provost

I am satisfied with this response.

[WOBBLY BOB]

I imagine aggregated counts would add up to more than a misdemeanor.

sorta like accruing $5k in parking tickets.

[WOBBLY BOB]

submit it yourself to the coppers and also to Channel 5 or some other TV station.

this is their polite way of saying “we’ll pass it along”.

[Marauder]

I still like the idea offered by that other poster, to contaminate it with poison ivy. Then wait till you see someone with their hands bandaged and tell them that some @$$hole stole your McCain-Palin sign and watch their expression.

[Doctor Raoul]

Journalism Professor!!!

[Doctor Raoul]

The Next Pulitzer Winner No Doubt!!!

[kcvl]

Phil Busse left the Portland Mercury after six years as the managing editor to start up the Northwest Institute, a summer program to teach college students about how arts and the media can bring about social change.

Phil Busse has hit a gold mine managing John Branam’s publicly financed campaign for Portland City Council.

Busse, a former Portland Mercury editor and 2004 mayoral candidate.

Asked what he did to command such a high salary, Busse says, “My role with the campaign is more than campaign manager. I’m also the media buyer, general consultant, and also I’ve done a majority of content writing for brochures and things on the website.”

[kcvl]

Busse says he won’t run again for office but will freelance for the Merc and complete work on a documentary about baristas; he hopes to open a politically oriented summer camp for college-aged kids.

[kcvl]

Phil Busse goes on to describe the Alberta neighborhood in Portland, a place that was plagued by gangs only a few years ago, that now sports coffehouses and art galleries. It sounds like gentrification, but Busse says the neighborhood is trying to hold on to the same racial and economic mix that makes it special.

[grey_whiskers]

You forgot Volvo and Saab.

Yes, I live in Minneapolis, and I've known some Oles.

Carleton College (which is in the same town as St. Olaf's) is where the late Paul Wellstone was a prof. 'Nuff said.

Cheers!

[B-Chan]

LOL PWNED

[Ignatz]

“Rememeber the Martina Navrotalova (sp) campaign they did with the slogan “We’re just built different?””

Was that an ad campaign for Subaru?
Hmm...it seems that I remember Martina as a pitchtress for “Snap-on Tools”.