Posted on 07/24/2004 4:12:09 PM PDT by Libloather
Defiant owner keeps anti-DNC sign
By Casey Ross
Saturday, July 24, 2004
City officials have laid a smack down on an irate North Station pizza shop owner who is facing fines for posting an unpermitted pro-Bush sign on his business as delegates flock to Boston for the Democratic National Convention.
Mark Pasquale, owner of Halftime Pizza, was slapped with a citation Thursday evening and ordered to remove the sign until he gets a permit. Boston police also tossed in a charge for a locked exit door at the restaurant.
``It's my building and I can put a sign there if I want,'' a defiant Pasquale said yesterday. ``Signs welcoming the DNC are OK. Pro-Kerry signs are OK. I put up a sign saying, `Go Bush,' and I gotta take it down?''
Pasquale posted the sign - whose bold letters shout, `D.N.C. THANKS FOR NOTHING! GO BUSH' - after road closures and parking hassles prompted him to shut down during convention week.
Boston police, which issued the citations at 5 p.m. Thursday, said a dozen establishments near the FleetCenter were cited this week.
``He was not the only one,'' police spokeswoman Beverly Ford said. ``If he would have gotten the proper permits, he wouldn't have gotten a citation.''
Ford did not know how long it's been since police cracked down on unpermitted signs in the city.
Pasquale's restaurant was flooded with phone calls yesterday as residents sought to toss in their 2 cents about presidential politics and the upcoming convention. Nick LaRussa drove to the restaurant from South Boston yesterday to offer support and a $20 donation.
``I'm not a fan of the DNC coming here,'' he said. ``All these privileged delegates have free reign over the city.''
Pasquale said he plans to reopen Friday after delegates leave town.
``I just want them to leave me alone and let me run my business,'' he said.
Yeah, and he's like POWERFUL - he has "Sith sisters" according to the photo caption!!
I wonder how long before someone rips down the sign or worse?
...
He was not the only one,'' police spokeswoman Beverly Ford said. ``If he would have gotten the proper permits, he wouldn't have gotten a citation.''
I want to see the permits for the Pro-Kerry signs.
Did anyone else make the connection between the location the dems chose to have their convention and a famous enema?
More about Mark Pasquale's sisters:
http://www.thesith.com/sith101.htm
The DNC don't know who they're jackin' with - the sith sisters and all...
Mark Pasquale, brave owner of Halftime Pizza has a mail adress of:
Halftime Pizza
115 Causeway St
Boston, MA 02114-1304
and phone # of:
Phone: (617) 720-4578
Y'know, if I was one of those wealthy delegates. Or better yet, if I was one of those wealthy Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates, I would write the fella a check,(or ask my rich wife to write one.)
I would ask him to put up another sign praising me for my generosity, reimburse him for lost Pizza sales, and reap great worldwide PR, and good will.
This would show that, indeed, I am fighting for "the little guy"
Yeah, me too. But in all fairness our watercolor society has had to have permits to put up a large sign near the place where we had a show. It's the way for the government to extort a little more money.
It may be "just" the government having to be in every little aspect of our lives. They're even in our restrooms! My pet peeve is the signs in the restrooms, "Employees must wash hands before returning to work." It's not that I want them to have dirty hands, but I can't tell which is worse, our society so dumbed down so much that people don't know they should wash up after going potty or a government that's so intrusive that it has be in our restrooms.
GADS!!! How big was the sign??
My daughter had a little run-in with a client yesterday because my daughter had a Bush/Cheney bumper sticker in her car window! The lady had a friggin conniption fit!
Good for him!
Mr Pasquale should offer a Kerry pizza special for the duration of the convention, featuring a "Botox"-stuffed upper crust with no toppings -- when the pie gets flip-flopped there's no substance either way...
Yes, I know. My wife had a customer (woman) at her bank literally scream at her for simply stating that she is voting for Bush. The lady made a complete ass out of herself.
I'm sure the ACLU be be in court first thing Monday morning to defend Mr Pasquale's right to free speech. LOL
Courts have ruled that political speech is the most protected of free speech rights under the constitution and requiring a permit for free political speech is so unAmerican it's "Massachusettsian" a.k.a. Kennedyesque
ohhhhh-kayyyyy.
My daughter was caught by surprise. She is an attorney and has an even disposition. She remains calm...but this really p'd her off. The client walked into her office and told her, "I don't mind that you have your little dog with you, and I was ready to take my money elsewhere!" "I can't believe that you want to vote for that a$$hole." "Do you think you're going to get rich by voting for those liars?" LOL
My daughter looked at her, rather stunned, and told her that she certainly wouldn't get "rich" voting for a socialist, and that she was more than welcome to take her business elsewhere. The woman went ballistic.
I wonder how long it'll be before he gets audited by the IRS.
Nah. Angry, revenge-fueled politicians NEVER use the IRS as a tool to smite an enemy. What was I thinking??
He should stay there while the convention is going on.
Glad you brought that up. "Fleet" was a later morph from the reviled and infamous Baybank chain, the most user-hostile institution since the Registry of Motor Vehicles, who wieded The Hose and Nozzle on its patrons with no restraint. Known affectionately as "Embezzlers' Bank and Trust", this loathesome Irish Mafia cesspit was a local institution till everyone finally closed their accounts and fled clutching whatever was left of their balances... Mysterious bank charges, instant debits and delayed credits, every float scam known, including rotating managers, so that nothing was ever resolvable.
In short, a good institution to host the DNC.
Outside, a few minutes ago, I saw the traffic pattern for Logan/BOS filled with inbound traffic...Full of THEM, coming to breathe my air.
I am going to take a bath. In Clorox.
Step 1: Put on your "Not Fonda Kerry" tee shirt.
Step 2: Visit Halftime Pizza and have one of the best pizzas in Boston.
Step 3: Have your picture taken with Mark Pasquale.
Step 4: Make a donation to help Mark pay his fines.
Step 5: Encourage him to sue Mayor Menino and the Boston Police Department for violating his First Amendment right to free speech.
Step 6: Have the picture developed.
Step 7: Return to Halftime Pizza with the picture to have another one of the best pizzas in Boston.
Step 8: Have Mark Pasquale sign the picture.
Step 9: Vote for the electors for George Bush on November 2, 2004.
Step 10: Visit Halftime Pizza for a pizza to celebrate.
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