Not a bumper sticker, but this is a t-shirt in my closet right now:
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(Not affiliated with the above site, but I like it)
Posted on 04/25/2005 7:37:51 PM PDT by qam1
On an afternoon in Sacramento, Calif., 147 vehicles are parked outside a theater complex under a hazy spring sky. There are shiny Town Cars and rusty Ford pickup trucks, perky Rav 4s and burly Silverados.
For all their differences in name and prestige, they have one thing in common: Their backsides are pristine. Not one of them sports a single gem of wisdom plastered to a bumper.
Bumper stickers, first used in election campaigns after World War II and once a powerful form of political and cultural expression, can still be found in trinket shops and Internet stores. But fewer and fewer of them seem to be showing up on the backs of cars.
The main reason, observers say, is the increasing political prickliness of Americans. In a divided society, commuters are wary of announcing the way they feel about the president or the war or religion or any other controversial subject.
“The car is the American icon, so there was something wonderful about the bumper sticker,” says Carol Gardner, who traveled the country a decade ago for a book about bumper stickers and the people behind them. “They used to represent the town hall of the American roadway. Now they’re disappearing, and it’s kind of a shame.”
Gardner, whose “Bumper Sticker Wisdom: America’s Pulpit Above the Tail Pipe” (Beyond Words Publishing, $19.95) got national attention when it was published in 1995, has a couple of theories about why fewer people seem to be adorning their cars with messages these days.
“With all of the violence and terrorism in our world today, people just want to be careful about expressing their views,” she says. “They are afraid of the consequences.”
Baby boomers who once plastered their Volkswagen vans with slogans that spoke to issues such as abortion and politics have become more introspective and less activist, notes Gardner, who remains a student of stickers.
“Bumper stickers really became popular in the 1960s when baby boomers were out there taking on all of the issues,” including civil rights and women’s rights, she says. “In the 1990s, the boomers were turning 50 and started buying ‘self-help’ and ‘how to’ books rather than standing up for causes and talking about issues.”
Others point to the fact that more people are driving leased cars or otherwise costly vehicles that they are reluctant to decorate with stickers, which likely will fade, peel and prove difficult to remove.
That helps explain the popularity of the colorful car magnets in the shape of ribbons that promote everything from breast-cancer awareness to supporting the troops. Bumper stickers, observers say, are more likely to end up in cubicles or bulletin boards today than on vehicles.
“We all have nicer cars now,” jokes Deborah Chausse, owner of Evangeline’s gift shop in Sacramento. “I think that’s the reason you rarely see bumper stickers. I know I wouldn’t want to put a sticker on my car that might leave some kind of residue.”
Chausse drives a Lexus.
Sales of bumper stickers have steadily eroded during the past decade as a percentage of all promotional trinkets, including hats and shirts, bags and computer mouse pads, according to an international trade association.
Promotional Products Association International reports that buttons, badges and stickers represented 3.5 percent of sales of such items in 2003, compared with 6.8 percent in 1993.
But although bumper stickers may be less ubiquitous, they do not yet appear to be in danger of going the way of the 8-track tape. Particularly during election years they remain popular, says Bill Prickett of the trade organization.
I once had a bumper sticker with pictures of Beelzeflubba and "The Bride Of Satan". It said "Dual Airbags".
Good for you.
Mercedes here; see my #35.
Whenever I see something with "tolerance" or "diversity" in it I feel as if it's a message from the Politburo.
Butler '08 works for me.
er... that would be Butler '06 actually.
Soon as I find some I'll announce it.
Not a bumper sticker, but this is a t-shirt in my closet right now:
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(Not affiliated with the above site, but I like it)
On my car the politcal stickers I have is W... Still the president and I just ordered, Hate me... Im republican havent been vandalized and I live in downtown Portland, OR. Also have another sticker but it isnt politcal
Next one Im going to get is Solve world hunger starve Michael Moore or Silly Liberal... welfare isnt a handout
What was interesting?
I have two favorites- 1. King Kong died for your sins 2. Kill a Commie for Christ. Both from the 70's.
In Texas, you are not required to run.
Only sticker that belongs on a car is 442,GTO,SS,Super Bee,Hemi,GT,Boss..ect.
This one has been on my car since 1998.
That's all very well for Texans, but I don't live there, and have no plans to relocate.
I bought a Jeep Liberty to match my FR handle.:o)
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