Ahhh... we hear from the real investigative expert now.
Thanks for the ping, bob. All of your investigative speculation would work, if only there was some grass down along the base of the wall to edge.
But there is no grass there, and the sidewalk is approximately 8-10 feet wide; so nix that speculative pronouncement.
As to a leaky edger dripping down from the grass above the wall... for that to happen, the edger would have to be hanging approximately 12-18" over the granite edge of the wall. Again, not too likely of an explanation.
There are plans for a vet or a Freeper (or both) to do some follow-up on this today.
We'll be sure to keep you in the loop. Thanks.
And your CSI credentials?
If you've seen this first-hand, you have a distinct advantage over the rest of us. It's hard to make out much in the photos. Not to criticize the photographer -- it's a tough subject unless you happen to have a portable studio on hand.
Before I go on, I want to clarify something: None of the scenarios I suggested was meant to be a "this is what happened" explanation. I's pure speculation, and if it seemed that I was claiming anything more than that, that was careless on my part. My point was that there are alternatives to the theory that has often been accepted without question in this thread.
Are the alternatives plausible? Not, to my eye, any less so than the theory that someone squirted oil at the base of the memorial in the middle of the night to make an anonymous "statement" that few people would see and no one would understand. And then addressing who did it and why just piles speculation upon speculation.
I have to ration my outrage these days. There are enough real, confirmed, documented outrages out there that if I got all het up over something that someone may or may not have done, I wouldn't have time for anything else.
But there is no grass there, and the sidewalk is approximately 8-10 feet wide; so nix that speculative pronouncement. As to a leaky edger dripping down from the grass above the wall... for that to happen, the edger would have to be hanging approximately 12-18" over the granite edge of the wall. Again, not too likely of an explanation.
True if you assume that the liquid is traveling straight down or horizontally. A fluid leaking under pressure that isn't level or plumb would be traveling in an arc.