Draping History. Ashcroft orders semi-nude statues covered.

ABC News ^ | January 25, 2002 | Beverley Lumpkin

[John Jorsett]

Sounds like a case of assuring a non-hostile work environment to me. The leftists should be quite happy, assuming that they're consistent.

[_Jim]

... agreed ... the leftists should be quite happy ...

[krb]

the leftists should be quite happy

Bah, a happy leftist is an oxymoron.

[Youngblood]

What are the statues going to look like with their new "clothes"? Seems excessive to me, but as you say, its just taking the "lets not display anything which will offend anybody" idea to its logical conclusion.

[aculeus]

Sadly this will play big with the media.

Couldn't Justice have done something else, like use another room? They simply have got to rev up their thinking on these matters.

[FITZ]

This is pretty funny. I wonder when the Pope will have bathing suits painted on those people on the ceiling in the Sistine Chapel.

[RAT Patrol]

get over it. he didn't ask for them to be removed. the man has a right to his own opinion and to follow his conscience. I wish you lefties would get over your control issues.

[Arkinsaw]

Stupid. The American people recognize that sculpture is art and the only ones who are tittilated by these antics are the reporters themselves. When the general American public sees a piece of statuary like this they either recognize it as art or don't even notice it as just part of the background.

It's stupid to let the press manipulate you into something like this over something that only exists in their minds.

[parsifal]

Well I guess I was right. Ashcroft is a dork. parsy.

(BTW, why didn't somebody throw a blanket over Janet Reno???)

[aruanan]

They noted that former spokeswoman Mindy Tucker always hated the statues; Mindy told me Thursday it was her view that half the women in the department were offended by them and the other half considered them art.
,br> Well, I guess this is a lot of background to get to the point: the draperies have in fact been ordered. Minnie Lou and her mate now can only be imagined. The draperies installed last week at a cost of just over $8,000.

Now Ashcroft will have succeeded in doing the attempted work of the leftist media by portraying himself as a complete idiot. Also, one half of the women in the offices consider the statues art; the other half are just plain nuts.

[The Wizard]

It must be Saturday.....

[Paleo Conservative]

At first I thought this must be a story in The Onion, but it is ABC news.

[Youngblood]

You label me a leftist controller based on...?

[Smile-n-Win]

Finally, a man to stand up for decency in art! I've started to wonder if I'm alone with my view that these semi-nude statues and paintings are just plainly offensive, no matter how accepted they have become over the centuries on the walls of Roman Catholic churches.

[gjenkins]

30 years from now will find out he wore womens underwear under his suit.

[Great Wombat]

Well, I guess it's a good thing they weren't planning to host the leaders of Afghanistan--it would have been more expensive to make a full-body drapery for the statues and a beard for the male one; not to mention the changing of the sword of justice for an AK-47 and chiseling off the word "justice". I am sure they wouldn't want to offend anyone.

[ctdonath2]

The problem seems that photographers were deliberately seeking out the titilating overtones, leading to a justified covering up. If they hadn't created the problem, the artwork would remain on display.

[Ward Smythe]

At first I thought this must be a story in The Onion, but it is ABC news.

I thought the same. I keep forgetting which one makes up their news...

I thought it was a silly story until I clicked the link and looked at the picture. I can't really say that I blame him. The media is just immature enough to always be able to say "look, there's a boob in the picture..."

But I guess Ashcroft would have problem with the Seal of Virginia which also appears on the flag.