This is from a dumpster next to The Office, a skate shop located across from Skidmore Fountain in downtown Portland. To see the full image, click the “TOGGLE VIEW” button in the upper right of the image. Several nuances in this batch of tags stand-out to me, I’ll go through my favs one by one.

1. The use of “Yo.” When writing graffiti, do you really need to use a salutation to get the attention of a passerby? You may as well write, “Dear Sir or Madam, Fuck Cops.”
2. “Fuck” probably doesn’t need an underline. It’s one of those words which don’t really require much embellishment. It really does the job on its own.
3. Picking up where number two left off, notice the exclamation points are placed after “Fuck” and not the end of the statement. Again, somewhat unnecessary.
4. In the upper right of the image, you’ll notice the number 666 is written within a circle and a line drawn through it. What does this mean exactly? Did someone write 666 in support of satan and then another person came by and crossed it out in repulsion? Or perhaps it was meant to be a cohesive statement. Something like, “The devil is bad and I will display my disapproval of him by writing 666 and then crossing it out.” I guess we’ll never know the author’s reasoning.

Don’t get me wrong, I support public displays of dissent as much as the next guy. However, when the meaning behind the destruction of public or private property leaves you scratching your head in bewilderment, the dissent leaves something to be desired. I mean, are we to believe there are young racketeers running loose on the streets who dislike cops AND satan? Surely that’s not possible.