How do you keep VANDALS from stealing your signs?

My Jeff Morris for congress sign is missing. :(

next to the sign?

Poison ivy/oak

they sell solar powered motion activated spot lights with an alarm. If it's happening at night I'd suggest getting one of those lights and pointing it at your yard signs.

They also sell regular and battery powered motion lights with alarm if you don't like solar. If they don't sell them locally I've seen them on ebay.

in the corner of the sign

That way you will gain some satisfaction when they disappear. :D

:o

Our area is even traditionally a red region. But no one has touched my signs ... in fact, a lot of people have come by to ask where they can get them.

:banghead:

Pretty city, though.

connect them to a car battery. :evilgrin:

:evilgrin:

The Garlic will stick to anyone and their car for a week after taking the sign yet it won't smell bad outside

I know there are bylaws in Vancouver about signs on public property, but no one downtown seems to have any signs up at all.

for a couple years after that.


Remember these sign thieves are committing a FEDERAL CRIME.

Seriously, what a stretch....

Of course, the simple use of one single fact could change my mind. Certainly you have one precedent in mind where federal courts have tried yard sign thieves for "election tampering" or "violation of federal civil rights"

When you actually back up your ridiculous claim, I'll eat my Obama '08 hat.

Or try one of these:

http://www.critterridders.com/scarecrow.htm

Buzz some habanero peppers up with a little dish soap, water and oil. Don some gloves and paint that sign on both sides where someone is likliest to grab it to pull it up fast.

No, you won't prevent the theft, but you will have your revenge when the pudgy white guy who did it (and most are) has to pee. Or rubs his eyes. Or picks his nose.

Best of all, it's nothing you can be sued over.

The only other alternative is a webcam recording everything that happens around the sign. A good picture can catch the guy in the act and once he's identified, it will allow you to prosecute for trespassing, vandalism, and infringing on your civil rights. Mostly, though, the pictures aren't quite good enough.

I prefer the revenge idea, myself. He'll never know whose sign was loaded.

But I like the hot pepper idea, too! Bastards!

because some people are very allergic to it.

Habaneros don't do any harm, but oh my goodness, if you touch anything sensitive...

from http://www.boingboing.net/2007/06/29/another-outdoor-warn.html



An update to above-mentioned blog link,
http://www.boingboing.net/2007/07/02/update-to-makeshift-.html

:P

into submission while wagging his tail :P

The most popular suggestions seem to involve

a) surrounding the signs with some form of manure that would have to be stepped in to get to the signs
b) webcams
c) coating the signs in either grease or grease based paint the same color as the sign, making a huge mess on the would be thieves

I would caution against traps, electrical hookups, or use of firearms for liability reasons. Personally, I'd just pull an all nighter and go out and confront the idiots....and note their tag # and call the cops.

Also, don't necessarily assume it's the local GOP or freeper.... I've heard tell of this happening, only to find out it was the local busybody from the HOA.

Might be because I own an attack rooster.

love some of the more inventive ways...but alas I am a slacker.

If you get them stealing the signs on video, you can have them prosecuted.

It does not say anything. It is a clarinet, the instrument that I play. You would be surprised what some people have thought it was.

finger in their nose, rub their eyes, or grab their penis to pee before they realize they got it from the sign.

but I used some famous guys habenero hot sauce instead of pepper spray. Next guy that leaves my cap open is gonna think twice before touching another one. :evilgrin:

because dogs would bite my tires. I had one dog that would bite the bumpers on my mail truck (after I became a city carrier). I coated it down with pepper and it stopped.

Or Ben Gay? Ouch!

repukes never stop do they.... But one thing that was universally thought to be useful was some sort of product called, I believe, violet blue, or violet something or other. My memory is a little fuzzy on this, so maybe someone can help me out here, but it is an old timely product that is invisible, you coat your sign and post with it, and turns your hand bright blue when you touch it. It was used as a shoplifting deterrent way back when, is inexpensive and available at good hardware stores.

those blackberry thorns go right through thick leather work gloves.

And they HURT!!!

First of all, forget about the grease. Instead, anchor the sign to the ground with strong cable. Then attach treble hooks, the size used in larger fishing lures, all around the edges of your sign. Don't forget to have your camera handy so you can photograph your catch, should you decide not to get it mounted. :evilgrin:

Then if they steal the signs, call the cops.

:D

Since I like to keep them and don't want them to get ruined. I'm going to put a bench in the yard, and them somehow attach them to the ends of bench, maybe with zip-ties. It isn't foolproof, but still a deterrent.

4x4 posts buried deep. Plywood screwed to posts. Either pre-made sign stapled to plywood then coated with polyurethane, or paint your message.

They may be able to vandalize, but probably won't take the time to steal it.

The vandalism makes the perps and their cause look bad until you can fix the sign.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2659523

Had to go to my dial-up dinosaur computer to search for it then send it to myself on this one. I saved it a while ago, thought it was hilarious and a great solution. Now I see that the DUer who posted it is no more...


peace~

dirty sticky stuff that is very hard to get out of things and off your hands... Put it on one cheap sign first.. The rest of your signs will most likely be left alone.

Tangle foot is clear, non-toxic, inexpensive.... It is also virtually impossible to wash off hands - forget clothes, they are ruined. Car upholstery is history.

Get thee to a gardening store, smear it on all the edges of the sign.

http://www.tanglefoot.com/products/barrier.htm