Oil Spill Backlash

The Deepwater Horizon spill in April of 2010 was the largest oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. We watched in horror as the well bled into our beloved Gulf of Mexico for three months until it was "capped". As someone who grew up on the Gulf Coast, it hit me particularly hard to think the beautiful beaches I loved may be forever damaged. I always thought they were the most beautiful beaches in the United States, but as I have had the opportunity to travel to many fabulous places, I'm quite positive they are number one on the mainland.
We had travel plans that same summer to visit the inaugural Hangout Festival in Gulf Shores in May. When the spill occurred, we didn't cancel our plans. We knew we still had to go. Would this be the last time we would enjoy these beautiful beaches or could they be saved? The response from the locals and those who loved these shores was immediate. I really loved this graffiti art that appeared at the festival while we were there. It showed the anger, the outrage, the scale of the unforgivable act of polluting OUR beaches.

It wasn't long before the bumper stickers started showing up - even around Birmingham. This was definitely an issue where everyone shared the same opinion... BP screwed up - big time!

Fostering United Beach Protection... uh yeah, that's what FUBP stands for...

We're still not sure what the long term effects of the spill will be. I'm pretty sure the impact won't be minimal. 

Team Pride

Probably the most common form of auto attitude is the expression of team pride. It's not uncommon to find multiple cars on the road showing support of high school, colleges, NFL, NBA, MLB. Around here in middle Alabama, the Tide Pride comes on strong in ways I never imagined possible. This pic is of one of my absolute favorites I have ever seen - for any type of auto expression. From the custom air brush design to the truck nuts, gotta love every bit of it!

Here's another favorite of mine. A little outside of the box from the old bumper sticker. Here we get the illusion that the driver is carrying a football in for the score. Roll Damn Tide.

Getting Started

I've been a long time admirer of the snippets of opinions that people choose to put on their cars. Sometimes it says a lot about a person - like "let's hurry up and pass this nut case... I'm not sure he's stable." Or maybe it's just an issue that they felt strongly at one point and time. But once you put that sticker on... well... you're kind of stuck with it. It's not as permanent as a tattoo, but pretty close! I started taking pictures of them - never really with a fully developed plan of what I may do with the pictures. Well, here's a first attempt of cataloguing my finds.
And in the name of full disclosure - I am the owner of a hippie stickered, plastered up '99 Toyota Tacoma. Picture coming soon.