Bush Bills not Banners

[Guest guest]

Dock of the Bay Jan2006

 

Bush Bills

 

The next time a shop clerk hands you a wad of singles, take a closer

look: You may be holding “Bush Bills” — dollars altered to register

disapproval of the Bush administration.

Some of the popular statements appearing on our national currency are:

“No War,” “Impeach Bush/Cheney,” “No Blood for Oil,” and “Buck Fush.”

 

Forget those clumsy placards, banners, and bullhorns of yore:

Today’s tool-of-choice for cutting-edge dissidents is a felt-tip pen.

 

People who “tag” singles with political graffiti are called “Georgers”

(a reference to both Washington and Bush) and they appear to have

originated the most accessible form of protest in the history of civil

dissent.

 

While it takes 37 cents to mail an indignant letter to the White House,

it only takes a few seconds to turn an ordinary dollar into a Bush Bill.

Since the average dollar circulates for 18 to 22 months, Bush Bills can

make an indelible impression on the cash economy.

 

As Swami Beyondananda notes: “In an age where money talks, this is a

great way to spread a message the media ignores.”

 

Inscribing slogans on paper money is an established free-speech

tradition. Atheists routinely replace “In God We Trust” with “In

Ourselves We Trust.” Feminists prefer “In Goddesses We Trust.” And

Native Americans remember the forced relocation of the Cherokee Nation

by scrawling the word “Shame” across Andrew Jackson’s face on $20 bills.

 

But isn’t it illegal to deface dollars? Apparently not. While US Code,

Title 18, Section 333 targets anyone who “mutilates, cuts, disfigures,

perforates, unites or cements together” a Federal Reserve note “with the

intent to render such item(s) unfit to be reissued,” George-ing a bill

doesn’t render a dollar unfit to circulate — that would defeat the

purpose. LawforKids.org gleefully assures future Georgers that “it is

not against the law to draw giant red lips on George Washington’s dollar

bill portrait.” In short: the Bill of Rights protects the rights of

bill-writers.

 

With corporate media threatening to throttle the last cries of dissent,

Bush Bills offer a down-and-dirty way to Buck the Trend. It’s a textbook

case of “viral” advertising — a low-cost, high-impact means of spreading

a message fast and far.

 

“Bush Bills are a great outlet for citizens who feel their country has

been taken away from them,” says a local Georger whose nom-de-plume is

Billwinkle. “It’s my way of ‘sending a message’ to Washington,”

Billwinkle explains. “Even if they don’t accept my message, they’re

going to have to accept my dollar.”

 

© 2005 COMMON GROUND