I think that I shall never see a billboard lovely as a tree. Perhaps, unless the billboards fall, I'll never see a tree at all. -- Ogden Nash ". . . It is so strange that billboards exist at all that the current controversy about whether outdoor advertising should be allowed along federal highways achieves the unreality of a debate on whether witch burning should be permitted in critical fire areas. Apparently no one has thought to wonder just what in the hell billboards are doing anywhere." by Howard Gossage

Driving east on Highway 30 through Byrnes Mill, Missouri. (Billboards are not permitted in Byrnes Mill. Maine, Vermont, Hawaii and Alaska also ban billboards.) Driving west on Highway I-44, approaching Antire Road exit. The powerful billboard lobby has weakened federal regulations over the years, but many states have acted on their own to keep beautiful highways. Missouri has not. Visual pollution. Sky Trash. Litter on a stick. The junk mail of the American highway. Nothing destroys the distinctive character of our communities and the natural beauty of our countryside more rapidly than uncontrolled signs and billboards, which is why all citizens should encourage their communities to adopt ordinances stopping construction of new billboards. It's easy to think of billboard blight, or any kind of visual blight for that matter, as a general sort of harm, afflicting a lot of people in a minor way. It's easy to think "they're ugly and I wish there were a lot fewer, but who do they really hurt?" Find out more about the impact of billboards on public health, local economies and private citizens from the many resources available through these two organizations:

MORE HERE

AND HERE

That's a lawyer I'd not retain. Does this sign improve the image of Jefferson College?

What would Jesus have to say about his name promoted in this way?

Will you buy your next car from Jim Butler?

A carpet company makes a statement about its sophisticated selection and use of color.

Ah, the visual symetry of it all.

"Arguing against billboards based on their relative ugliness is, to paraphrase the ad man Howard Gossage, like saying mice should be kept out of the kitchen because they don't match the Formica. The fact is that what billboard advertisers are selling doesn't belong to them: our attention; we can't turn the page, change the channel or tune them out." -=Carrie McLaren=-

Press above button for another kind of litter.

Another pretty good web page by Grant MacLaren.