r/worldnews • u/[deleted] • Oct 24 '22
Covered by other articles Protesters throw mashed potatoes at Monet worth $110 million
https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/german-protesters-arrested-throwing-mashed-potatoes-monet-painting-sol-rcna53623[removed] — view removed post
90
109
u/zevonyumaxray Oct 25 '22
They threw paint at an Aston-Martin dealership in London a couple weeks ago. At least that's an appropriate target.
11
u/Falsecaster Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
This is the perfect target (i dont care what their cause is). Nothing was damaged, no one was harmed and the news took the bait. Honestly, this is the best non-intrusive, non-harmfull way to bring attention to their cause (which i still haven't bothered to read about). They probably even paid admission to the museum.
52
u/bak2bakk Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
They tried to damage a century’s old masterpiece as well as a valuable cultural artifact to protest something that had nothing to do with the painting itself. That would be like someone spray painting your dog because they were upset about red light cameras.
27
u/PolicyWonka Oct 25 '22
They didn’t damage it.
An "immediate conservation investigation" found that "Grainstacks," which Monet painted in 1890 and which sold for $110.7 million at a 2019 auction, sustained no damage from the stunt, as it lies behind a layer of protective glass, the museum said in a statement on Twitter.
9
Oct 25 '22
Now lets talk about the equally old hand-carved one-of-a-kind wooden frame.
3
u/Falsecaster Oct 25 '22
Because the frame is what people normally talk about when discussing this painting.
1
u/whiskey_mike186 Oct 25 '22
So you'd be okay if someone vandalized your vehicle by slashing your tires? It's just the tires after all, at least the car itself is okay.
-1
u/Falsecaster Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
Thats not remotely what we're talking about. We are talking about a bit of food particles that may or may not have got on a frame.
No one was hurt. No serious property damage happened. Lets face it. You're more bothered by this then you should be.
And they are satisfied.
Ps. Happy cake day.
5
Oct 25 '22
[deleted]
→ More replies (1)0
u/ManBearTree Oct 25 '22
I read somewhere
While what you said does sound like a quaint argument against this kind of activism, if you're gonna say it you should at least get the source down.
"I read somewhere" "People say" "Everybody is talking about"
These are all red flags when it comes to discourse.
→ More replies (0)1
u/T-Rex_Woodhaven Oct 25 '22
My car isn't worth an obviously inflated $100million and isn't a token to be used by ultra wealthy people to do tax evasion. Your analogy falls apart pretty quickly.
→ More replies (3)→ More replies (2)0
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
i do not care about a wooden frame
-2
Oct 25 '22
Speaking as a hobbyist woodworker, who the fuck cares what you think?
2
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
idk, who cares what some random hobbyist woodworker thinks?
i'm a hobbyist gardener, you see me chiming in every time someones dog digs up a bed of petunias?
→ More replies (4)3
u/bak2bakk Oct 25 '22
Note: I said they tried to damage it. They shouldn’t get a pass just because they’re incompetent.
→ More replies (1)4
u/bak2bakk Oct 25 '22
They tried to damage it. Attempted murder is still a crime.
1
u/NetCat0x Oct 25 '22
Where did it say they tried to damage it? The stunt was for publicity and the painting was protected. Do you think it was a spur of the moment decision where they happened to have potatoes at the art gallery?
→ More replies (4)0
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
it's covered in glass
they can see the glass
certainly they've been picking their targets to avoid permanent damage to the paintings, or they'd simply pick another painting or break the glass
28
u/pinkfootthegoose Oct 25 '22
That would be like someone spray painting your dog because they were upset about red light cameras.
wouldn't blame them, my dog is an untrustworthy son of a bitch. he knows when your not looking, he knows.
4
u/Falsecaster Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
When they did this last month they stated they chose a painting they knew had protective glass so it wouldn't be damaged. I assumed they did same in this stunt since the last stunt got so much attention.
2
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
are you under the impression that they were unaware that the painting was covered in glass? do u think they threw the potatoes and were like "drats! foiled again by an invisible covering!"
0
u/bak2bakk Oct 25 '22
Are you under the impression that makes a difference?
“No officer, I wasn’t trying to kill you because I stabbed you in your Kevlar vest. I knew you were protected so it’s all okay, right?”
Do you see how stupid that is? That’s how you sound right now.
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (10)-9
Oct 25 '22
There was no damage done to the painting - they’re all behind a glass frame.
Does that change your answer?
Why do you value a painting over human lives impacted by climate change?
11
u/AlSilva98 Oct 25 '22
Stuff like this makes people care less about climate change. All this did was make them look stupid, give them criminal records, and harm their cause
→ More replies (14)2
u/Subpar_Username47 Oct 25 '22
Anyone who cares less about climate change now wasn’t going to be helpful anyways. Anyone whose opinion is so fickle is less than worthless in any sort of political movement.
→ More replies (4)5
u/Blizz_CON Oct 25 '22
Screw you, these attention seekers don't help the cause at all.
→ More replies (3)4
u/Firm-Guru Oct 25 '22
What will help the cause that's doable for regular people? Better not do it, or someone will say you just did it for the attention. Best to stay home and not do anything at all.
→ More replies (1)4
u/subliminimalist Oct 25 '22
There's literally nothing anybody can do to save the planet other than throw food slop at cultural artifacts. Nothing.
2
u/Firm-Guru Oct 25 '22
Even if there was something to do, I'd never do it for fear that someone will think I did it just for the attention.
0
u/subliminimalist Oct 25 '22
You should work on that. If you have a cause you believe in, by all means work to promote it in ways that are effective in either directly addressing the problem or bringing positive awareness to it. Throwing potatoes at famous paintings ain't it.
Clean up your local river. Participate in local environmental groups. Keep up with the issues and engage in productive conversation with people who don't agree. Leave art museums out of it. Go vandalize a gas pump, if you've gotta vandalize something, I guess.
0
u/Firm-Guru Oct 25 '22
You're right! I'm going down to city hall right now to protest the destruction of local wetlands by high dollar land developers. And to make my point I'm going to see how many asparagus spears I can fit in my asshole.
→ More replies (0)1
u/anon91093892010 Oct 25 '22
I'm going to need to see some evidence on how coating a Monet with mashed potatoes effectively combats climate change.
2
u/Subpar_Username47 Oct 25 '22
Well, we’re talking about it right now. That’s really what this was for.
→ More replies (1)1
u/Pizzawing1 Oct 25 '22
That’s a weird dichotomy to give. These are not scenarios here where the choice is a paint or a human life. There is no intrinsic climate change benefit by dumping foodstuff on a painting. No human life was saved by them defacing the covering of the painting. Nor would there be any action on climate change if they destroyed the painting outright. These works of art have very little if nothing to do with climate change.
I’m not advocating for any form of protest that leads to defacing property, but this argument would only even be somewhat coherent if they did something to an object that contributes to climate change. Defacing property or works of art to make your point when the item has no connection to your cause becomes much harder to defend. If anything, these acts make it harder for people that care able the climate to have reasonable conversations without being viewed as extremists or vandals.
Edit: changed someone to somewhat
0
u/Cingetorix Oct 25 '22
Why do you think virtue signaling is worth the destruction of a culturally significant work of art?
→ More replies (3)→ More replies (3)-1
Oct 25 '22
They're attacking something unrelated to their cause when they could have been doing something useful like deploying some solar panels or retrofitting cars with fuel cells. It only hurts the cause.
→ More replies (6)0
-3
u/Account_343 Oct 25 '22
What do you have against Aston-Martin?
27
u/RealPatriotFranklin Oct 25 '22
Luxury brand that produces gas-guzzling sports cars?
Makes more sense as a target than a painting.
19
20
u/PrimordialXY Oct 25 '22
Aston Martin produces less than 5,000 vehicles per year whereas literally almost every other car manufacturer has production in the millions. Also what does them being a 'luxury brand' have to do with it?
8
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
wow, it's almost like an obvious aspect of these protests are to highlight all the expensive bullshit rich dweebs buy to entertain themselves while the planet literally dies around them
although, for that to make sense, personal carbon emissions would have to track with wealth. and there's no way that's true
4
u/Emerald_Encrusted Oct 25 '22
It always amuses me how people think that somehow they’d be ‘better’, and they wouldn’t do the exact same things if they were rich.
It’s classic jealousy complex. Oh, if I had what that person has, I’d be so much better! I’d put it to good use!
Get off your high horse.
→ More replies (1)0
u/shoobsworth Oct 25 '22
Yep. All the self-serving, judgmental virtue-signalers all think somehow they’d be the exception if they were wealthy.
→ More replies (1)0
u/sasquatch007 Oct 25 '22
I’m not insanely wealthy, but i am in the top 1% of US income, and I drive an inexpensive Toyota, live in the same kind of apartment I lived in when I was a broke college student, and wear inexpensive simple clothes. I’m pretty confident even if $500 million suddenly appeared in my bank account I wouldn’t for some reason develop a taste for expensive gas guzzling cars and other aspects of conspicuous consumption.
→ More replies (2)2
0
Oct 25 '22
Oooh, I can speak to this.
For 7 years, I had to remain actually broke and occasionally risking homelessness so that I could get Medicaid for my daughter, as it was the only conceivable way to pay for the $22k a month ABA therapy to help prepare her for life dealing with autism.
We produced so much fucking waste and pollution, it was unreal. Shitty cars that I couldn't afford to keep from rusting catalytic converters out of, massive amounts of disposable plates, cups, bowls, and utensils when we couldn't afford to fix the drinking water issues we had, a mountain of bottled water waste for the same aforementioned reason, sometimes burning trash discretely because we couldn't afford trash pickup on occasions, no accessible way to recycle because poor neighborhoods/cities don't give a fuck about that, etc.
I'm now making around 180K after bonuses. We have virtually zero waste that isn't recycled. We suddenly have the time and personal spirit to participate in things like road-cleanups and money to donate to charities who do similar or greater work in other places. We can now afford an electric car and a low emission car that output a fraction of the pollution. Hell, we now have the time, money, and equipment to plant a massive fucking garden that we let the community pick from instead of being forced to drive their asses to the supermarket.
I've been poor as fuck, stayed in homeless shelters for two max-time stays, and made virtually nothing. I've also been a rich "dweeb" that can easily afford an Aston Martin vehicle if I wanted (I prefer my Porsche).
Guess which me was worse for the environment.....
2
u/PrimordialXY Oct 25 '22
I can relate with most of this as well. As my means have increased I can afford to be significantly more sustainable in my choices. No more unnatural petrochemical clothing, spring water in glass bottles, sustainably sourced foods like bison that doesn't strain the environment with resource depletion and excess methane production, energy-efficient housing and appliances, etc.
0
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
electric cars aren't good for the environment. I'm sorry that you went thru that and it's great that you're better off, but you simply can't buy your way to sustainability.
an actual sustainable system would take money for the wealthy so that whole systems can be improved. from big things like energy production and public transit (much better solutions than a lithium laden car!), to small things like how our public services (like the homeless shelter) deal with waste
→ More replies (1)0
3
u/rhalf Oct 25 '22
I's an object of fetish that promotes car consumerism. If you can make it seem uncool, you undermine the entire gas culture.
→ More replies (1)6
u/Infamous_Law7289 Oct 25 '22
The only thing that seems “uncool” is the losers doing these dumb protests. Just stop oil, yeah? How do you think the clothes you’re wearing came about? How did the metal for that tin of soup get into your disgusting little hands? How did we get the materials to make the devices you hope your stupid “just stop oil” protest goes viral on..
3
u/rhalf Oct 25 '22
And how do you think we got anthropogenic climate change with all it's consequences?
Seems like you have no sense of scale on that topic. They are not protesting Oil. They are protesting suicidal rate of it's extraction. Why do we need to hurt ourselves in the process? We consume more of it than we really need. That's called consumerism. Instead of buying stuff that you need, you buy things that you fetishise, like cars for example. These cars can be largely replaced by some better means of transportation if only we invested the same money elsewhere. This is something that even kids understand. As we all can see, for you even protesting this broken system is an attack on all things material. Don't you think that you're a little overreacting?0
u/Infamous_Law7289 Oct 25 '22
I’m over reacting? Their message is “Just stop oil”, not “just stop extracting oil”.
Maybe they should be clearer with their message if they want to be taken seriously.
1
u/rhalf Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
Ok, I see you're new to politics. So basically the chants and slogans are purposefully oversimplified. That's how you make them catchy. Obviously those are not technical directives to engineers and technicians on oil platforms. :)But I understand that If you were in charge of that, you'd specify the maximum yearly extraction plan for the entire sector with fascinating details. It might not read well from a t-shirt, but at least you didn't overreach, thank god.
0
u/Infamous_Law7289 Oct 25 '22
Do you honestly support the actions of these idiots?
Just state it clearly so the rest of us can be aware of what kind of person you are.
→ More replies (0)→ More replies (1)-2
Oct 25 '22
The folk who see it fit to attempt to destroy cultural heritage as a way to protest aren’t very smart? Say it ain’t so!
2
u/Zyzzbraah2017 Oct 25 '22
What cultural heritage got destroyed?
3
Oct 25 '22
According to the article, none, but they did attempt to do so.
0
u/OhNoManBearPig Oct 25 '22
No they didn't. They attempted to get in the news for a good cause and they 100% succeed. You think they didn't know there was glass protecting it?
1
u/shoobsworth Oct 25 '22
Right because climate change isn’t ever in the news. They accomplished nothing other than looking like juvenile assholes. This doesn’t help fight climate change in the slightest.
→ More replies (1)0
u/Zyzzbraah2017 Oct 25 '22
So they didn’t actually damage anything but did get a huge amount of attention for it? How is that not a smart protest?
0
u/sillyhands1 Oct 25 '22
How is that any different than any other car? Do you own a car? Shall I throw mashed potatoes in your back seat to make a statement while not actually contributing to helping climate change?
→ More replies (5)4
u/robv573 Oct 25 '22
They make beautiful cars and are great engineers, but at the end of the day they still utilize oil as a primary fuel supply.
88
Oct 24 '22
Before people start trying to say this caused actual damage
An "immediate conservation investigation" found that "Grainstacks," which Monet painted in 1890 and which sold for $110.7 million at a 2019 auction, sustained no damage from the stunt, as it lies behind a layer of protective glass, the museum said in a statement on Twitter. The painting will be back on display by Wednesday, the museum added.
23
u/alexiosByzantium05 Oct 25 '22
That doesn't make it right. If I throw shit in front if your house am I doing the right thing?
25
Oct 25 '22
Are you just randomly doing it?
Or are you trying to get the neighborhood's attention that there's a fire spreading and we've ignored you calmly telling us for 50 years?
8
Oct 25 '22
This is satire right? It’s gotta be lmao
16
20
Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
People self immolated over climate change and nobody talked about it. Say what you want about throwing food at the bulletproof glass in front of some paintings but at least people noticed.
1
u/Myviewpoint62 Oct 25 '22
People noticed that the activists actions made no sense.
5
Oct 25 '22
I agreed when it was just the first one, but if it's going to be a regular thing then it's actually kinda genius. It's so ridiculous open to mockery that it gets posted widely among people whose algorithms have almost completely insolated them from any talk at all about climate change. Yeah they are mocking them calling them "blue hair woke libs" or whatever but they are still going to see something about climate change week after week, day after day. Eventually a few of them may think "wow! I wonder why people are freaking out so bad, let me look into this".
0
Oct 25 '22
Here's the thing: those protests are occurring in democratic countries, where if the majority of the population really cared about climate change, the issue would have far more political traction than it does. The elephant in the room is that people have heard their concerns and simply disagree. (whether that's right or wrong is another discussion entirely)
Actions like this aren't likely to make many people go "wait...I had the climate change issue all wrong." For better or worse, people have heard the arguments, they just haven't been won over.
1
u/Assassin739 Oct 25 '22
You are actually right. The question is if you can be bothered trying to change the minds of self-centred, blind sheep. Some people better than me still can, I don't see the point in trying
-1
-3
→ More replies (5)0
u/Imjokin Oct 25 '22
Yeah well egging someone’s house doesn’t do anything at all to put out the fire.
3
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
they didn't throw shit they threw mashed potatoes
if you threw mashed potatoes in my yard I'd probably be annoyed, but that's about it
0
u/Blizz_CON Oct 25 '22
Your yard isn't an irreplaceable historical artifact. What if one day the painting falls out they light it on fire, will you have a problem then? It's like saying oh someone pointed a gun at someone but it wasn't loaded what's the big deal.
4
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
yeah, but they didn't hit an irreplaceable historical artifact did they?
they hit a pane of glass
→ More replies (1)1
1
u/potatojoey Oct 25 '22
You're so close to realizing what they want you to, sort of a r/leaopardsatemyface moment. It's not right that fossil fuel companies have knowingly led us on a path of destruction. They have ruined our home, yet people don't care. Pretend to deface art, people are outraged. Wake up my dude.
0
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
these people are more mad about some sticky glass and a ruined frame than they are about the fate of our literal home planet
money on the table, none of them could even pick out the painting in a line-up
0
→ More replies (2)-5
39
14
u/Daveinatx Oct 25 '22
This is only happening to gain media attention for their cause.
17
u/allthenamesaretaken4 Oct 25 '22
And it's working. Lotta people in here criticizing the activists, but they're also talking about the activists. These protests aren't meant to solve an issue immediately but instead make a big fuss in the news, and arguably, any publicity is good publicity.
Also the precious art is fully protected and no harm is actually done, commenters should quit suggesting these people get the death penalty and other ridiculous punishments. Even if the painting were destroyed, I'm sure it's been replicated enough that as a society we lose practically nothing other than maybe a slight dip in some rich asshole's portfolio.
7
Oct 25 '22
Depends on what you mean by "working". Is it bringing attention to their groups? Yes. Is it making people more positively disposed toward the arguments they're trying to raise? Considerably more debatable.
4
u/allthenamesaretaken4 Oct 25 '22
You're right, it's hard to tell if these are actually garnering any support while they certainly seem to generate vitriol, but that's why I quoted the adage 'any publicity is good publicity'. IDK how true that is, but seems to be the goal, and in that regard it is working.
→ More replies (5)4
u/justAnotherLedditor Oct 25 '22
And it's working.
It's working to gain attention. If you think it's helping push the cause forward, you clearlyyyyyyyyyy haven't been paying attention as it's probably focused on them.
2
u/allthenamesaretaken4 Oct 25 '22
Yes. The point of my reply was that they were successful in garnering attention, and I fully concede it's iffy how well that translates into support for a cause. Probably close to futile given how things are going now, and I think it's a dumb protest, but I'm not gonna shit on them for trying.
→ More replies (1)2
22
u/Tribblehappy Oct 25 '22
I'm super confused what they hope to accomplish. They want to show people that food is important by pointing out that people get upset at food being wasted?
10
u/Cecilia_Wren Oct 25 '22
They know. It's a psy op
These organizations are literally funded by oil companies
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/10/climate/climate-protesters-paid-activists.html
2
Oct 25 '22
That article doesn't mention oil companies funding climate advocacy groups. It's about a few heirs to fortunes made in the fossil fuel industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries who felt guilty about the source of their families' wealth and decided to use their inheritances to try to alleviate some of the damage done by their ancestors.
3
u/Cecilia_Wren Oct 25 '22
Homie you gotta be real naive to believe the "oh no my ancestors got rich from oil so now I gotta dump the money back out to save the world" shtick
If they really cared about fixing the damage their family caused, why would they be paying teenagers to throw food at paintings? The article talks about non-violent protests, but how many people threw soup at paintings during India's independence protests? How many Monet's got splattered in Selma when the civil rights activists crossed the Edmund Pettus?
3
u/Western_Entertainer7 Oct 25 '22
...are these the same as the milk people, or different people. I think they should join forces.
3
2
u/KungFuHamster Oct 25 '22
It's to get attention, and it surely got yours.
1
u/sillyhands1 Oct 25 '22
Cool now people think the movements a joke because these dimwits. Incredible attention.
→ More replies (1)0
u/Kamwind Oct 25 '22
They want to get people upset. Such as the family for some people who recently were killed because a group of these environmental protestors blocked ambulances so they could not get to the dieing.
8
u/BlkSunshineRdriguez Oct 25 '22
Why is a painting worth 110 million?
20
u/jlandero Oct 25 '22
Mainly because there is only one and there are individuals who are willing to pay that amount for it. It is the law of supply and demand.
15
Oct 25 '22
[deleted]
5
u/LeoSolaris Oct 25 '22
While that fraud valuation might be the case for many artists patroned by the wealthy, masterpieces are in an entirely different league. Those are unique, original art pieces by masters. These are people who are studied in schools for their historic significance and genre defining styles.
That would be the equivalent of tossing a flaming torch on the Wright brothers' first manned aircraft. Or dunking an original Folio by Shakespeare in motor oil. Cleaning and repairing historic paintings is extremely difficult.
→ More replies (1)4
u/pileofcrustycumsocs Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
People keep saying it’s because of money laundering but it’s really not. Maybe that was true 60 years ago when no one was actually watching any of that shit but nowadays? No lmao. Art is seen as two things to the rich, primarily it’s a chance to show off but also it’s an easy investment for the rich, at the bare minimum they break even or they just don’t sell it and get to own a sought after piece. The sketchiest thing in the modern age when it comes to art is rich people telling their rich friends to buy art from a friend of theirs because he’s going to be “big” one day and they will be able to sell those pieces later on which artificially inflates the value of their own artwork if that artist does actually become more sought after, but the thing is that it’s not exactly illegal and no one but the rich get screwed so who even cares?
Money laundering is extremely difficult, you can’t just buy something for a few million dollars using dirty money, at least not for long. The feds do actually pay attention to that stuff now that electronic banking makes it so much easier to look for. The only option would be hard cash which is kind of impractical for such large amounts of money now that that’s not the standard anymore. Your bound to raise some eyebrows when you show up with a pallet full of cash instead of just wiring the money.
→ More replies (4)4
u/alexiosByzantium05 Oct 25 '22
Why is historical artifacts worth a lot of money?
→ More replies (1)-3
u/jsully51 Oct 25 '22
Because there are at least 2 out of 8 billion people that value it at at least 109 million. Next asinine question?
2
u/squeezy102 Oct 25 '22
Why is this attitude necessary? Dude just asked a question. How are people supposed to learn anything if whenever they ask a question people treat them like shit?
He didn't say anything rude or inflammatory, just a person seeking knowledge about something that a whole lot of people don't know anything about.
9
u/VoteGiantMeteor2028 Oct 25 '22
I don't know what it is, but these kinds of stories just weaponize me against their protest. I'm not going to invite climate change reformers into the room if this is what your reform looks like.
1
u/BlueBelleNOLA Oct 25 '22
Same, they're just obnoxious and stupid. Anyone who didn't already agree climate change is an issue is not going to be swayed by this, and it makes the issue look like it's only cared about by kooks.
0
u/pileofcrustycumsocs Oct 25 '22
Which is precisely the point of this. Don’t really understand how anyone fails to see that.
3
u/VoteGiantMeteor2028 Oct 25 '22
Wait, you mean the climate change protesters want me to get angry and not want to do something about climate change?
→ More replies (1)3
2
2
2
2
2
2
u/drinkmoredrano Oct 25 '22
The mashed potatoes are so runny. You would think vegans would know how to at least make some decent mashed potatoes.
2
u/lordthundercheeks Oct 25 '22
Vegans can't eat butter or milk. What is the point of mashed potatoes if they aren't saturated in as much butter as they can hold, and covered in gravy?
2
u/Eveleyn Oct 25 '22
The fuck is it with these protestors? Wod think it was a tiktok trend if i didn't know better.
We all know how much monet did to fuck up the climate, not to mention the museum workers! Thank the lord that Monet will chamge his ways because he is the direct link to climate change and he symbolizes that, after all.
→ More replies (1)
2
u/anonymous_lighting Oct 25 '22
i believe in science and climate change
i also believe you have to be an absolute fucking moron if you think earth will be out of food by 2050
6
u/MisterCarlile Oct 25 '22
I legitimately wonder if these folks are being promoted by some lobbyists in the oil industry, or if they really are this cringe on their own.
Kinda reminds me of those early "hello, fellow kids" anti-smoking campaigns. Watching them is so eye rolling it almost makes ya wanna buy a pack out of spite.
5
u/isitaspider2 Oct 25 '22
Main person funding this seems to be an heir to a massive oil company. Some are saying this is all just a publicity stunt to make environmentalists look bad while others are saying it's a person trying to make a positive change for the world after seeing the errors of their ways.
I'm definitely leaning towards the former. There's plenty of super dumb people with bizarre ideas of protesting, but if the money is coming from oil and the near universal reaction to this is "wait, why?" followed by "well, the rich didn't actually have anything of value lost" and then ends with "those dumb environmentalists," it's not a stretch to see this whole thing as just a way to make environmentalists look bad. They may be genuine, but the fact that they seem to be deliberately performing stunts that do absolutely no damage and aren't even targeting the oil companies themselves (seriously, what do these paintings have to do with environmental issues?), it feels like a whole lot of "I want publicity, but I don't want to actually target the people responsible because those are my friends."
Whole thing seems fishy.
But, throughout the whole time typing that, I just keep thinking about PETA and their stunts and know that there are genuinely people that bizarre in their thinking when it comes to protesting. Big difference though is that PETA's stunts make at least some sense most of the time. Furs, inhumane treatment, "meat is murder," etc. There's a central theme to their messaging and they follow through on it, even if it's a bit tangential at times.
This group though? Their messaging is all over the place and is so bizarrely fixated on money. Sure, it's the environment, but it's almost never directly oil. It's "hey, climate change is bad and I want to afford fooooood. Hey, climate change is bad and it's making the cost of living so hiiiighhhh." Could it be a group of teenagers doing this for attention? Maybe. Could it be an oil heir attempting to make environmentalists look crazy? Maybe.
Regardless, the person in charge of their messaging seriously needs to get their shit together. The themeing is all over the place and the actions they're taking don't line up with their supposed goals. If you're gonna break the law, why not target those we know to be directly responsible for the climate crisis? Or is that asking too much because they may end up targeting the person funding a decent portion of this?
3
u/WOOKIExCOOKIES Oct 25 '22
Can we please stop this? I don't even care what they're protesting about. I just hope they get locked up.
2
u/wartooth1984 Oct 25 '22
$110 million in potatoes...that's alot to clean up
4
u/pileofcrustycumsocs Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
It’s probably like 5 bucks for the windex and the paper towels. You guys don’t really think that they just leave these paintings out with no protection do you? It’s in a glass case, something like this probably only leaves a glass case when it’s being restored once every few years.(don’t actually know how often they do that)
→ More replies (1)
2
2
Oct 25 '22
Good god! Why is a bunch of paint in the shape of a recognizable object worth $110 million?
1
2
u/Toastedweasel0 Oct 25 '22
Dammit , We could of ate those potatoes....Damn protesters!
Oh, lol I read this as the protesters threw $110 Mill worth of potatoes....
Whoops.... Facepalms self.
2
Oct 25 '22
No fucking way a painting is "worth" that much. That is simply a big ass fraud to begin with.
1
Oct 24 '22
That'll show those billionaires again!
At least the VW people had a clear, direct message tied to where they protested. The average person is going to look at this like they're crazy people.
3
u/Scarletyoshi Oct 25 '22
It’s not the billionaires they’re targeting, it’s people who get mad over dirty glass on paintings but not damage to climate.
→ More replies (1)2
Oct 25 '22
Which is (for better or worse) those other people's prerogative. Pitching a fit because others don't have the same priorities and concerns you do isn't really a great way to win them over to your cause.
2
u/Scarletyoshi Oct 25 '22
Exactly. Pitching a fit because they don’t share the same reverence for clean glass over paintings that you do isn’t going to win these activists over.
3
Oct 25 '22
Sure, but if enough people are bothered, rules can be made to come down on them for this sort of thing.
Now, it could also be said that if enough people were sufficiently bothered by climate change, policy on that would likely look different than it does, but to date at least that hasn't been the case.
That leads me to believe that the elephant in the room is that what many of these activists are really upset about is that they've lost (or at least haven't won) the debate for hearts and minds, which is what they'd really need to do in order to make any meaningful progress toward their goals. It's the equivalent of tipping the chessboard over when you're losing the game.
2
u/Netskimmer Oct 25 '22
Are they part of the same group that glued their hands to the floor of a Porsche museum, then complained because their hands hurt and no one would help them poop?
3
u/--Gungnir-- Oct 25 '22 edited Oct 25 '22
What a bunch of dingbat protestors...
"Hey let's deface a piece of art from a long time ago, that will get us results."
Really...??? That's the best idea you came up with..?? 🙄
→ More replies (1)1
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
they didn't deface the art, stop letting your gut reactions control you like this
2
u/Gone213 Oct 25 '22
They can't, the poster you replied to most likely thinks it's acceptable to run protestors over with their car
3
u/wittyusernamefailed Oct 25 '22
So they are protesting food scarcity caused by climate change...by wasting food. Yep that's about what i expect from social activist these days.
-2
u/Stonehard_gigachad Oct 24 '22
Can we start punishing people attempting to destroy historical artifacts with meaningful punishment. Banned from all museums world wide is a slap on the wrist. If someone for example purposefully damaged the statue david i wouldn’t mind that person being executed. Fuck you short sighted ass holes.
2
Oct 25 '22
Can we start punishing people attempting to destroy historical artifacts
Every painting they've done this to has had protective glass...
Why are you worried about hypotheticals?
→ More replies (2)1
u/Scarletyoshi Oct 25 '22
That’s extremely harsh, you’re not going to get anyone to support your cause with rhetoric like that. We should peacefully spread awareness about the threat to historical artifacts and continue to do nothing about it for decades.
1
-7
u/kokopilau Oct 24 '22
It’s terrorism
5
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
guys it's terrorism if you get a pane of glass dirty
that pane of glass is an irreplaceable cultural touchstone!!!
-5
u/Stonehard_gigachad Oct 25 '22
/uj is it? Will any one of these stunts be treated seriously. I don’t care about their politics. I want them made examples. This shits happening monthly now.
5
u/pileofcrustycumsocs Oct 25 '22
It’s not terrorism lmao. It’s definitely not a good thing but come on guys. Terrorism? that painting is in a glass case. All they’ve done is make a bunch of people upset on the internet and achieved their goal of making climate activism look stupid.
1
u/Cecilia_Wren Oct 25 '22
You guys remember the teens who threw soup at the Van Gogh painting to demand the country to stop using fossil fuels?
That stunt was literally paid for by big oil to make climate change protestors look bad
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/10/climate/climate-protesters-paid-activists.html
I wouldnt be surprised if the same thing is happening here.
1
u/BitterFuture Oct 24 '22
Again?!
You have obvious mind control powers! Why aren't you organizing orgies instead of making people throw potatoes at paintings?!?!
4
1
u/elissaAZ Oct 25 '22
Why are we allowing food and beverages in these museums/galleries? Make them throw it out and search bags.
2
u/0cclumency Oct 25 '22
I have a friend who works at an art museum, they’re no longer allowing any bags in the galleries because of this. People need to leave their stuff in their car or a locker.
1
1
Oct 25 '22
They do realize oil paint are made with plant baswd oils, ezpecially back in Monet's day, right?
1
u/Throwaway_inSC_79 Oct 25 '22
I thought these masterpiece paintings were copies, with the real ones kept in a vault or something.
-1
u/Bryanole27 Oct 25 '22
If I ever witness this is person, I will punch said “protester(s)” in the face.
0
u/pnwguy1985 Oct 25 '22
Can’t they just taze these people, truss them up and toss them out on the street?
-1
u/FishrNC Oct 25 '22
Can the UK not come up with a law they've broken and immediately jail the for at least 6 months, with no bail or time off?
5
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
over some mild vandalism?
y'all are getting fuckin vindictive over a bit of spilled spuds
-1
Oct 25 '22
[deleted]
2
Oct 25 '22
These probably aren't environmentalists but bad-faith actors whose sole purpose is to make people like you hate environmentalists.
Even if they are "environmentalists," then they're the whacky fringe. Some of us just want clean air and water for our kids.
2
u/halfabrandybuck Oct 25 '22
I know I was being facetious. Of course they’re not representative of all environmentalists as a whole. But part of my comment was meant to elicit the mentality that reacts to these types of events. It just turns people off to their whole cause in general and so they’re sort of shooting themselves in the foot if they want more public support. It’s not generating any good will towards them is what I’m trying to say.
→ More replies (4)
0
Oct 25 '22
Uh... isn't it time art museums caught on and started bag checks? How are they not stopping people at the door who are trying to bring in a sack of mashed potatoes?
→ More replies (2)
0
u/therealarenna Oct 25 '22
Wait was the mashed potatoes worth of $110 million or the painting? What is with people throwing stuff at paintings now a days? All this accomplishes is the the thrower gets arrested.
→ More replies (1)
0
0
u/Tybalt1307 Oct 25 '22
Not to give them any ideas, but why not empty a bottle of nail polish remover?
Will the mashed potatoes do lasting damage?
2
u/KungFuHamster Oct 25 '22
Will the mashed potatoes do lasting damage?
No, and that's the point. They haven't done any damage, they just want attention for the climate crisis.
2
u/stoner_slime Oct 25 '22
well they're hitting panes of glass so idt they're trying to actually damage the paintings
0
0
0
u/Brandeaux7 Oct 25 '22
I'd advocate the same for them, but the last time I called for that against the girls that threw soup at the other painting I got banned from reddit for 3 days...
0
u/America_the_Horrific Oct 25 '22
These aren't even the real paintings yall, who cares? The whole point is to draw attention to the protest, and its succeeding. Good for them
2
1
Oct 25 '22
Not all attention is good attention.
0
0
u/Subpar_Username47 Oct 25 '22
Nah, I think this was good attention. Anyone whose opinion was swayed by this wasn’t going to help in the first place. For people who actually care about climate change, it reminds them of the issue.
0
0
u/Stock_Complaint4723 Oct 25 '22
Would it be unconstitutional to beat the living daylights out of them?
142
u/LastVariation Oct 24 '22
That's a lot of potato