Anti-war graffiti found on Capitol this morning

From The Politics Blog

• Published March 25, 2008

• Video

Someone spray-painted an anti-war message and an anarchists’ symbol on the sandstone entry to the state Capitol last night.

The messages — one saying “No War” and the other containing the letter A in a circle — came a day after the U.S. death toll in Iraq hit 4,000. Crews with the State Patrol and state Department of General Administration were on the scene this morning, examining the damage on a pillar above the Capitol steps and on the sandstone surrounding large metal entry doors.

“About a thousand dollars, that’s the estimate,” GA spokesman Jim Erskine said. “We’re going to start working on cleaning it up this afternoon.’’

Graffiti with a similar anarchist symbol was put last year on the stone building housing the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. State maintenance workers used a solvent to remove that paint damage, and a similar approach is expected this time, according to Dave Boyer, building manager for GA.