Oily Substance Spilled On Vietnam Memorial

[Boonierat]

WASHINGTON -- A light, oily substance was spilled along the base of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and U.S. Park Police said they are investigating.

Park Police said they were notified of the substance at about 5 p.m. on Friday. It was along the base of several panels.

The National Park Service will clean up the substance, police said. The Park Service said they expect to be able to clean up all of the substance.

Park Police are investigating but said it is unknown if the spill is a criminal act.

"The care and security of this national treasure remain a top priority to both the Memorial Fund and the National Park Service," said Jan C. Scruggs, the founder and president of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. "While it is unclear what transpired, we are heartened by the response of the veterans' community and the general public."

Anyone with information about the spill should call the Park Police tip line at 202-610-8737.

ARTICLE - NBC4.COM

[trailboss49]

I can but wonder if this person or his/her parents spit on returning Vietnam veterans.

[thomas.tmcc]

if it is a criminal act was there an cctv etc ? ... jail the scumbag ... i hate that defacing war memorials it happens here in the uk too someetimes or they are looked after ...

[les Brains]

"it is unknown if the spill is a criminal act."

Well I'm at a loss to imagine the required "accident" needed for it to not be a criminal act.

I think over all, society is losing contact with the concept of punishment, if people think acts like this are no big thing. Too many things are being allowed to slide.

[DeltaOne]

I believe it had to be done deliberately. Why is the question? I certainly hope that most Americans nowadays realize the sacrifice made by the young men and women listed on those panels. Shame on whoever did it!!!!! I hope they are caught, prosecuted and made to apologize to ALL vets.
This should outrage everyone.

D1

[Scout32]

Yes it is a disgrace if it was done deliberately but it is hardly surprising when you have US Congressmen and Senators who rant on about American troops engaging in torture,comparing the troops at Guantanamo to Nazi's,and whose support groups like Moveon.org accuse the commander in the field of betrayal and then refuse to condemn it.

[Sgt. Rock]

As Hank Williams Jr. sings in "Country Boy Can Survive", "I'd love to spit some Beechnut in that dude's eye." My dad was in the Army, and I remember I had a friend whose dad died in the Vietnam War. His mom remarried another soldier, and I remember my friend went on a high school trip to Washington D.C. and did a rubbing of his dad's name on the trip. That really put the Vietnam War in perspective for me, and made me very proud of the Memorial and what it represents.

"Get three coffins ready" The Man With No Name

[Miss Saigon]

It has never been out of perspective for me.

Find the person who did it and get Saudi Arabian on him. Spilling a hot, boiling oil substance on him and you will not likely have this happen again.

I am so sick of laws that take away rights in an effort to prevent people from abusing them, but punishments that don't punish those who do.

[copenhagen]

Wasn't that religous family that go around thanking Jesus for IED's in Iraq and picket Iraq veterans funerals was it?
There was something similar over here a couple of years back where neo nazis smashed up a load of graves in a British cemetary in Normandy.

[Boonierat]

From yesterday's Washington Post:

By Michael E. Ruane
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 12, 2007; Page B03

The National Park Service was trying to determine whether an oily substance found late last week on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was the result of vandalism or an accident.

The material, which appeared to be gone yesterday, was noticed along the paving stones and the bottom of some of the panels and reported to U.S. Park Police on Friday evening, Park Service spokesman Bill Line said.

He said that cleaning crews worked over the weekend to remove the substance and that the Park Service is trying to determine what it was. "Until this investigation is completed, it is premature to speculate whether any intentional act was committed," Line said.

The black granite wall, which was dedicated in 1982, bears the names of more than 58,000 men and women who were killed or went missing during the Vietnam War. It is one of the most heavily visited tourist sites in Washington.

A roughly 10-foot area of the Wall's western side was cordoned off yesterday with orange traffic cones, and a plastic bucket containing water and a small scrub brush was nearby.

Passersby lamented the possibility that the incident might have been the work of vandals.

Claudette Mabe of Swords Creek, Va., was visiting the memorial with her sisters and mother, looking for the name of a teenage neighbor who died in the war. "It's very sad that somebody would do anything, whether you support the war or not," she said.

Jan C. Scruggs, president and founder of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, which built the memorial, said in a written statement: "While it is unclear what transpired, we are heartened by the response of the veterans' community and the general public. After 25 years, their connection to The Wall remains as strong as ever, and we appreciate that."

ARTICLE - WASHINGTON POST

[Mountain Man]

Originally Posted by Aries

"it is unknown if the spill is a criminal act."

Well I'm at a loss to imagine the required "accident" needed for it to not be a criminal act.

I think over all, society is losing contact with the concept of punishment, if people think acts like this are no big thing. Too many things are being allowed to slide.

And that sums it all up in a nutshell - we no longer punish perpetrators nor do we maintain any standards of conduct whatsoever - but we do continue to wonder why no one respects us anymore.

We don't even respect ourselves. Why should anyone else?

[slick_miester]

Originally Posted by MountainMan

And that sums it all up in a nutshell - we no longer punish perpetrators nor do we maintain any standards of conduct whatsoever - but we do continue to wonder why no one respects us anymore.

We don't even respect ourselves. Why should anyone else?

Amen brother.

[trailboss49]

Originally Posted by copenhagen

Wasn't that religous family that go around thanking Jesus for IED's in Iraq and picket Iraq veterans funerals was it?
There was something similar over here a couple of years back where neo nazis smashed up a load of graves in a British cemetary in Normandy.

You are speaking of Fred Phillips and the Westboro Baptist Church out of Topeka, KS. No, if they had done it they would have stayed and publicly declared their filthy act. I have yet to figure out how this bunch has not yet been publicly lynched by a mob. All I know is that if it were my son's funeral and they showed up some would be joining him in the ground. Some here say, yeah sure, talk is cheap. Folks who don't know me might say that, folks who do know me would stand away so they don't get caught in the line of fire.

[Boonierat]

More on the subject:

WASHINGTON - U.S. Park Police said an oily substance that was found on parts of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was the work of vandals. The National Park Service began cleaning the substance from the memorial last Tuesday.

Because it is not known what the substance is, the Park Service is trying to make sure the substance is not pushed into granite stonework.

At this point, Park Police said they don't have any leads in the case.

ARTICLE - MSNBC

[Miss Saigon]

Originally Posted by Boonierat

More on the subject:
ARTICLE - MSNBC