'But the judge said letters written by his family had swayed him away from jailing Lawrence, who first began offending in 1996.'

It's quite impressive that Leon was offending 4 years prior to being born.

Anyways,got a slightly battered STOP sign for sale with some Thunderbirds ships on it for sale. £567890000 ono.

This has got to be the least amount of chat for an on street Banksy release I can remember. Personally like it, a great piece from placement and idea. Slightly predictable but still good and was always gonna get stolen quickly.
Here’s a thing though. If the drones had been placed onto a sign made by Banksy and then he puts that sign on a post and it gets taken… not theft?
The drones are stuck to an existing traffic sign and the whole thing is removed… that’s considered theft?

Whilst onus will always be on providing sufficient proof, there are plenty of leading, independent experts on Genocide and Human Rights who have suggested Israel is committing Genocide and or Ethnic Cleansing. Those voices, like the voices of many journalists who are trying to report objectively are being suppressed.

There is no doubt war crimes have been committed on both sides so in my view there is no moral high ground to be taken in this conflict. The pictures of +70 days of bombardment of Gaza do not suggest a measured response to the abhorrent actions of the 7th Oct. The cynical propaganda campaign which has accompanied it somehow (for many people) seems to be making those actions worse. "Trust me bro" is not a valid argument.

So, is it genocide? I guess for many people, having witnessed other genocides, it very much feels like it. Until more proof can be presented, people will just have to go with gut feelings. More and more evidence is being gathered though.

E.g. new in the last few days..... 
During the first six weeks of the war in Gaza, Israel routinely used one of its biggest and most destructive bombs in areas it designated safe for civilians, according to an analysis of visual evidence by The New York Times.

I'd be interested to know why people don't think it is a genocide.

I was wondering something similar. If the guy had scraped off the drones and left the sign would the police have got involved? I guess it could still be considered theft of art in the public domain but I’m also not a lawyer 

Merry Christmas 
For you and your family 
Peace in the world 

I'm literally on the breadline at the moment and can say hand on heart that I would have taken that sign,cos Banksy left it to be taken,he ain't stupid,plus if I didn't, someone else.. etc, already did. Stop fucking being a turbo melt thinking it's a public art thing. It's been seen by millions. Point made.

I think, unless you've just been in a massive traffic accident because there wasn't a stop sign at the junction, the message is clear.

How not to spend Christmas Eve! 
link - second person arrested

Not just Peckham: the long list of Banksy’s disappearing art - link

While arrests have been made after a street work was stolen in London, some vanishing acts have been intentional promotional tools

A Banksy that was removed from a lamp-post in Peckham, south London, only a few hours after it appeared has joined a long list of his work that has vanished over the years.

While arrests have been made in connection with the latest removal, the work is not always taken without his consent or for an apparent attempt to cash in. While many have quickly appeared on the art market, others were savvy promotional tools or served as a windfall for struggling charities.

Here are some others.

Livin The Dream/Caution, Los Angeles (2011)
Several Banksy pieces appeared within a few weeks of one another in Los Angeles during February 2011 as the artist, who was in the running for an Oscar for his Exit Through The Gift Shop documentary, launched a guerrilla campaign across the city of angels in the lead up to the awards.

One work depicted Charlie Brown in the act of arson, while another featured an inebriated Mickey Mouse with his pants down. The works didn’t fare very well: the Mickey Mouse piece was removed and destroyed, while a third piece called Caution – located in the East LA neighbourhood of Boyle Heights – was sawn out of the wall it was stencilled on.

Slave Labour, Wood Green (2013)

An apparent critique of child labour and the diamond jubilee in 2012, this image of a young boy sewing union flag bunting together appeared on the side of a Poundland store in Wood Green, north London. It lasted more than six months before being removed overnight in February 2013 before resurfacing at an auction house in Miami.

Protests from leaders at Haringey council saw the work (which is also known as the “Poundland Banksy”) removed from sale and returned to the UK. It was eventually sold in London, commanding a fee of £750,000.

The Whitehouse Rat, Liverpool (2013)

This giant white rat appeared on The Whitehouse, a derelict pub on the corner of Berry Street and Duke Street in Liverpool back in 2004. It remained there, becoming a local landmark, until 2011 when it was removed before the building it was etched on was demolished.

Since then its led an interesting life: first becoming the main attraction at a “graffiti bar” in Waterloo, then being sold into private hands. Its current whereabouts is unknown but when it was last at auction in the Netherlands – where it brought in more than £400,000 – it was rumoured to have been snapped up by a UK buyer.

Mobile Lovers, Bristol (2014)
Stencilled on a piece of boarding attached to the side of a youth club, this image of two lovers embracing while checking their phones, was initially removed and placed inside – where members of the public could view it while being encouraged to donate to the cash-strapped club.

After the management of the club received death threats, they handed it over to the city council, which displayed it before the artist himself took the rare step of intervening and declaring the club could have it. They promptly sold it and used the proceeds to ensure the institution could carry on.

Morning Has Broken, Herne Bay (2023)

Earlier this year, another Banksy appeared on a decaying building, this time in the Kent town of Herne Bay. It depicted a child opening the curtains – made out of corrugated iron – on the side of the derelict farmhouse. But the work was demolished shortly afterwards, without the owner or the company carrying out the work being aware it was a Banksy, and potentially worth a small fortune.

“We had no idea it was a Banksy. It made me feel sick realising it was a Banksy – we were gutted,” one of the contractors told website KentOnline.

The recent story shared by Wisam of The Walled Off Hotel echoes some of these sentiments: 

www.instagram.com/stories/wisamsalsaa/3264778917573068468?igsh=MWE3empteWx6dXVxcg==

And for those who have not seen what has been happening to the people of Palestine, here is a very very graphic summary so far: WARNING, content shows explicit violence, death and destruction

www.instagram.com/reel/C1PA3ExtGrF/?igsh=cWgwYmRrNnIxeWY0

Drones were also in the Croydon (GDP) showcase.
What meaning did they have in that window? War?
It didn't seem like a message associated with a war to me.

Lack of freedom? Always being watched? 

What do you think the new piece means in this context? 

It is a STOP road sign, where drones like those that appeared previously have been inserted above.
The words "commercial way" appear below.
All located in front of a specialized funeral agency.

It all brings me back to GDP.
But what that might mean I couldn't tell you. 









Coincidences.
Who believes in coincidences?