RSS
Home
NYC escalates war on art with acid registry
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Big Brother will be keeping tabs on who buys etching acid, thanks to a new law introduced by Council Member Peter Vallone Jr. and passed by the New York City Council on Wednesday. Under the new law, stores will be required to record the purchaser’s name and address, the amount of acid purchased, and the date.
Although hydrochloric acid has many legitimate uses – including glass and metal etching, household cleaning and building construction – it attracted Vallone’s attention because it often used by vandals to to etch subway windows and bus shelters. Vallone has made anti-graffiti grandstanding his special niche in the nanny state. The son of the former City Council speaker previously authored legislation banning anyone under 21 from possession wide-tip markers, spray paint or etching acid. When that law was thrown out after a lawsuit by designer Mark Ecko, Vallone drafted a revision that would ban the art tools’ possession by anyone under age 25.
Under current law, stores are already prohibited from selling acid to anyone under 21. Vallone claims that once the new law goes into effect, it will somehow further prevent the youngsters from getting their hands on a potentially useful art supply.
Vallone says his inspiration for the new law came to him when he was asked for identification when purchasing cold medicine. While most normal people sneer at the insanity of tracking the use of decongestants, Vallone’s reaction was to extend this dubious tactic from to the war on drugs to his own war on art supplies.
Like all government registries, the acid database is likely to accomplish little other than to inconvenience law-abiding citizens. Vandals will have little difficulty obtaining hydrochloric acid, which is widely available for sale over the Internet.
Related Articles:
Comments
.jpg)
