{"id":388951,"date":"2018-12-13T06:18:09","date_gmt":"2018-12-13T05:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/newswire\/then-look-at-this-us-man-flips-off-officials-with-315kg-finger-statue-after-10yr-dispute-photos-rt-usa-news\/"},"modified":"2018-12-13T06:18:09","modified_gmt":"2018-12-13T05:18:09","slug":"then-look-at-this-us-man-flips-off-officials-with-315kg-finger-statue-after-10yr-dispute-photos-rt-usa-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/newswire\/then-look-at-this-us-man-flips-off-officials-with-315kg-finger-statue-after-10yr-dispute-photos-rt-usa-news\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Then look at this!\u2019 US man flips off officials with 315kg finger statue after 10yr dispute (PHOTOS) \u2014 RT USA News"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Vermont man has erected a 315kg statue of a middle finger, visible from all over his town, as a gesture of spite after ten years of having his construction dreams thwarted by town officials.<\/p>\n

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Ted Pelkey commissioned the cheeky sculpture in October as an act of revenge on the Westford, VT town officials that have blocked him from constructing a garage on his property for 10 years because \u2013 he says \u2013 they\u2019re \u201cbiased against him<\/em>.\u201d He had it mounted on a five-meter (16-foot) pole, complete with two floodlights, and there it has stood in all its obscene glory since the beginning of the month.<\/p>\n

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If you don\u2019t want to look at the building, look at this.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Read more<\/p>\n


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Pelkey initially feared he\u2019d be forced to take down the wooden gesture, since billboards are illegal in Vermont and the sculpture is visible from nearby Route 128. Finding out it was legal as \u201cpublic art<\/em>\u201d \u2013 since it\u2019s not technically a \u201csign<\/em>\u201d \u2013 was \u201cthe most wonderful thing I\u2019ve ever been told in my life<\/em>,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Even the Westford Selectboard the gesture is directed at can\u2019t find fault with it. \u201cHe can apparently do what he\u2019s done<\/em>,\u201d said Selectboard chair Allison Hope.<\/p>\n

Pelkey, who owns a truck repair and recycling business in nearby Swanton, has dreamed of building his business a new home on his land in the form of a 740 square meter (8,000 square foot) garage, but town officials have turned down multiple permit applications. While he admits his initial proposal might have been a bit light on the required specs, he paid an engineer and a lawyer to help with the most recent submission \u2013 only to be rejected again last fall.<\/p>\n

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So, a man in Westford, VT built this 700 lb giant middle finger on his property to protest the town\u2019s planning department (for denying him a permit to build on his property). The kicker? It\u2019s now considered \u201cpublic art\u201d and they can\u2019t make him take it down. pic.twitter.com\/4Dv9U7yQa8<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Norm Kelly (@norm) December 12, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

The board claims his proposal was missing information about the structure\u2019s use and security lighting, and Pelkey is appealing the decision. The only explanation he can see for the continued rejection is bias, stemming from a \u201cpersonal grudge<\/em>\u201d with one official and \u201cresidual small-town animosity<\/em>\u201d with others.<\/p>\n

Chairperson Hope, who joined the board within the last two years, insists Pelkey is being treated like any other applicant, even though she\u2019s heard he has subjected past Boards to \u201canimosity and threatening language<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n