Man Caught After Removing Roadside Memorial
Man Caught After Removing Roadside Memorial
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Discussion

Alickadoo

Original Poster:

3,402 posts

49 months

Yesterday (12:21)
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A man has been spoken to by police.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c992xyv9vggo

p4cks

7,422 posts

225 months

Yesterday (12:28)
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As an aside and call me insensitive if you want but it has always baffled me why any grieving member of a family would want to immortalise the exact place where a loved one died (or didn't as they could have later died in hospital or on the way) in a horrific accident

Earthdweller

18,760 posts

152 months

Yesterday (12:37)
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A few years back my brother in law was looking at a house that needed renovation

Directly outside the traveller community had erected a large stone memorial that would have made access an issue as a driveway needed to be created

He backed out of the sale after veiled threats were made to him and his family from the travellers

The house is still unsold and I think unsalable because of it

Tycho

12,195 posts

299 months

Yesterday (12:37)
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p4cks said:
As an aside and call me insensitive if you want but it has always baffled me why any grieving member of a family would want to immortalise the exact place where a loved one died (or didn't as they could have later died in hospital or on the way) in a horrific accident
I don't understand this either but I've never had to deal with this situation and hopefully neither of us will. I'm also not an absolute ahole who thinks that how a family grieves is any of my business and if the police and council are happy for it to be there then I should keep out of it.

Not having a go at you.

Strangely Brown

14,621 posts

257 months

Yesterday (12:37)
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p4cks said:
As an aside and call me insensitive if you want but it has always baffled me why any grieving member of a family would want to immortalise the exact place where a loved one died (or didn't as they could have later died in hospital or on the way) in a horrific accident
^^^ That. It is quite probably the most puzzling behaviour in common practice. I can understand that people want to mark and memorialise a final resting place or a favourite location with a bench (or similar) but why would anyone want a constant reminder of the place they died, probably horribly.
Most roadside shrines are fantastically tacky and border on littering or fly-tipping and, IMO, should be removed immediately they appear.

Of course, other opinions are available.

Opapayer

1,758 posts

11 months

Yesterday (12:41)
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When I see these abroad, often on holiday islands, it amazes me how many shrines can often be in one place. I’ll see hairpin bends that drop off a clidd that look like a miniature housing estate with dozens of these little boxes with candles in them. You’d think someone would do something about making the corner safer, rather than hoping the shrines stop someone else piling over the edge.

Triumph Man

9,500 posts

194 months

Yesterday (12:54)
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My father and I have a pact - if either of us die in an RTA, there is to be no roadside shrine, and if someone does put one up, the surviving one of us is to take it down.

1) We believe them to be tacky

2) We wouldn't want people to say "how did he manage to fk up there"

mac96

6,052 posts

169 months

Yesterday (13:01)
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Strangely Brown said:
p4cks said:
As an aside and call me insensitive if you want but it has always baffled me why any grieving member of a family would want to immortalise the exact place where a loved one died (or didn't as they could have later died in hospital or on the way) in a horrific accident
^^^ That. It is quite probably the most puzzling behaviour in common practice. I can understand that people want to mark and memorialise a final resting place or a favourite location with a bench (or similar) but why would anyone want a constant reminder of the place they died, probably horribly.
Most roadside shrines are fantastically tacky and border on littering or fly-tipping and, IMO, should be removed immediately they appear.

Of course, other opinions are available.
I have no problem with flowers being left after a death but they should be removed when they fade not left as a puzzle for street cleaners.

And it is made worse by the addition of plastic tat which to me seems totally inappropriate.

However I accept that some will have other views and I would not go around looking for shrines to tidy up. Although I would not be happy if one was created in my road, so I suppose I am inconsistent.

butchstewie

65,507 posts

236 months

Yesterday (13:09)
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The Article said:
"He didn't even flinch, there was no emotion," she said. "He just kept repeating, 'I don't want you to have a shrine'.
Some people are just wired a bit wrong.

TwigtheWonderkid

48,481 posts

176 months

Yesterday (13:15)
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The whole roadside shrine concept is weird. Loads of people die in hospital but I've never walked into a ward and seen a shrine.

But death makes people do weird stuff. Like the crucifix being the symbol of Christianity. They couldn't have picked anything more insensitive. Imagine being the CEO of one of Princess Diana's charities and saying "we need a rebrand, and we should change our emblem to an S Class Merc embedded in a concrete pillar".

QuickQuack

2,728 posts

127 months

Yesterday (13:23)
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mac96 said:
Strangely Brown said:
p4cks said:
As an aside and call me insensitive if you want but it has always baffled me why any grieving member of a family would want to immortalise the exact place where a loved one died (or didn't as they could have later died in hospital or on the way) in a horrific accident
^^^ That. It is quite probably the most puzzling behaviour in common practice. I can understand that people want to mark and memorialise a final resting place or a favourite location with a bench (or similar) but why would anyone want a constant reminder of the place they died, probably horribly.
Most roadside shrines are fantastically tacky and border on littering or fly-tipping and, IMO, should be removed immediately they appear.

Of course, other opinions are available.
I have no problem with flowers being left after a death but they should be removed when they fade not left as a puzzle for street cleaners.

And it is made worse by the addition of plastic tat which to me seems totally inappropriate.

However I accept that some will have other views and I would not go around looking for shrines to tidy up. Although I would not be happy if one was created in my road, so I suppose I am inconsistent.
Also don't understand the need to mark the spot someone died in a terrible crash, which also seems to be spreading to other forms of violent deaths as you can see them for stabbing/shooting victims etc. Thank fk nobody has thought to turn places in hospitals where people have died into shrines, otherwise most places in most hospitals would just be shrines with no space left to treat patients.

QuickQuack

2,728 posts

127 months

Yesterday (13:29)
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TwigtheWonderkid said:
Imagine being the CEO of one of Princess Diana's charities and saying "we need a rebrand, and we should change our emblem to an S Class Merc embedded in a concrete pillar".
Sorry, that just made me laugh. hehe

Richard-390a0

3,377 posts

117 months

Yesterday (13:43)
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From the photos it's the usual plastic tat cluttering up the pavement so I don't have an issue with anyone removing it or hoofing it out of the way tbh!

JoshSm

4,140 posts

63 months

Yesterday (13:49)
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The mistake was taking it home instead of to the nearest bin.

One thing to leave some flowers just afterwards but 2 years later is a bit much.

Edited by JoshSm on Wednesday 17th June 13:51

paulw123

4,643 posts

216 months

Yesterday (14:04)
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TwigtheWonderkid said:
The whole roadside shrine concept is weird. Loads of people die in hospital but I've never walked into a ward and seen a shrine.

But death makes people do weird stuff. Like the crucifix being the symbol of Christianity. They couldn't have picked anything more insensitive. Imagine being the CEO of one of Princess Diana's charities and saying "we need a rebrand, and we should change our emblem to an S Class Merc embedded in a concrete pillar".
You dont have much of an understanding of Christianity if you don't understand the significance of the cross but hey.

Otherwise yes roadside shrines are fly tipping and should be treated as such. Also the same with flowers, it's just a different form of littering.

Roadside shrines = council.

Strangely Brown

14,621 posts

257 months

Yesterday (14:20)
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paulw123 said:
You dont have much of an understanding of Christianity if you don't understand the significance of the cross but hey.
It was a commonplace Roman execution method, and it wasn't actually a cross but a "T", but let's not split hairs. What else is there to understand?

Alickadoo

Original Poster:

3,402 posts

49 months

Yesterday (14:22)
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paulw123 said:
Roadside shrines = council.
Is the correct answer.

TwigtheWonderkid

48,481 posts

176 months

Yesterday (14:23)
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paulw123 said:
TwigtheWonderkid said:
The whole roadside shrine concept is weird. Loads of people die in hospital but I've never walked into a ward and seen a shrine.

But death makes people do weird stuff. Like the crucifix being the symbol of Christianity. They couldn't have picked anything more insensitive. Imagine being the CEO of one of Princess Diana's charities and saying "we need a rebrand, and we should change our emblem to an S Class Merc embedded in a concrete pillar".
You dont have much of an understanding of Christianity if you don't understand the significance of the cross but hey.

Explain it to me, without referencing the belief that this is how Jesus was killed.

phil4

1,620 posts

264 months

Yesterday (14:25)
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Used to see them lots over in Greece, usually permanent, you could use them to work out the severity of corners, albeit could be a little too late if you were going fast.

otolith

66,858 posts

230 months

Yesterday (15:57)
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TwigtheWonderkid said:
But death makes people do weird stuff. Like the crucifix being the symbol of Christianity. They couldn't have picked anything more insensitive. Imagine being the CEO of one of Princess Diana's charities and saying "we need a rebrand, and we should change our emblem to an S Class Merc embedded in a concrete pillar".