30 Years of Pinette = Time for a Pole
Alright kids, story time.
In 1995, the Supreme Court said in Capitol Square v. Pinette that if the government lets one group put up a display on public property, they’ve gotta let everyone in. Even the Klan. Even me. Especially me.
Fast-forward: 2013, I haul a six-foot PBR Festivus Pole into Florida’s Capitol. It blows up — Colbert, The Daily Show, CNN, Washington Post, all losing their minds over six bucks of beer cans. Two years later, I follow it up with a Gay Pride Pole. Equal parts satire and middle finger to selective religion in government.
Now it’s 2025. Thirty years since Pinette. Twenty years since the first Festivus Pole stunt. Time to drag this aluminum absurdity back to where it all started: the Ohio Statehouse.
We’re calling it: Festivus 2025 — Adorned with Satire.
This isn’t nostalgia. It’s the First Amendment in shiny, beer-soaked steel. And yeah, it’s gonna rattle cages.
So, fellow Festivians:
- Post your poles.
- Drop ideas for a ridiculous Ohio topper (buckeye nut? disco ball? chrome sphere of neutrality?).
- Air your grievances like it’s your constitutional duty.
Satire with steel, baby. See you in Columbus.
— Chaz
Posted Sep 2, 2025, 3:29 PM UTC