Once upon a time, it was "Mona Lisa men have named you". Today, the lady with the mystic smile who inspired one of Nat King Cole's greatest songs motivated a climate change activist to express his disapproval about something in the air. This is the story:
Paris crowds bustling to see the Mona Lisa at the Musée du Louvre on Sunday were shocked to witness a man attempt to smash the protective glass cas e surrounding the famous portrait, before then smearing cake across its surface. The act of vandalism is thought to have been an environment-related protest.
Eyewitnesses told French press that the man had disguised himself as an "old lady" in a wheelchair, wearing lipstick and a wig. He leapt out of the chair to attack the work and then later threw flower petals on the ground. He has not yet been identified by local media.
Videos shared on social media show the man being escorted out of the gallery by museum security.
In French, he says: "Think of the planet… there are people who are destroying the planet, think about that… That's why I did it."
And so it goes. I guess that smearing the portrait is going to remind us that we should go green, or buy more electric cars or just impose a carbon tax. Who knows what else he was thinking?
I guess that the good news is that he did not damage the classic. He did of course get his 15 minutes of fame which is what he wanted in the first place.
It is the kind of climate change fanaticism, all of the headlines about the world disappearing in the next decade, that makes this movement look so foolish. The world is not going to disappear any time soon and neither is Mona Lisa, who will continue to attract more and more visitors.
What will happen to the guy dressed up as an old lady in a wheelchair? Maybe he will get spend some time in jail for trying to destroy public property. Maybe he will end up on MSNBC and explain that Donald Trump made him do it.
Or, maybe the serious people who care about the environment will cut ties with this "bouffon," as the French call a clown. Yes, they should tell these exhibitionists to take their act elsewhere.
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