Auburn's Toomer's Corner Oaks poisoned

[FSUZeta]

as my husband pointed out, it is a short step from poisoning beautiful, historic trees to poisoning people. that guy needs to never see the light of day!

[Alumiyum]

Originally Posted by FSUZeta

as my husband pointed out, it is a short step from poisoning beautiful, historic trees to poisoning people. that guy needs to never see the light of day!

I'm not sure it's a short step from trees to humans, but no completely sane person kills trees because another team won, knows it could result in jail time, then calls up a radio station and admits to it by name. You don't martyr yourself over football while in the process harming the environment and wiping out a historical landmark. At the least he's just an idiot. At the worst there's a screw loose.

[Munchkin03]

The irony is that he probably didn't even go to college, let alone Alabama. Just an uneducated redneck...

[turqwind]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

The irony is that he probably didn't even go to college, let alone Alabama. Just an uneducated redneck...

We used to refer to them as eighth grade alumni and they are the worst.

[carnation]

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/n...29034270453332


ETA: Not only that but now there's a Facebook page called Tide for Toomer's and Bama fans have already donated over $2000 towards the repairs at Toomers. I cried. This is like when there was the bonfire tragedy at A&M and the Texas band marched out on the field at the game, faced the Aggie fans, and played the Aggie War Hymn.

[Low C Sharp]

it is a short step from poisoning beautiful, historic trees to poisoning people

I do think this bears some resemblance to the nutjobs who start out by hurting animals for fun and then move up from there. Deliberately killing living things that are emotionally precious to people...it has a different feel than pure property damage, like if someone torched a building or a fountain.
________

[carnation]

I saw online where he was arrested in 1996 in Texas for criminal mischief and again for something else. Really, Harvey, you're a little old for "criminal mischief". Not that I consider this a prank kind of offense...

Auburn does sell acorns from the trees as a fundraiser and I'd buy one but I don't think that live oaks would survive here. People who've bought them in the past have offered to donate them back but again, there's the question of whether anything will grow in that patch of earth again.

I still want to know where he got that herbicide, especially in that amount.

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by Low C Sharp

I do think this bears some resemblance to the nutjobs who start out by hurting animals for fun and then move up from there. Deliberately killing living things that are emotionally precious to people...it has a different feel than pure property damage, like if someone torched a building or a fountain.

I would say it's pretty different. There's no indication that anti-social personalities are any more likely to commit herbicide than non-anti-social personalities.

This is tragic, but not the same as animal abuse or injuring a human and although it sounds like this person was mentally unstable, that this was some sort of 'revenge' of some sort, that sort of thing is very different from ASPD.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by Drolefille

I would say it's pretty different. There's no indication that anti-social personalities are any more likely to commit herbicide than non-anti-social personalities.

This is tragic, but not the same as animal abuse or injuring a human and although it sounds like this person was mentally unstable, that this was some sort of 'revenge' of some sort, that sort of thing is very different from ASPD.

I'm trying my hardest to take the college rivalry and historical/sentimental value of the trees out of the equation (it's hard for me. Auburn was my first college visit, and I restore old things for a living.) and the closest I can come up with is that it's some sort of environmental terrorism as practiced by a mentally unstable person.

[AGDLynn]

On an unrelated note, an Alpha Gam's aunt owns Toomer's Drug. Bet she will have at least 1 joke about it Sunday.

[AGDLynn]

Anyone know the costs for cleaning up the toilet paper left when there are celebrations?

(Just curious, I had thought about this in the past when i would see pictures of the "adorned" trree.)

Wonder if Auburn (city and/or school) have "toilet paper removal" as a line item in the annual budget.

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

I'm trying my hardest to take the college rivalry and historical/sentimental value of the trees out of the equation (it's hard for me. Auburn was my first college visit, and I restore old things for a living.) and the closest I can come up with is that it's some sort of environmental terrorism as practiced by a mentally unstable person.

I suppose it depends on whether the person was motivated by the rivalry issue, but yes, I basically agree with you. Supposedly the trees have been set on fire before too?

I just wanted to divert the conversation from the ASPD/sociopath/serial killer line of thinking.

[Lafayette79]

Thousands mourn Auburn's historic trees

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/416850...lege_football/

AUBURN, Ala. - A steady stream of people began to arrive early Saturday morning to mourn the poisoning of oak trees at Toomer's Corner, where Auburn fans have long celebrated wins. The heartfelt demonstration continued well into the afternoon.

Fans took pictures and left gifts and tributes, including rolls of toilet paper that surrounded the two 130-year-old oaks located next to campus.

The rally reflected the depth of pain and frustration engulfing this small community.

"Toomer's Tree Hug" was about proud tradition; it was about college football - two things residents in this state are rabidly, unapologetically passionate about. ....

[msd0009]

By "they, I didn't mean 'Bama fans. I meant in general people who were involved in this. It came out today that there may have been more than one person involved, and at least 3 other people knew about this and didn't report it, which in my mind is about as bad.

I'm beyond impressed by the Tide for Toomer's folks. They rule! It was something like $32,000+ the last time I checked.

[NinjaPoodle]

http://www.auburn.edu/student_info/student_affairs/

Toomer's Trees
Letter from Dr. Cary
February 18, 2011
Dear Auburn Students,
On Wednesday we learned of a horrendous crime that was committed on our campus. An individual administered a lethal dose of a toxic herbicide to our beloved Toomer’s oak trees. It is too early to know the extent of the damage to the trees in the area. I am sure you are as shocked and saddened as I am about this turn of events. I have worked at several institutions of higher education and none have a tradition as special and sacred as rolling Toomer’s corner. This season my three-year old daughter and I rolled Toomer’s corner after a few home football victories. She is always amazed at the beauty of this tradition. I assured her that one day she too will roll the corner as an Auburn student. In spite of the recent events, I still believe this to be true.
Throughout the history of Auburn University our students and alumni have faced challenges with class and integrity. What occurred was the act of a single individual. Let us uphold Auburn standards by not taking out our frustration on any individual or institution. Let us be congruent with the words of our beloved Creed – I believe in obedience to law because it protects the rights of all – and conduct ourselves with class. Remember, this past football season teams and their fans visited Auburn and commented on the first-class hospitality of Auburn fans and students. Stories appeared in newspapers all over the country about how well Auburn fans treated their guests. Auburn parents and alum expect us to uphold the tradition of excellence they worked so hard to establish. We will not let the actions of an individual change the character of who we are. Any act of retaliation by an Auburn student against an individual or institution would be inconsistent with who we are and tarnish the reputation of the entire Auburn family.
I would like to commend the Auburn Police Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation and state police for their thorough investigation and efforts to apprehend the alleged suspect. We honor their work by trusting the process and not creating additional burdens for law enforcement.
In the coming weeks Auburn administrators and students will have opportunities to share their thoughts on what we should do next. As we learn more about the condition of Toomer’s corner, our faculty experts and landscaping officials strongly recommend we not roll the trees while we assess their health and treat them. It makes recovery chances even more challenging.

Thank you for continuing to make me proud to be a member of the Auburn family.

Ainsley Carry, Ed. D.
Vice President for Student Affairs