Janitor strives to unlock code behind graffiti

Columbia Tribune
Jun. 21, 2006

Ken Roberts has seen plenty of graffiti, but a spray-painted message that appeared on a Boone County government building during the weekend still has him scratching his head.

"It’s not your basic vandals; it’s actually a conspiracy movement," said Roberts, who heads the county’s facilities maintenance department.

In neatly scrawled red paint, the graffiti artist sometime over the weekend wrote, "problem reaction solution… get it yet?" on a shed near the Boone County Johnson Building. A small stencil sketch of what appears to be a Continental soldier is next to the message.

Roberts didn’t know what to think when he first saw the graffiti yesterday. Later, inspired by crime scene investigation TV shows and "The Da Vinci Code," Roberts researched the message using Internet searches and was bowled over by what he found. According to various Web sites, the graffiti traces back to a government conspiracy theory. The idea is that when the government wants to do something, such as start a war or pass a law, officials create a problem that causes the public to demand a war or a law.

The writing was much different than other messages that have appeared on county buildings through the years.

"Sometimes we get the basic ‘f-- you cops’ graffiti," said Roberts. "But nothing of the political nature or of the educated nature."

Learning the graffiti was connected to a conspiracy theory made Roberts worry that it might be a prelude to a larger, possibly violent, plot against government buildings in Boone County.

"When I see something like that, it concerns me," Roberts said. "It could be a bunch of kids playing, but if it’s more that that we need to be aware of it and be vigilant."

But Columbia Police Sgt. John White said there’s likely nothing to be worried about. He categorized the graffiti as "anarchist stuff" and said it is similar to many other graffiti messages in the alleys downtown.

"Does it cause alarm? No." White said. "Most of it is the same type of stuff. It’s younger people who don’t have much to do."

He said the anarchist graffiti messages are nothing new. He has seen them since he started working as a Columbia police officer 16 years ago.

"It’s just misguided artisans out there with spray cans, thinking that they’re beautifying downtown with spray paint," White said.

He said catching graffiti artists is particularly difficult because they take precautions to have few, if any witnesses.

Roberts whitewashed the graffiti message yesterday, as he always does when someone vandalizes a county building with spray paint. But that hasn’t kept him from pondering the government conspiracy idea.

"I’m in denial, if such a thing exists; I just don’t believe it," Roberts said. "But there are people who believe it, and one of them stopped by the courthouse parking lot."