August 2009 | Eyesore

Commentary on architectural blunders in monthly serial.

Back in June, I passed through Watertown, New York, up near the St. Lawrence River, on my way to a lecture gig in Ontario, Canada, and I encountered this startling advertisement.

Watertown is emblematic of the current American economic malaise, a once-vibrant manufacturing town near a great inland waterway now in a state of disintegration and social squalor. The only activity really supporting the place is the nearby giant military base, Fort Drum. Perhaps the angry whopper meal relates to the zest for battle that army training is designed to promote. Or maybe the citizens of a collapsing society are starting to feel more consciously ticked off about their losses. I honestly don't know.

Thanks to Michael Flaherty of Chateaugay, New York, for sending in the fine snapshot.