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"Offensive" license tags
From www.orlandosentinel.com
VALRICO -- A couple who wanted to express pride in their Italian heritage with the license plate "2 DAGOS" are being told to return the plate to the state because some people feel it's an ethnic slur.
Phil and Fran Lascola said they are fighting the request, saying they don't consider the term insulting.
"How in the world could they say this is obscene?" said Phil Lascola. "We're Italians; we're not slamming anybody."
Florida issued the license plate 18 months ago for the couple's BMW but reconsidered its decision when it received a recent complaint.
The state says it has the right to withdraw or refuse to issue tags that are vulgar or objectionable.
Controversial ones have included "ATHEIST," "MUTINY," "H-8" (meaning hate), and variations of the "F" word. After a fight, the Gainesville man with the "ATHEIST" tag was allowed to keep it.
A Save the Manatee specialty tag with "EAT UMM" as the identifier was taken from a Tallahassee driver.
Phil Lascola said he received a letter Saturday from the state telling the couple to return the plate. The Lascolas are considering hiring an attorney to handle the dispute.
"We wanted a personalized plate just to be different," Phil Lascola said.
The couple in suburban Tampa said they don't know who complained. Most people think it's funny or give them a thumbs up, Phil Lascola said.
State officials don't agree.
"The department has the broad statutory authority to recall any license plate on which the alphanumeric combination is deemed to be either obscene and/or objectionable," said Robert Sanchez, spokesman for the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Sanchez said combinations that could be taken as ethnic slurs could fall within the guidelines for objectionable.
Drawing the line is not always easy, he said. The review board tries to decide in good faith by ordinary community standards whether something is inappropriate.
The letter the Lascolas received provides them with a temporary plate until they can get "one of their choice," Sanchez said.
Phil Lascola doesn't want another plate. "This isn't a bad word," he said. "People call us dagos all the time."
I think the choices were unique, especially the "dago" and "eat umm" ones. Somebody's gotta yell about something, though
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VALRICO -- A couple who wanted to express pride in their Italian heritage with the license plate "2 DAGOS" are being told to return the plate to the state because some people feel it's an ethnic slur.
Phil and Fran Lascola said they are fighting the request, saying they don't consider the term insulting.
"How in the world could they say this is obscene?" said Phil Lascola. "We're Italians; we're not slamming anybody."
Florida issued the license plate 18 months ago for the couple's BMW but reconsidered its decision when it received a recent complaint.
The state says it has the right to withdraw or refuse to issue tags that are vulgar or objectionable.
Controversial ones have included "ATHEIST," "MUTINY," "H-8" (meaning hate), and variations of the "F" word. After a fight, the Gainesville man with the "ATHEIST" tag was allowed to keep it.
A Save the Manatee specialty tag with "EAT UMM" as the identifier was taken from a Tallahassee driver.
Phil Lascola said he received a letter Saturday from the state telling the couple to return the plate. The Lascolas are considering hiring an attorney to handle the dispute.
"We wanted a personalized plate just to be different," Phil Lascola said.
The couple in suburban Tampa said they don't know who complained. Most people think it's funny or give them a thumbs up, Phil Lascola said.
State officials don't agree.
"The department has the broad statutory authority to recall any license plate on which the alphanumeric combination is deemed to be either obscene and/or objectionable," said Robert Sanchez, spokesman for the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Sanchez said combinations that could be taken as ethnic slurs could fall within the guidelines for objectionable.
Drawing the line is not always easy, he said. The review board tries to decide in good faith by ordinary community standards whether something is inappropriate.
The letter the Lascolas received provides them with a temporary plate until they can get "one of their choice," Sanchez said.
Phil Lascola doesn't want another plate. "This isn't a bad word," he said. "People call us dagos all the time."
I think the choices were unique, especially the "dago" and "eat umm" ones. Somebody's gotta yell about something, though
.
But I doubt that Kaliphornia would let me do it. 
) that might be kind of cute.
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