speakhandsforme
01/16/09, 11:22 PM
I thought this was interesting and may warrant a thread.
Mixed Martial Artist and professed anarchist Jeff Monson (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Jeff-Monson-262) is now a wanted man in Washington state, but he doesn’t regret the spray-painted message he left on the state Capitol building denouncing the war in Iraq.
The Olympia native has been charged with first-degree malicious mischief, a felony carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine, according to The Olympian, which reported the story first on Wednesday.
A warrant for Monson’s arrest was issued on Wednesday after the state spent $19,000 to remove the graffiti, said The Olympian.
Monson, 37, told Sherdog.com on Thursday that he’d spray-painted the peace sign, the anarchy symbol, and the phrases “No war” and “No poverty” on multiple columns of the building on Nov. 26.
“I feel totally justified in what I did,” Monson told Sherdog.com. “I just wanted people to know that there’s an illegal war going on right now and we’re four years and running. People are dying. There’s 800,000 Iraqis dead and we don’t seem to realize it.”
Monson contends that the money used to fund the war could be better used stateside to tackle poverty.
“When we talk about the economic problems we have in this country right now and we’re spending over a billion dollars a week on this war? Wow. There you go,” he said.
A world grappling champion many times over and a member of the formidable American Top Team, Monson (27-8) bested former UFC champion Ricco Rodriguez (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Ricco-Rodriguez-8) by unanimous decision on Dec. 13 at a Mixed Fighting Alliance event in Miami. He had vied unsuccessfully for the heavyweight title against Tim Sylvia (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Tim-Sylvia-1061) at UFC 65 in November 2006.
Monson -- who dons anarchy-inspired tattoos on his chest, back and leg -- isn’t worried that the added attention will hinder his fighting career, which could include a bout in World Victory Road’s next “Sengoku” installment this March in Japan.
“I think it will help,” said Monson. “It might hurt sponsorship, but when you have a show, you have someone that is well known. I think you have to do something really bad, like molest a kid or something really, really terrible for them not to want you. I believe in what I did. I would do it again.”
Mixed Martial Artist and professed anarchist Jeff Monson (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Jeff-Monson-262) is now a wanted man in Washington state, but he doesn’t regret the spray-painted message he left on the state Capitol building denouncing the war in Iraq.
The Olympia native has been charged with first-degree malicious mischief, a felony carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine, according to The Olympian, which reported the story first on Wednesday.
A warrant for Monson’s arrest was issued on Wednesday after the state spent $19,000 to remove the graffiti, said The Olympian.
Monson, 37, told Sherdog.com on Thursday that he’d spray-painted the peace sign, the anarchy symbol, and the phrases “No war” and “No poverty” on multiple columns of the building on Nov. 26.
“I feel totally justified in what I did,” Monson told Sherdog.com. “I just wanted people to know that there’s an illegal war going on right now and we’re four years and running. People are dying. There’s 800,000 Iraqis dead and we don’t seem to realize it.”
Monson contends that the money used to fund the war could be better used stateside to tackle poverty.
“When we talk about the economic problems we have in this country right now and we’re spending over a billion dollars a week on this war? Wow. There you go,” he said.
A world grappling champion many times over and a member of the formidable American Top Team, Monson (27-8) bested former UFC champion Ricco Rodriguez (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Ricco-Rodriguez-8) by unanimous decision on Dec. 13 at a Mixed Fighting Alliance event in Miami. He had vied unsuccessfully for the heavyweight title against Tim Sylvia (http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Tim-Sylvia-1061) at UFC 65 in November 2006.
Monson -- who dons anarchy-inspired tattoos on his chest, back and leg -- isn’t worried that the added attention will hinder his fighting career, which could include a bout in World Victory Road’s next “Sengoku” installment this March in Japan.
“I think it will help,” said Monson. “It might hurt sponsorship, but when you have a show, you have someone that is well known. I think you have to do something really bad, like molest a kid or something really, really terrible for them not to want you. I believe in what I did. I would do it again.”