Subliminal Protest

I was on the F Train this morning, listening to my iPod and zoning out, when I realized that something was bothering me. Something was different from my usual commute, and it seemed to be affecting my entire subway car, and it took me a couple minutes to realize what it was:

At the top of each subway car door is a sticker that reads, "Do Not Hold Doors." Except today, the stickers, identical to the usual in every other way, read, "Do Not Bomb Iraq." Every subway door, creating a subtle but persistent protest that worms its way into your brain. Like most other commuters, I'd seen the "Do Not Hold Doors" stickers so many times that I'd ceased to read them, but the deviation from what I expected drew my attention. Screw Michael Moore, making an ass out of himself on national television, stamping his feet like the annoying kid in the back of the room who won't shut up and doing more harm than good. If you want people to pay attention and listen, then you have to get in their heads, whether they know it or not.

I left the train at 23rd Street, and as it passed me on its way out of the station, I looked in the windows, and saw the protest on every door.