CITY COUNCIL WISELY RECONSIDERS NEW BAN ON POLITICAL SIGNS

In late October, the Cape Girardeau City Council voted to ban political signs placed closer than 10 feet from any public street. Two weeks later, the City Council asked the city staff to draft an ordinance to rescind that ban.

Don't criticize the councilmen for being wishy-washy. Their action reflects just the opposite. Members of the council made a decision, had second thoughts, admitted a mistake may have been made and are looking to right the wrong.

It takes backbone to admit a mistake. Americans would be a lot better off if more government entities had the guts to do an about-face when they discovered that good intentions don't always make sound legislation.

To his credit, Mayor Al Spradling III led the move to quash the ordinance. The mayor, who practices law for a living, cited a U.S. Supreme Court case heard last year involving a Ladue resident. Ladue had an ordinance forbidding signs in people's yards. This woman put up a sign protesting the Gulf War, and the city demanded it be taken down.

The high court ruled that banning signs infringed on the woman's First Amendment rights. While signs can be regulated, the court said, they can't be banned. The Ladue case does seem to have a bearing on the local matter at hand.

Besides, regulating placement of political signs closer than 10 feet to the street could turn out to be a real nightmare for city workers. Certainly, the police department has better things to do than spot sign violations, measure the distance, contact property owners, check to see if the signs have been removed, and seize signs for safekeeping.

Surely the city isn't really prepared to send someone to jail for 90 days or fine them up to $500 for a misplaced sign. That's a high price to pay for freedom of speech.

Some may see the signs as political clutter, but they are also an expression of democracy. In a time when less than 50 percent of registered voters go to the polls, perhaps these signs may help remind people of the election and spark interest in a campaign.

Common sense should prevail. If a large sign is blocking line-of-sight for drivers, then the city should insist the sign be taken down. It doesn't take an ordinance to do that.

The mayor has asked the city staff to draw up an ordinance to rescind the one passed last month. A flexible City Council will likely do just that at its next meeting.