LOCAL : HOLLYWOOD Sign Into OIL WAR

In a stealthy, early morning protest over the deployment of U.S. troops to Saudi Arabia, a group of artists today altered the landmark HOLLYWOOD sign to read “OIL WAR.”

“We did it to bring attention to the potential war situation in the Middle East,” said a spokesman for Artists for Social Responsibility who would identify himself only as “Danny.” He said 10 group members took about three hours to alter the sign, using harnesses to climb the letters.

Witnesses said police pulled down the sheeting that had been draped over the 50-foot letters before 6 a.m.

“We seriously believe we should be spending money on alternate energy sources, becoming more energy self-sufficient rather than going to war so we can have cheap oil that does nothing but pollute the environment,” he said.