The Coeur d’Alene Art Commission is taxpayer funded. The fact that some art it commissions is privately funded does not negate the fact that taxpayer funding is the foundation for the commission’s existence and the basis of its ability to source privately funded art on city property. Coupled with the fact that Coeur d’Alene is a predominately Christian community, it appears the Art Commission is either arrogant or senseless or both to commission the exhibition of a Hindu god as the centerpiece of the Art Walk — or as any piece for that matter.

This is not the kind of art that is appreciated by the majority of the citizens here. The claim that it is art is subjective — most people would not interpret an idol as art.

In this exhibit, there were other cultural symbols. I am not protesting all the pieces I disagree with. The placement of the Hindu god Genesha is going beyond cultural symbolism; it is the display of a pagan god. This would strike against the sensibilities of most people in this community.

God has blessed our land with favor. We are now systematically spitting in His face. We are riding on the capital of previous generations who respected the God of the Bible and obeyed His laws. That we think we have created our own prosperity and we can live our lives autonomously apart from God as individuals and as a community, without inviting His wrath, should cause us at least some concern.

DEAN ISAACSON

Coeur d’Alene