Decals & Stickers

A bumper sticker is an adhesive label or sticker with a message, intended to be attached to the bumper of an automobile and to be read by the occupants of other vehicles - although they are often stuck onto other objects. more...

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Most bumper stickers are about 30 cm by 8 cm (12 in by 3 in) and are often made of PVC.

Purpose

Bumper stickers can be commercial, religious, humorous, or in support of a sports team or other organization. They may promote or oppose a particular philosophical or political position. Bumper stickers are a popular way of showing support for a candidate for a government seat and become more common during election years.

One variety of bumper sticker is the country tag. This is typically used for cars crossing international borders, and is overseen by the United Nations as the Distinguishing Signs of Vehicles in International Traffic, being authorized by the UN's Geneva Convention on Road Traffic (1949) and Vienna Convention on Road Traffic (1968). Often the country code is displayed on the license plate itself.

These have (usually in the USA) been spun off into tags indicating a country with which the driver affiliates, or more humorously to indicate things like a city (OBX), political party (GOP), etc.

People who opt to exhibit their individuality through these decals often take part in more acts of road rage. Colorado State University social psychologist, William Szlemko, found that aggressive driving is linked to the number of markers a person has on his/her car, regardless of the messages portrayed. He says this idea is linked to the idea of territoriality. The more individualized the car, the more the person tends to think of public roads as his/her own.

Application and removal

Due to the movement of the vehicle and changing weather conditions, the sticker needs to adhere well to the bumper surface. However, there are some \"easy to remove\" bumper stickers and magnetic bumper stickers. Bumper stickers can be removed with penetrating oil or a heat gun. Home remedies also include using common household items, such as WD-40 or paint thinner.

History

Bumper stickers could not predate the introduction of the automobile bumper; the Ford Model T lacked bumpers to which bumper stickers could be conveniently attached, but the Ford Model A, introduced in 1927, had them. One online source credits the current bumper sticker to Forest P. Gill, a silkscreen printer from Kansas City.

The first bumper stickers appeared shortly before World War II; they were flag-like, and attached to the bumper by wires. Gill replaced the wire attachments with pressure sensitive adhesive, and as a result bumper stickers became more widespread and practical.

Read more at Wikipedia.org