An unusual exhibition – of vandalism and mismanagement – opened on Friday in Lutsk. About 200 exhibits are only a small part of the damaged property that can be displayed in the square. The rest are shown on photo stands. In Lutsk, they are trying to foster a respectful attitude toward common property through social advertising.
Among the many exhibits striking in their inventiveness, a pile of black scrap metal was presented for the townspeople of Lutsk to see: this is all that remains of an elevator. It was set on fire by throwing a bottle with a "Molotov" mixture into the cabin. And the residents of the nine-story building waited a whole year for utility workers to find 180 thousand hryvnias for a new elevator. Vandals act out of boredom, aggression, and even revenge, applying not only physical force but also considerable ingenuity. The director of the housing maintenance cooperative, Valerii Kovaliuk, demonstrated a plastic bottle wrapped in cellophane and explained that this is how storm drains on flat roofs are plugged, with resin poured on top for reliability. Water accumulates on the roof and then flows into people's apartments.
Lutsk residents say they have to see such things almost every day. But gathered in one place, they are striking in the scale of the destruction.
Already next month, the local authorities promise to organize an exhibition titled "The Culture of Rudeness." And in the coming days, an ultra-strong structure will be installed in the city park: a log and a battering ram. It is intended for those who have an excess of energy and a lack of imagination for using it. The alternative is forced community service. It is labor therapy, rather than symbolic fines, that local authorities consider the most effective in cultivating a caring community.