anarchy in a can : true, only a fraction of the spray paint made each year ends up as graffiti. but the never- ending cleanup of the damage costs millions.

Miguel Angel Gonzales, a family boy from San Pedro, said that as long as it is blue, he likes Cober brandy, a large caliber revolver and almost any brand of paint. The 18-year-
Old member of West End Wilmas, a gang in blue color, is more famous on the street as \"dopey\", a sign of decorating walls in the port area for the past five years.
He recalled in a recent County prison interview that Dopey often goes through a few cans of paint a night, \"kicking back with the boys at home \".
He was arrested on charges of vandalism, when he was arrested for graffiti by rival gangs and sentenced to 130 days in prison earlier this month.
However, this severe punishment is rare in the society\'s struggle for the failure of graffiti.
With the proliferation of gangs in Southern California, graffiti has become a social scourge.
At the same time, it has pushed millions
Dollar Sales in the paint industry, and the fast-growing industry that cleans up the mess.
Paint sales in the United States exceeded half a billion dollars, although experts disagreed with how much paint graffiti was used, rather than painting the grill in the backyard to trim the children\'s bicycles and other homework.
The painting industry consists of more than a dozen American companies. S.
According to the National Association of paints and coatings, 0. 3 billion cans of producers are produced each year.
This is more than a can for every man, woman and child in the country every year.
\"I don\'t think one person --
\"1% of the paint is used for graffiti,\" said Hugh Young, director of state and public affairs of the paint Association . \".
But graffiti expert Jay Beswick, a consultant and consultant to some gang advisory services groups, has made a sharp dispute over the assessment.
\"I think a lot of use (for graffiti),\" he said.
For example, beiswick observed that on the San Bernardino highway, 153 cans of paint were used only to draw a graffiti mural on the wall of the sound barrier.
\"You can count them at the bottom of the wall because they don\'t drag them away after they\'re done,\" he said painfully.
\"Graffiti is an industry,\" he added . \"
\"We\'re talking about big prices.
\"In South China, 150 companies are engaged in the removal of graffiti.
75 paint production enterprises nationwide
Graffiti paint.
The public cost of removing graffiti is amazing.
Government agencies in Los Angeles County alone spend $50 million a year on graffiti removal.
By contrast, the nonprofit Braille Institute spends about $12 million a year in Southern California.
Most of the government\'s money to combat graffiti was contracted to private graffiti removal companies, using heavy equipment such as sandblasting and water spraying.
With the creation of new coatings that allow graffiti to be washed off, technology is also helping.
Peter Billings, owner of the North Ridge joint cleaning system, said graffiti
In recent years, the moving industry has developed rapidly, but the competition is increasingly fierce.
\"My total income is $45,000 a year, but it\'s not easy,\" he said . \"
Despite the huge government spending, many experts believe the battle is a failed battle.
For example, the fast transit area thoroughly cleans up the graffiti on the bus every day, with fresh graffiti painted on almost every RTD bus.
Relocation costs are $8 per year. 4 million.
\"This is tyranny,\" said Gordana Swanson, chairman of the board of directors of RTD . \". Anti-
Gang Crusaders are also worried that gang activities and graffiti occasionally bring a halo of social decency.
Target is a discount store chain owned by Dayton Hudson.
In January, an advertisement was published nationwide.
Painted the children before graffiti. colored walls.
That week, the children were sold on Target in fashionable pastel clothes, with a few cans of paint and signature pens in their hands.
\"This is a regrettable event,\" said Ann Buckleff, a spokeswoman for Dayton Hudson.
\"We hear from many people. . .
Who said, what kind of company is this?
The painting manufacturer argued that they were not at fault.
Rick bill, President of Carson, said: \"The abolition of graffiti is not of any benefit to the industry --\"
Zynolyte products is a major painting manufacturer owned by Standard Brands.
\"If graffiti stops nationwide tomorrow, I won\'t notice any changes in my sales.
\"The sales of Craig Choa, vice president of Zynolyte, and sore drinks are all active in community-organized opposition gangs.
In addition, they noted that Zynolyte provides paint for groups that clean up graffiti.
One recent morning, the Zynolyte production line buzzed and produced thousands of cans of paint.
A huge warehouse is filling up to meet the huge summer demand.
In his view, Bill admitted: \"You hardly dare to tell people that you are engaged in this business.
The first thing they think of is gangs, graffiti, ozone consumption. PR-
It is wise that the industry does not emphasize the positive aspects of the product very well.
Still, drivers traveling through Los Angeles were blown away by graffiti.
In some cases, hundreds of feet of walls are covered with graffiti.
After the graffiti is removed, it will reappear soon.
\"A can of black paint can go a long way,\" Birle asserted . \".
Birle estimates that paint sales for graffiti use do not exceed 1%.
Even under this estimate, about 3 million cans will be used each year to destroy property, more than 8,000 cans per day.
Of course, most of the paint is purchased for legal purposes.
The product is easy to use and avoids confusion with dirty paint brushes, Birle said.
Despite such good intentions, some of the paint arrived in the hands of the teen vandals.
Retailers are prohibited from selling paint to minors under California law, but the law is not perfectenforced.
\"They say you have to be 18, but no one cares,\" says Gonzalez, a gang member at the prison.
\"When I was young, I would go to any store to buy it.
\"In fact, retailers say it\'s hard for them
Forced to enforce the law.
\"Many of the projects and legal uses of painting are for minors,\" said Jack Edwards, president of home improvement chain builders mall.
\"It\'s unrealistic to ask everyone to buy a can of paint, what are you going to do with it?