Early Wednesday, a bomb destroyed part of the mysterious Georgia Guidestones monument in a rural area in the state's northeast. Later in the day, authorities finished the job. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation tweeted a photo of the destroyed granite monument, saying that "for safety reasons, the structure has been completely demolished." The agency also shared videos of the explosion and a car leaving the scene. The 19-foot-tall monument, nicknamed "America's Stonehenge," consisted of four granite slabs around a central pillar, topped by a capstone, the New York Times reports. The blast around 4am Wednesday destroyed one slab and damaged the capstone.
The monument, which was commissioned by an unknown person or group and erected in 1980, was inscribed in 12 languages with a set of ten principles for an "age of reason"—including limiting the world's population to below 500 million "in perpetual balance with nature" and guiding "reproduction wisely—improving fitness and diversity." Critics, particularly conservative Christians and conspiracy theorists, had long denounced the monument, and former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kandiss Taylor made removing it part of her platform, reports Reuters.
Taylor, who finished in third place in the May primary, said Wednesday that she doesn't support vandalism. However, "God is God all by Himself. He can do ANYTHING He wants to do," she tweeted. "That includes striking down Satanic Guidestones." Local businessman Mart Clamp, who helped his father engrave the monument when it was commissioned, tells the Times that he's "heartbroken" by the destruction. He says his engraving business is among local businesses that have offered time and resources to restore the monument. (More Georgia stories.)
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