For years, there was an article in our Grand Lodge law that forbade putting a Masonic Square & Compasses decal on the back of your car. The sound reasoning behind that was that if a Mason let someone else (his son, daughter, nephew, niece, or neighbor, etc.) drive his car, then he has no control over where that car goes, how it is driven, or the actions of the person driving the car, or the actions of the people in the car with the driver. In a best case scenario, no one drives the car but the owner, and he always obeys the law. Okay, no harm done, but there is nothing gained either. In a worst case scenario, a Mason loans his car to a family member, neighbor or friend, or sells the car (with the sticker on it) to someone else, and that person drives in a manner that is offensive to other drivers on the road. All they see is that Masonic license sticker on the back of the car, and the result is that the fraternity gets a black eye. There is no guarantee that every car owned by every Mason will always be in the right place. A perfect example of the kind of problem that can arise was witnessed by me while on a family vacation a few years ago. We were driving the Interstate between Little Rock, AR, and Memphis, TN, when we were passed by a car driving 15 miles over the speed limit. On the back of his car, he had two Square & Compasses stickers, one on either side of his big white car-top luggage carrier, and next to each was a square, black & white, Playboy bunny logo. My wife and kids burst out laughing at this ridiculous and childish display on the back of this car, driven like someone with no regard for the law. So, I can see how a Masonic license plate could easily work to our detriment, but I cannot for the life of me see how it would work to our benefit.
