What is the difference between graffiti and art?

Australians can't tell the difference either. Take, for example, noted anti-graffiti crusader Steve Pratt. He is so against graffiti that he summoned the media to watch him eradicate a particularly annoying bit of it on a local bridge. He was dedicated enough to spend about 5 hours working on it.

Too bad it was an expensive piece of "genuine" artwork....

There are certain segments of society that seem to think of themselves as having "better taste" than other people. They celebrate works by Jackson Pollack and Picasso, for example, while looking down their noses at those who "cannot understand this great art". You could extend that to certain conceptual music, interpretive dance/skating etc., slam poetry, and a host of other "art forms". The wise artistic community sneers down their noses at those of us who do not "get" (nor want to) the "greatness" of some piece of "art" such as a urinal hung on a wall. Yeah, thanks for that, thanks for nothing, great artists. I for one am extremely happy that I would rather look at something that actually looks good and is recognizable than at a mish mash of paint or twisted steel. Even if I DID understand why dropping various colors of paint in front of jet engine wash and letting it splatter against a canvas somehow held deep meaning...I wouldn't want to. You see, I actually USE my brain. I prefer enjoyable things to that crap.

And yeah, sometimes that means I think the graffit artists actually have some stuff up there a little better than the crap the city fathers want us to "enjoy". Long live truly talented, enjoyable artists. Jack the Dripper can go to WWII Germany.