So, I was giving some thought and writing about Washington, D.C. recently, and some ideas about what might help make a good trip down there. Writing about Washington, D.C., and all of those memorials got me to thinking, and gave me some ideas.
There is the Jefferson Memorial, as well as the Washington Monument, that honor great American leaders and minds of the eighteenth century. We could have similar memorials for other Americans with great minds, and performed great deeds, from those times, as well. I am thinking specifically of Benjamin Franklin, or James Madison, or a number of other prominent figures who greatly helped shape the nation, and the world, and make it what it is today.
There is the Lincoln Memorial, which honors the great American leader of the nineteenth century. We could have similar memorials for other Americans with great minds, and performed great deeds, from those times, as well. None perhaps stand out as a truly national leader and figure, like Lincoln did, but we could have memorials for numerous great minds and deeds, for individuals such as Frederick Douglas, or Henry David Thoreau, or Mark Twain. Minds that helped the nation progress along.
There are the memorials for Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Martin Luther King, Jr., which honor American leaders and thinkers of the twentieth century. Like those preceding centuries, we could have similar memorials for other Americans with great minds, and performed great deeds, from those times, as well. Perhaps Woodrow Wilson, or Theodore Roosevelt, or others who figured prominently in the civil rights movement, and again, helped to shape the nation and the world, to mold it into what it is today.
But what about the 21st century?
Yes, I know that some of you are thinking it's too early, but is it possible that we have some early frontrunners for such an honor?
How about one for President Bush, the President for most of the first decade of this new century, and new millennium? Surely, this man also helped to shape the world, to make it what it is today. There would be a statue of the man, most likely with a perplexed expression on his face. He would be standing, with a copy of the Constitution under his foot, representing, of course, how he and his administration trampled upon it. Perhaps, like the FDR Memorial, we can have rubble, representing not only the destructive wars he waged (illegally), but also the nation itself - symbolism of the fragmentation and polarization that was a large part of his legacy.We can be graced with his immortal words, with such memorable quotes like "Bring 'em on", or how Americans have "too much freedom". Yes, there are plenty of quotes to choose from that the man left. But maybe, we can have a video of that one moment when the man seemed incapable of putting even a simple sentence together, when he was unable to speak. As a fitting tribute as we leave the memorial, we can see President Bush rendered speechless, as we all will be after revisiting these times, and this leader that allegedly led us through them.
No? You don't like that one? Okay, then, how about one for President Barack Obama? Like with the Lincoln Memorial, we could have every state of the Union that existed during his presidency - in Obama's case specifically, 57 of them. We could have one very tall wall representing the hope and enthusiasm from all that he said, all that he promised, and all that he seemed to be during his electrifying 2008 campaign (and before), under the words "The Audacity of Hope". Then, on the other, much shorter wall, we could be shown the more sobering realities, and borrowing from Jello Biafra, we could name this wall "The Audacity of Hype". Here, we can see how he failed to close Gitmo, or put a definitive end to torture, as he said he would do. Here, we can get every word of the NDAA, which he signed into law, and which gave the President the ability to suspend habeas corpus. Perhaps we can have statues of sheeples, half sheep, and half people, who continue to defend the man and never, ever criticize any aspects of his Presidency, and here, be reminded that this man's best trait, simply put, was that he was not George W. Bush?
Then again, perhaps we already have too many memorials for presidents. Can we perhaps extend it to individuals who were not President?
How about a memorial for Dick Cheney? This might be stretching the truth of any idea of not building yet another memorial to honor another President, since this man seemed to be in charge during his tenure as "Vice-President", but let's go with it anyway (much like we collectively did throughout his, I mean, Bush's, presidency. It would, of course, have a statue, one with a permanent scowl on his face, to remind us, one and all, of his sunny disposition. The memorial itself could be another obelisk in the shape of a prick, and it would not have to be so big and obvious as the Washington Monument. In fact, as a fitting tribute, perhaps it should remain in an undisclosed location, and remain the city's dark secret. It would probably be underground, and instead of pointing towards the sky, it could point to the bowels of the earth, to the pits of hell, where the man himself belongs.
Or how about one for Governor Chris Christie? After all, that memorial cannot be in Governor Christie's allegedly home state of New Jersey, since he seems to want to spend such little of his time here (although I will give him accolades and say here that I think Christie not only did stay in Jersey throughout Hurricane Sandy, but also responded admirably, showing care and leadership), since he is busy campaigning across the nation for bigger and better things. So, why not a memorial to him in the city that he seems to be aiming to stay at to begin with?
How about one for Donald J. Trump? There could be a statue with a permanent scowl on the face, like Cheney's, only it could also have a colorful toupee on top of the head, for an amazing likeness to the real man. Unfortunately, there would be no quotes to put on or around this memorial, since the prerequisite to have quotes for such a memorial usually means that the individual had something worth saying. Still, we could blend modern technology, and have a recording of his voice going on constantly in the background, talking to everyone and no one in particular, just reaching out for anyone who might listen, clearly in love with the sound of his own voice. Just like the real man. Maybe we can build him a money vault a la Scrooge McDuck? Or maybe it should be another glass and steel structure, only this one underground, like the inverse pyramid in Paris, pointing down to the bowels of the earth, to hell? The thing is, that structure is beautiful, but Trump's should not be. it should be tacky and boring, like the man, and like those "towers" that he has built and named after himself. Perhaps, also in keeping with tradition, we can give it some elaborate name. Yeah, I like that.
Maybe one for Mitt Romney? This one could consist of a wall made of 47 stones, representing each of the percents that Mitt Romney did not care about, and it could be right in back of him, representing the wall of Americans that he could not see or care about. On second thought, maybe it should be right in front of him, while the statue itself faces the White House, looking ever onwards at the place where he obviously wanted to be, but could not get to. That wall would represent the major obstacle that prevented him from actually reaching the White House. At least this Romney could actually reside in Washington, something that the man in real life was unable to achieve. Maybe, like the FDR Memorial, there can be stumbling blocks, and each one would have quotes on it, with some kind of idiotic quote from the failed 2012 campaign.
What other individuals might we get for such a memorial? How about Sarah Palin? Michelle Bachmann? Perhaps a bus to represent the whoe "Tea Party" movement that graced the nation, as it would make the pilgrimage to Washington to hear the brilliant words of Glenn Beck? With any luck at all, that bus might just drive right on out of not just Washington, but the country altogether!
Hey, here's a novel idea: how about if the memorial is dedicated not to one individual, but to many of the same mind, and who have had an impact, however unfortunate, on shaping present day America, and the world? Like, say, Fox News? We can spread the wealth around, and....oh, wait a minute! That's exactly what they stand against! But at least we can have the words, "Fair and Balanced" high on top of everything else, and then all sorts of quotes to prove just how fair and balanced Fox has been. This memorial could be called "America", since FOX News seems to think that they represent the entire nation, and in keeping with that spirit, it can even be exclusive to those who agree with FOX, with all others kept out of their America. Maybe their can be a statue of a scapegoat, with a statue of a finger pointing at it. What a fitting tribute to this brand of news!
Or, of course, we can build a memorial to those who are truly on America's mind. It can be a whole bunch of stars from television and the "music industry" and the "entertainment industry". We can build them as beautiful statues who have nothing to say, just like in real life. Perhaps a representation of the private jets that we keep hearing about, and how this symbol of exclusivity and elitism is supposed to be something that we are all envious of? How about the cast of Jersey Shore? Or maybe an endless line of zombies, to represent the latest flavor of the moment, the "Walking Dead"? It could couple as representative of the collective American political conscious presently. Maybe a huge wall of indifference, or perhaps a statue of Johnny Depp's "dumb puppy" of American politics (I think he was right on target with that remark, as well)? All sorts of ideas we could wrestle with.
Yeah, I think that I might be on to something here!
If you are reading this, and want to share any ideas that you may have, please feel free to let me know what you have in mind for a memorial to honor some new American of the 21st century. I'm open to ideas!
No comments:
Post a Comment