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“Thy mandates make heroes assemble, when Liberty’s form stands in view; Thy banners make tyranny tremble, when borne by the Red, The “Profiles in Courage” that we all witnessed on September 11, 2001 — and in the horrifying months that followed — surpassed the bravest bravery most of us have ever seen. That is what makes the profiles in vanity of those who stole the recovery Americans had every right to expect a capital offense. Heads should roll — or at least reputations and careers — for putting their petty ambitions and prejudices before their loyalty to the American people. We are very glad that there is something suitable ready for the 10th Anniversary, because a lot of dedicated people have been working very hard for the sake of the country and the 9/11 Families. But it is certainly not the best we can do. What follows are constructive suggestions to make it better. Efforts to rebuild the World Trade Center and honor the dead in the ten years since 9/11 are usually described as incredibly complicated, but that is just part of the scam. The truth is that the overwhelming majority of us have always agreed on what was the fitting thing to do regarding both the towers and the memorial — and without interference and deception at the highest levels of our government and the media, splendid new Twin Towers and a noble memorial would have rapidly materialized. Unfortunately, a handful of headstrong officials with the “right” connections and the wrong motives abused their power and did tremendous damage. Everywhere we look today we see examples of government barreling down the tracks like a runaway train and there never seems to be anything we can do about it. But a crucial measure of the integrity of a system, a community, or a citizen is how effectively each can address and correct evident breakdowns and threats before they inevitably get worse. The dedicated workers who cleared away the hellacious wreckage of the 9/11 attacks months ahead of schedule — showed us how it’s done: You show up and you do it. The only other choice is to give up and self-medicate. That appears to be what we are doing as a nation, because everything seems to be beyond us to repair — but fixing a broken Memorial now would show just how effective we can be in fixing a broken World Trade Center and a broken country. Anyone who doubts that the Memorial really is broken only has to consider the $20 or $25 Museum admission fee that is being suggested to offset the complex’s absolutely insane $60 million per year operating costs. The biting comments that follow two columns in the online Gotham Gazette on July 14th and July 15th (links below) make it clear that the Memorial has been grossly mishandled. The question is, what can the people do about it now? Quite a bit. In our 6/23/11 Bulletin we included ideas for ways the Memorial could still realistically be adapted to make it less extravagant and more inspiring. We would have left it at that, but John McNeece, Jr., the 18-year-old from Ronkonkoma who had sent us the rendering that inspired our recent site upgrade, visualized the flags and fountains in the bulletin and put it into the visual form that got us thinking about this page. To fix the memorial we must stop treating it as if it’s someone’s grand “creation” with the public playing the role of captive audience and Community Chest. The design didn’t win a democratic competition — it was chosen from on high, just like the bogus towers were. Of course it can still be turned from a morbid extravaganza into a real memorial — we just have to show up and do it. Thirty years ago, Ronald Reagan won election on the theme that “It’s morning again in America.” It is our duty to reject the notion that America is going into perpetual mourning. Bin Laden attacked our symbols because symbols have power. They represent us as surely as simple icons on a computer screen represent the complex programs within. People around the world get it, even if we do not. We frequently hear from people in other countries who are heartsick at what we’re doing — and what we’re failing to do. The following is a part of a touching message a young man in England wrote to us in June: From 10:28 AM on 9/11, I have been hopeful of seeing the new Twins rise, and I still have hope that the Freedom Tower will be capped and the LMDC’s ”Reflecting Absence”, essentially a euphemism for ”Hijackers’ Memorial” will be disposed of. The footprint waterfalls resemble toilets, and that’s exactly what’s happening at Ground Zero, as water flushes down from the footprints, America’s dreams get flushed down, too… What is there to lose by considering a solution that could be accomplished in the year following the tenth anniversary, would not require tearing out anything that now exists, and would save the public at least $10 million annually, while resolving so many of the valid objections to the current plan? Nothing. What is there to gain? Over $100 million in the next decade and the confidence that comes with mastering our difficulties – which would be a template for constructive civic action. We are not going to actively promote this concept beyond this page, because so much related to our core mission now requires urgent effort. But this is an outline of our proposal, for what it is worth: The Fountains- Contrary to what keeps popping up in recent news reports, waterfalls are not fountains. One clearly rises and the other obviously falls. The symbolism of the “largest manmade falls in North America” is hard to miss. And so is the cost. The electricity needed to keep both waterfalls running — estimated at 1 megawatt per hour — would power about 800 average homes, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The 9/11 Memorial Foundation expects to raise most of its annual $50 – $60 million operating costs through private donations, but what if it doesn’t? Not only is it possible that visitors to the museum will pay $20-$25, but the foundation will also seek federal taxpayer funding to run a memorial that costs much more to opearte annually than it cost to build most national memorials — maybe put together. So once again, one way or another, the public is going to be on the hook for something we played no part in creating — except by electing irresponsible officials. Perhaps most expensive of all is the design that planners say “symbolizes the loss suffered in the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil and the impossibility of filling the resulting void.” But what if the people don’t agree that it’s mourning again in America? What if instead, tubing is laid across each footprint’s floor to feed real fountains — like the ones seen at memorials all around the world — that would speak of resilience and hope, instead of endless grief? Then a false floor could be laid above that to hide the piping and that huge, black drain. It would cost a fraction of the current plan to replace the inexorable rush down with gentle streams of water down the sides and then rising upward in dancing sprays that celebrate how life goes on. And we could still turn on the waterfalls for the annual anniversary ceremony. So in the end, nothing would be wasted and much would be saved. The Flags- Flags, like fountains, are universally present at national memorials because their colors and symbols, representing courage and solidarity, resonate in the human heart. The 400 trees that bespeak rest and renewal will be lovely when they change color and grow to their full height. They are a welcome addition to the site. But the fluttering banners representing every nation that lost a citizen — 15 per angle and 20 feet apart — would stir peoples’ souls. They would add a missing dimension to the current memorial without adding appreciably to the cost. The flags were especially important to the 9/11 Families who were consulted on the “Twin Towers II” memorial design, which archived now, is presented here. The Sounds- To follow… The Tomb- To follow… The Sphere- To follow… If we have the will, we have a way. It’s time for the media will stop behaving as if there is a statute of limitations on solving our problems and publicize this on the basis that it would save the public over ten million dollars a year while addressing virtually all of the flaws that mar the current plan. And then it is their duty to poll the public and the 9/11 Families, since our “leaders” never will. There is no reason to hold the Memorial hostage to Mayor Bloomberg’s prejudice and conceit — or anyone else’s. While the funding was 60% private, it is highly unlikely that the donors were voting for the design, but for the commemoration. The other 40% was paid for by a public agency and the entire project has been supported by Federal taxpayers from the beginning — with no end in sight. Now Mayor Bloomberg is floating the idea of getting the Federal Government to subsidized the complex — but if we can achieve a better memorial in the eyes of most Americans, while shaving off the exorbitant cost of the waterfalls, why wouldn’t we? If people find this proposal uplifting and inspiring, instead of distressing and disabling, what legitimate obstacles could there be to implementing the changes in time for the Grand Opening of the entire National 9/11 Memorial and Museum complex in 2012?
The Gotham Gazette 7/14/11 The Gotham Gazette 7/15/11 The Washington Times 7/7/11 The New York Post 6/18/11 Reuters 6/2/11 Save The WTC Sphere “Twin Towers II” designer Kenneth Gardner concluded his remarks at the May, 2005, press conference in the lobby of Trump Tower with a timeless call to greatness. The lines from the Tennyson poem “Ulysses” capture the essence of why he bothered, why we bother, and why we all must bother to be standard-bearers for what is true. What is true at Ground Zero is that the an unfair advantage was given to those who did not have the American people’s best interests at heart. No one with any sense of the twists and turns of history would bet the farm that it’s over at Ground Zero — no matter how it looks. Our 8/16/11 bulletin — “The Anatomy of a Swindle” — explains why that would be a risky bet. In a democracy, doing the right thing in the collective sense depends on doing the right thing as individuals. Whether or not the Twin Towers rise again is beyond any one of us to determine. But speaking out and taking a stand against the failure to honor the collective will of the people at Ground Zero is the duty of everyone who believes that was and is wrong. Lowering our standards to accept or tolerate or settle for what is expedient is not compromise, but to be compromised. Come, my friends,‘Tis not too late to seek a newer world… That which we are, we are, One equal-temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. |
