Originally Posted by
Darkoz
Originally Posted by
redietz
I actually feel very differently about flags versus statues. I need to get my i's dotted before writing about it, but evidently my view is not terribly original. A black politician on "Designated Survivor" makes the same argument I do, I've been told (only watched a couple shows).
I did catch an academic debate where the argument was made that statues are commemorations of events, not necessarily celebrations, which I agree with. Flags are in-your-face celebrations. To me, very different things.
My main argument against destroying statues is that it's an attempt to eradicate real history, even though the history can be brutal and evil. Anything that reminds us of how stupid and capable of evil we are has some value in putting today's moral absolutism in perspective. Yesterday's brutality was also yesterday's moral absolutism.
I suppose a statue of Hitler should be okay then
Well, that's the question, succinctly put. I have personal tastes, which would preclude any Hitler statues or the giant Confederate stone bas relief in Georgia, but I'm not sure my personal tastes are the best way to go. I suspect not. I mean, you could ask similar questions regarding any American leaders who oversaw the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Should we have paintings or statues of them anywhere? Should any American governmental leader present during the takeover of Native American land, and the resulting slaughter due to Euro-introduced pandemics, be featured on any public statues or in any public paintings? Cortes' invasion of Mexico killed, via pandemics, many more people than Hitler.
What is the difference between having statues in public or in museums? If you have a "Garden of Heroes," should that be privately owned or publicly funded? Is everything privately owned okay, or are certain things off limits? If the late owner of the Imperial Palace threw his Hitler birthday parties in private, why was that so bad?