Symbolic Structures

 Have you been to Manhattan? Major arts buildings were funded for the people by folks like the Rockefellers, the Carnegies and more. Wealthy people funded civilization and culture— not just for themselves but for others.

Now, take a look at the debris of the White House’s East Wing. Consider the exorbitant and unnecessary ballroom for billionaires that is set to go up in its place.
The current government is shut down. The Department of Education is emptying itself through layoffs. Public Radio has been defunded. Medical research and other health services are being chipped away at.
But the White House Ballroom still rises.
The president claims that it is private funds which are making the extravagance possible. If that’s the case, shame on the wealthy. I encourage them to look at the less-than-perfect, yet still generous philanthropists of the past. There are much better ways to leave a legacy than the destruction of something that wasn’t broken, something that belonged to the people.
If it is being funded by our tax dollars, even in part, I also say “shame on you” to anyone who supports this. The president did not go through the proper channels to make this change. Furthermore, he told everyone he had no intentions to demolish any part of the building.
Is this symbolic of who we, the USA, have become? I don’t want these actions to speak for me…I want my time and power to be spent generously for the betterment of conditions for everyone. I may not always succeed, but I will not give up trying.

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