Commentary
– A rational and reasonable argument to have at, say, a meeting where multiple local people discuss whether to keep the statue where it is or perhaps move it to a museum. However, the mob were not listening to anyone’s opinion but their own in the heat of the moment and so did substantial damage to a ninety year old artwork created by a pillar of their community who died more than seventy‐five years ago. Similarly, the Palmyra complex no longer stood as a symbol of the current Syrian people, so ISIL destroyed it. The Buddhas of Bamyan no longer represented the values of modern‐day Afghanistan, so the Taliban destroyed them. Lawbreaking rioters should not have the final word on whether works of art get willfully destroyed or preserved. (F)
– I can hardly wait. 😒 (Mi)
– If people feel that these supposed “status quo entrenched powers” (probably a community board) are ignoring them, there are other avenues, like a letter‐writing campaign, to promote awareness of an issue. Also, people who want a statue to remain in place must also have their voices heard and may even win the argument; just because those who want it removed don’t get their way doesn’t mean no one listened to them. I also guarantee you that the rioters who toppled the statue never went through these proper channels to have a piece of art relocated but rather brutalized it in anger, which is absolutely no way to treat cultural artifacts. (F)