Remembering the white elephant

They said that World War I was "the war to end all wars" but it turns out that every few years Americans forget how much they like to kill people, especially brown people.

Liberty Memorial was erected (no homo?) So that this nation would never forget the tremendous sacrifice that so many young men made to avenge the death of Archduke Ferdinand or because the Germans put a tariff on strudel or whatever . . . The point is that despite some of the rave reviews given to the museum . . .Liberty Memorial is still a giant disaster given that after more than $25 million worth of repairs the place continues to fall apart.

In response to all of this a PR campaign quickly assured local news reporters that the place won't require any additional funds. However, the repair project appears to be so poorly conceived that sooner or later more money will inevitably be required. Case in point: The new gate in front of the complex doesn't work because the company that installed it didn't know it would have to operate in the elements.

Also, you might remember that the Liberty Memorial is already over budget.

So, while you can rest assured that nobody will remember whatever brave cause it was that soldiers so willingly gave their lives to for . . . What's more important to remember is that leaders throughout history will continue to misrepresent the cost of their efforts as they continually ask for more sacrifice while providing little or nothing in return.