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Original Iwo Jima monument coming to NYC auction

6 Comments
By ULA ILNYTZKY

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I would think if he cares so much about the statue, he would donate it to a museum. ... I somehow think money enters into it somewhere.

It sounds like he scraped up what he could afford to pay 23 years ago for something no one cared about at the time. He preserved it and at age 70, maybe he deserves to rewarded.

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I agree it should not be auctioned to the public.

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I find this article to be in questionable taste in a news service dedicated to sharing news about Japan. It is hardly a topic that i think would be an appealing one for most Japanese people, and considering the tragic loss of life on both sides during that battle hardly a topic that is comfortable for anyone, let alone a good one to attach heroic and other adjectives to. Lets focus on the positive issues of today and let sad history sleep.

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@Farmboy

I somehow think money enters into it somewhere.

Nothing wrong with that. It isn't as if he got it free, and he did pay for the restoration out of his own pocket.

Lets focus on the positive issues of today and let sad history sleep.

You do your country no favors by referring to the mistakes of the past as not being worthy of remembering. There were plenty of heroes to be had on both sides of the war, and there was more than enough blame to pass around. History should not be ignored simply because it makes people uncomfortable or sad. Pearl Harbor still hosts hundreds of tourists every day, both Japanese and American, and yes, it is sad, and yes, it is uncomfortable, however, it is a reminder to everyone that some things are just not worth it, and among those things is the foolishness of war.

This doesn't mean that these people are focusing on the negative, or the past. If you are actively trying to avoid the topic, then it isn't the topic that is making you uncomfortable; You were already uncomfortable with the topic, and therefore you try to avoid it. What is making you (to clarify, I am referring to the general "you", not to CrisGerSan specifically) uncomfortable is that the mistake was made and is being remembered.

There's nothing wrong with focusing on positive issues. There's nothing wrong with remembering the negative past. Both result in maturity and wisdom. There is, however, something wrong with avoiding past mistakes, and with telling others that these mistakes should not be remembered. These are bad habits, and tend to lead more to cultural isolation than to inclusion. It may not be as bad (or perhaps the better word is "dramatic") as those who obsess over the positive and the negative (the consequences of which aren't much better, albeit reached more quickly), but it sets a bad precedent for the mind to follow.

Focus on the future, but remember the past.

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