Has it occurred to you the Los Alamos doesn't have a Founder's Day? Most small towns do (even the fictional Eureka which is a take-off on Los Alamos). Founder's Day celebrates the founding of the town and the generation which labored to make it happen. It is a celebration of the town itself; a celebration of having the town at all. Hold that thought................
When you look in the mirror, who do you see? Pull out a picture from your high school days. Look closely – beyond the signifiers of age, are you really much different? I'm pretty much the same – perhaps a bit more weathered though perhaps no wiser. Yet the me in the photo of 40 years ago pretty much looks like me now. Its called continuity.
Who do you look like? Your mother or your father? And is there not a grandparent and a great-grandparent whom you resemble? I can pull out photos of my Dad in his 20's and the similarity is rather striking. I can compare photos of my Dad age 5, myself age 5, and my son age 5 and except for the background you could swear you were looking at the same kid. That, too, is continuity. Hold that thought...................
Every town grows and experiences change. New things are added. Some things are lost. Yet, look closely. Even London retains vestiges of Londinium. Today, Kit Carson could look at Taos and see all that is new, all that has changed over a hundred years – and yet, he would still recognize the place as Taos. The vast megalopolis that is Los Angeles retains the village from whence it sprang. So it is with all towns and cities, just as it is with us as individuals. You can see the growth and change, yet what that came from still remains. Certain aspects, the most important aspects, remain thereby establishing a line of continuity. Break that line of continuity and identity ceases to exist.
It is sometimes said that we need to keep the site of the original Municipal Building as a park, or perhaps build a performance pavilion. Either way, it is said that this will be a place for people to gather as a "community". Really? What is gained is temporary, what is lost is permanent. It becomes a fun zone for residents of the present without regard to those who came before or those who will come after. In what way is that "community" ?
To restore the Municipal Building, as it was, where it was (better construction) is to restore to Los Alamos a line of continuity, a heritage and identity. And more. The Municipal Building embodied and symbolized the crowning achievement of the Founding Generation of Los Alamos – Los Alamos as an independent, self-governing entity. To restore the Municipal Building is to honor that generation which made it possible for you to have a town in which to live at all.
The day when we re-dedicate the restored Municipal Building will be the first time that the people of Los Alamos will have truly celebrated the Founders of this town in a celebration of the town itself – of its past, its present, and its future.
That, more than a park or a performance stage, is what is meant by "community".
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
37) Walkabout
I have been walking the neighborhoods and precincts of Los Alamos and White Rock, knocking on doors, and meeting and talking to the residents of the County since mid-March. Perhaps it would be useful to write something daily here, relaying what I hear -- downside is I am not really a diarist and then there is the time problem of just writing it (I type slow)..........besides, what I hear is best absorbed over time and doesn't really lend itself well to immediate report and analysis.
The exercise has proven educational to say the least. I wish that Council Chambers were filled with the people I have heard from telling Council what they tell me. Probably not likely. Things folks say to one another in single conversation rarely are expounded in the public arena; probably has to do with the formality of the latter setting and the time constraints thereof which tends to weigh against discourse.
What occurs to me is that the Leadership LA program would best be served by having its "students" engage in a similar exercise. Though like as not the results would be less than to be hoped for since the exercise would be a contrivance, not a conversation.
One thing is crystal clear: County government, policy makers, and policy advocates are so out of touch with the citizenry that they might just as well be from different galaxies. That fact cannot be in the long-term best interests of Los Alamos and her future.
The exercise has proven educational to say the least. I wish that Council Chambers were filled with the people I have heard from telling Council what they tell me. Probably not likely. Things folks say to one another in single conversation rarely are expounded in the public arena; probably has to do with the formality of the latter setting and the time constraints thereof which tends to weigh against discourse.
What occurs to me is that the Leadership LA program would best be served by having its "students" engage in a similar exercise. Though like as not the results would be less than to be hoped for since the exercise would be a contrivance, not a conversation.
One thing is crystal clear: County government, policy makers, and policy advocates are so out of touch with the citizenry that they might just as well be from different galaxies. That fact cannot be in the long-term best interests of Los Alamos and her future.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
36) The Pony Cart
Los Alamos is a Pony Cart being pulled by a Clydesdale. Oh, and there is a haywagon hitched to the back of the pony cart. Of course all anyone can see is the horse. Because of that the pony cart, which was once fresh and new and rather nice, has been allowed to get shabby and rickety. But, hey, don't we have a fine Clydesdale!
Problem is the driver in the pony cart can only see one part of the Horse, and that is so big that the driver can't see the road. So the Horse just meanders along in whatever direction the Horse wants to go with no knowing on the part of the driver where that direction might lead.
Some seem to think that the thing to do is build a large, ungainly, superstructure on the pony cart. That, of course, will put extra weight and stress on the axles, wheels, and under-carriage, but the superstructure crowd isn't thinking about that.
Now, wouldn't it make more sense to get some ponies to pull the cart, get the cart back into decent repair, and hitch the Clydesdale directly to the haywagon?
Problem is the driver in the pony cart can only see one part of the Horse, and that is so big that the driver can't see the road. So the Horse just meanders along in whatever direction the Horse wants to go with no knowing on the part of the driver where that direction might lead.
Some seem to think that the thing to do is build a large, ungainly, superstructure on the pony cart. That, of course, will put extra weight and stress on the axles, wheels, and under-carriage, but the superstructure crowd isn't thinking about that.
Now, wouldn't it make more sense to get some ponies to pull the cart, get the cart back into decent repair, and hitch the Clydesdale directly to the haywagon?
Sunday, July 11, 2010
35) Continuity
Something I've been hearing is, "Well, its all about the people -- nothing else really matters". Really?
People are temporary -- they come, the go, they live, they raise children, they die and their children and children's children repeat the cycle. Populations cycle, though they never really change. And yet.........
At the end of the premier performance of Beethoven's 3rd Symphony a critic asked the composer, "Who are you writing for" to which Beethoven replied, "I am writing for a generation not yet born". It is the fact of the impermanence of our existance which drives us to leave some kind of mark, some legacy, beyond the span of our short years. Art, Literature, Music, Science, Engineering, Architecture are the works which live beyond us and create a continuity from one generation to the next. These are not a matter of the false pride of Ozymandius "Behold my might works and tremble". They are the Gift we give to those whom we will never know. Without them each generation would have to re-invent the wheel.
The Dark Ages were brought about by the total obliteration of the Roman Empire including her Legacy in the Arts, Sciences, and Engineering. The Rennaiscance was launched by the re-discovery of this lost knowledge -- a re-discovery without which our modern world would not be possible.
To my knowledge there are only two buildings standing in the Los Alamos Townsite which hearken back to the War Years -- the CB Fox building, and the Little Theater. Did you know that the Downtown Revitalization Master Plan adopted in 02 envisioned flattening both? Had the Plan been implemented an entire era would have been lost forever.
Look around you now. How many of the structures of the AEC era, 1947 - 1967, are being demolished? How many will remain? Did you know there was a proposal made which, if implemented, would have flattened every government built house in northern area?
Here's a rather odd contradiction: Recently the Historical Society rebuilt and restored the Romero cabin and Council has approved a plan which includes erecting a statue to an early scientist not for his scientific achievements but for saving The Lodge from demolition. Both of these are pre-War structures and each is the last surviving representative of its era. Yet, the people who celebrate these structures are the same who would have the Municipal Building and other structures of the post war years demolished and lost forever.
The Dark Ages were caused by the breaking of continuity with the Past -- a past that was obliterated out of pure spite. That continuity was broken for over 400 years. It changed nothing. The darker side of human nature remains. Where do you suppose we would be today if the the knowledge and works of the Ancient World had been preserved and built upon and added to in an unbroken continuity though the generations?
People are temporary; that which they build and create is what counts. When the thread of continuity from one generation to the next is summarily cut, then the future becomes very uncertain indeed.
People are temporary -- they come, the go, they live, they raise children, they die and their children and children's children repeat the cycle. Populations cycle, though they never really change. And yet.........
At the end of the premier performance of Beethoven's 3rd Symphony a critic asked the composer, "Who are you writing for" to which Beethoven replied, "I am writing for a generation not yet born". It is the fact of the impermanence of our existance which drives us to leave some kind of mark, some legacy, beyond the span of our short years. Art, Literature, Music, Science, Engineering, Architecture are the works which live beyond us and create a continuity from one generation to the next. These are not a matter of the false pride of Ozymandius "Behold my might works and tremble". They are the Gift we give to those whom we will never know. Without them each generation would have to re-invent the wheel.
The Dark Ages were brought about by the total obliteration of the Roman Empire including her Legacy in the Arts, Sciences, and Engineering. The Rennaiscance was launched by the re-discovery of this lost knowledge -- a re-discovery without which our modern world would not be possible.
To my knowledge there are only two buildings standing in the Los Alamos Townsite which hearken back to the War Years -- the CB Fox building, and the Little Theater. Did you know that the Downtown Revitalization Master Plan adopted in 02 envisioned flattening both? Had the Plan been implemented an entire era would have been lost forever.
Look around you now. How many of the structures of the AEC era, 1947 - 1967, are being demolished? How many will remain? Did you know there was a proposal made which, if implemented, would have flattened every government built house in northern area?
Here's a rather odd contradiction: Recently the Historical Society rebuilt and restored the Romero cabin and Council has approved a plan which includes erecting a statue to an early scientist not for his scientific achievements but for saving The Lodge from demolition. Both of these are pre-War structures and each is the last surviving representative of its era. Yet, the people who celebrate these structures are the same who would have the Municipal Building and other structures of the post war years demolished and lost forever.
The Dark Ages were caused by the breaking of continuity with the Past -- a past that was obliterated out of pure spite. That continuity was broken for over 400 years. It changed nothing. The darker side of human nature remains. Where do you suppose we would be today if the the knowledge and works of the Ancient World had been preserved and built upon and added to in an unbroken continuity though the generations?
People are temporary; that which they build and create is what counts. When the thread of continuity from one generation to the next is summarily cut, then the future becomes very uncertain indeed.
Friday, June 25, 2010
34) The Lamp
I have a small red plastic heart -- one of those little trinket charms that come from a bubble gum machine. It might be worth a penny. It was a gift which I've had for years and have no plan to get rid of it.
I also have in the house a lamp. It is what most people these days would call "god-awful". It is supposed to be art-deco in style. Its made out of aluminum. And it doesn't work. I have no plan to get rid of it either.
It is said that one person's trash is another's treasure. A current councilor said to me, "I just don't understand how anyone could love an old barracks." You don't have to understand why someone treasures something; you do have to respect that they do -- particularly when the thing treasured does no one any real harm.
In "Picture of Dorian Grey" Oscar Wilde wrote, "A cynic is a person who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing." We live in cynical times; we live in destructive times; we live in times when the treasures of some are cast aside by those who consider them to be trash.
Before there was the biblical story of Lot, there was the Greek story of Diogenes who wandered the streets of a doomed city holding the Lamp of Truth in his hand looking for one honest person.
The Lamp is my wife's. It was made by her beloved grandfather and is one of the few things she has of his and of him.
The question arises: is your definition of "trash" so correct, right, and true that it justifies casting aside that which someone else treasures, though the thing in contention does no harm? It is an ethical question. Good luck with that one. As you wrangle with it, one by one, the public buildings of Los Alamos pre- 1970 are falling.
The Lamp flickers and fades. Will you let it go out?
I also have in the house a lamp. It is what most people these days would call "god-awful". It is supposed to be art-deco in style. Its made out of aluminum. And it doesn't work. I have no plan to get rid of it either.
It is said that one person's trash is another's treasure. A current councilor said to me, "I just don't understand how anyone could love an old barracks." You don't have to understand why someone treasures something; you do have to respect that they do -- particularly when the thing treasured does no one any real harm.
In "Picture of Dorian Grey" Oscar Wilde wrote, "A cynic is a person who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing." We live in cynical times; we live in destructive times; we live in times when the treasures of some are cast aside by those who consider them to be trash.
Before there was the biblical story of Lot, there was the Greek story of Diogenes who wandered the streets of a doomed city holding the Lamp of Truth in his hand looking for one honest person.
The Lamp is my wife's. It was made by her beloved grandfather and is one of the few things she has of his and of him.
The question arises: is your definition of "trash" so correct, right, and true that it justifies casting aside that which someone else treasures, though the thing in contention does no harm? It is an ethical question. Good luck with that one. As you wrangle with it, one by one, the public buildings of Los Alamos pre- 1970 are falling.
The Lamp flickers and fades. Will you let it go out?
Saturday, June 19, 2010
33) When developers get it right
Roger Waterman had a good idea. It was called Bradbury Row and it was the best idea being pursued at the time. For that matter, it was one of the best ideas that has been proposed or pursued in Los Alamos in a very long time.
The idea was simple -- acquire the LA Apartments, rehab them, rent them, and use the rental incomes to finance building a retail/commercial portion fronting Central. This was a great idea -- create a classic mixed use development in a non-destructive manner while preserving buildings of a previous period of Los Alamos history and development. Had this gone forward, the total amount of the land space would have been brought into full economic use and the addition to Los Alamos in economic activity would have been substantial.
Unfortunately events conspired against Roger's very good idea.
But it is still a very good idea, and still very do-able -- a mixed use residential/retail/commercial development can still be done. It would provide housing for single adults while simultaneously creating a shopping promenade that would tie the Mari-Mac center with the older traditional center twixt 15th and 20th. If you have ever been to the Santa Monica 3rd Street Promenade, you know exactly what this would look like.
Reality Check -- which would give Los Alamos the greatest benefit on the LA apartment site: a Bradbury row style development, or a government office building which doesn't earn a dime nor in any consequential way contributes to the over-all economy?
The idea was simple -- acquire the LA Apartments, rehab them, rent them, and use the rental incomes to finance building a retail/commercial portion fronting Central. This was a great idea -- create a classic mixed use development in a non-destructive manner while preserving buildings of a previous period of Los Alamos history and development. Had this gone forward, the total amount of the land space would have been brought into full economic use and the addition to Los Alamos in economic activity would have been substantial.
Unfortunately events conspired against Roger's very good idea.
But it is still a very good idea, and still very do-able -- a mixed use residential/retail/commercial development can still be done. It would provide housing for single adults while simultaneously creating a shopping promenade that would tie the Mari-Mac center with the older traditional center twixt 15th and 20th. If you have ever been to the Santa Monica 3rd Street Promenade, you know exactly what this would look like.
Reality Check -- which would give Los Alamos the greatest benefit on the LA apartment site: a Bradbury row style development, or a government office building which doesn't earn a dime nor in any consequential way contributes to the over-all economy?
Friday, June 11, 2010
32) The Cosmic Test
So, you are walking along the beach in Santa Monica. It is early morning and you are the only person out and about. Well, almost the only person. You see a transient sleeping on a park bench up ahead. The person's shopping cart with all the worldly possesions is parked close by, and there is a jacket hanging on the end of the bench.
You have a $20 bill burning a hole in your pocket. What do you do?
A) You move to the far side of the promenade and pass on by.
B) You don't move to the far side of the promenade ---- just pass on by.
C) You wake up the transient and give the person the $20.
D) You wake up the transient and offer to buy the person breakfast.
E) You report the transient to the authorities.
F) You slip the $20 into the pocket of the transient's jacket and continue on.
I'm not going to give you an answer. But consider the following: What is your first reaction upon seeing the transient? Have you ever really seen one? What are you thinking? What assumptions have you already made about the transient? Is your choice influenced by sex, age, and general appearance of the transient? Why?
Which of the above choices is more about you, and which is more about the transient? Does it occur to you that the choice you make regarding the transient says more about who you are, about your world view, than anything else -- and that the same reasoning/feeling/beliefs that you bring into play here probably also direct most of your other choices?
Why do you/did you make the choice you made? And why to that? How deeply are you willing to explore your own motivations?
What else can you learn about yourself and your relationship to the Cosmos?
How does the above apply to your perceptions of Los Alamos?
You have a $20 bill burning a hole in your pocket. What do you do?
A) You move to the far side of the promenade and pass on by.
B) You don't move to the far side of the promenade ---- just pass on by.
C) You wake up the transient and give the person the $20.
D) You wake up the transient and offer to buy the person breakfast.
E) You report the transient to the authorities.
F) You slip the $20 into the pocket of the transient's jacket and continue on.
I'm not going to give you an answer. But consider the following: What is your first reaction upon seeing the transient? Have you ever really seen one? What are you thinking? What assumptions have you already made about the transient? Is your choice influenced by sex, age, and general appearance of the transient? Why?
Which of the above choices is more about you, and which is more about the transient? Does it occur to you that the choice you make regarding the transient says more about who you are, about your world view, than anything else -- and that the same reasoning/feeling/beliefs that you bring into play here probably also direct most of your other choices?
Why do you/did you make the choice you made? And why to that? How deeply are you willing to explore your own motivations?
What else can you learn about yourself and your relationship to the Cosmos?
How does the above apply to your perceptions of Los Alamos?
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