1.  The memorials I read about were the Korean War memorial, which is located in Washington D.C.  This memorial was built and designed by Louis Nelson and Frank Gaylord.  It was created in 1995 and consists of statues that are in the shape of soldiers.  There is also a wall with 38 soldiers that represent the 38th parallel.  This memorial was interesting to read about because I have been there and seen all of these pieces in the memorial.  Another memorial I read about was the World War II memorial.  This memorial was established on May 29, 2002 also located in Washington D.C.  The memorial consists of 56 pillars and arches around a huge fountain.  The fountain is located between the Lincoln memorial and the Washington Monument.  I also had the pleasure of seeing this memorial, which allowed me to connect a lot easier to the article.

2.  I think the construction of these memorials was built to remember a heroic and impactful day in history.  The memorials are built so that those who were not there to witness the event or see the people who were involved and or heroes in the event, are able to go to a museum at anytime and get information so they can always remember U.S history.  I think this was the main reason why the memorials were built and I think that is responsible and very realistic.  It's vital that our nation's people remember our history so that it does not repeat itself and although the schools teach history it is important to see the real life artifacts and learn visually about the event.

3.  After reading the other articles I think that there should be a World War I memorial because it is another very important piece of history in America.  It had the most deaths and impacted the lives of all Americans.  It would be a very important memorial to have also because it happened a long time ago, so it would be helpful to have it so people would always remember.  It's important that it will never be forgotten and that World War I is just as impactful as the other wars and memorials.

4.  After the tragedy in Boston I realized that it was the first tragedy that I can fully remember taking place.  It was something that I had expiriance first hand and that I would tell my children about someday.  In my opinion I think it affected everyone and cause American and Boston specifically, to come together and overcome the pain and hate that had been inflicted upon us.  With these feelings, I feel that a memorial would be appropriate because it is a drastic event in history that will impact every major event from now on.  I think within the next five years would be ideal and should include pictures off the attack.  I also think a display of sneakers or the signs made or numbers of the runners would really give the museum a sense of realism.  Its very important for historic events to be honored and out in public for everyone to see so that it will not be repeated.

Thomas Maye
Block 1 Civics
June 2nd, 2013
American Memorials Reflection

1)
The memorials I read about were the 9/11 Museum in construction, the Vietnam Memorial and the pearl Harbor Memorial. The 9/11 Memorial is currently being built by a Museum committee and it will be placed underneath the memorial fountains on ground zero. The Vietnam Memorial was designed by Maya Ying Lin. Construction first started on March 16, 1982 and was completely finished on November 10, 1984. The Pearl Harbor memorial was finished being built in 1961.

2)
I think that the memorials mentioned were important to be built because they help a nation heal as a whole. Everybody has different ways of coping with loss and though some people may not like seeing a memorial all the time, others may cope by actually seeing the memorial or Museum in front of their eyes. In addition, seeing the memorial can help future generations learn about the disaster, or at least have a desire to find out more about it in books and online. When I went to Washington and saw the Vietnam memorial, for example, I was curious about it and looked up about it online so I could learn more about the Vietnam War. However, I think that while memorials should be public, they should not be placed in the middle of a busy public area. A memorial is all about helping people move forward from the disaster and if they are placed in the middle of a city square, it would hold people back by constantly being reminded of it.  

3)
I do think that there should be a World War One Memorial in Washington, DC eventually. Though I understand why opposition may feel that it is unnecessary, because it was so long ago and would use up government money, I feel as though not having one would be a disservice to the men and women who served during the war. It just seems disrespectful and hypocritical that other wars get million dollar memorial projects built for them, while the first world war gets nothing in our nation's capitol. In addition, a Museum could help us understand the war better. Not only would artifacts and documents be eyeopening and informative to the public, but the construction of said Museum would bring in a lot of media attention which would encourage people to learn about it and for archeologists to find out more facts and artifacts about the war, which could lead to us finding out more about it than we previously did. Other disasters do not need memorials, because they did not change our history as a whole. But saying that a World War does not affect our history would just be ridiculous to say.

4)
Though I do think that the Boston Bombings deserve a memorial, I do not know if building one is necessary. I do not mean to be disrespectful in saying this, but memorializing the bombings would not really help us go forward in any way. In ten years, it will all be a hazy memory that our children will have never heard of and though it affected many people personally, I do not think that it affected our country's history as a whole very much. The Bombings were a tragedy, but they didn't bring us any new ways to fight terrorism or save lives. The bravery of first responders is something to be proud of, but there are such people in every sort of disaster imaginable in addition to cowards like the terrorists. I feel like a jerk saying this, but we did not learn much from the disaster so memorializing it would just bring us down. And I feel like we should instead use our money to fund new ways to fight terrorists like this, than giving them what they want and allowing them to remain infamous in our local and national history. That way, we hopefully won't need to make more memorials for things like this, and we can avoid the grief of losing loved ones to horrible people like the terrorists who did this.