And they say AMERICA has no culture?
What does this look like to you? Does it look like the world's largest monument to utter incompetence? Is it simply the ugliest thing you've ever seen?
It's actually Russia's proof of how much more culture, taste and style it has compared to America. It's a 100-foot tall "monument" by Moscow sculptor Zurab Tsereteli called the "Tear of Sorrow" and supposedly commemorating victims of terrorism in the United States as a gift of the government of Russia. It's so ugly that when in September 2003, the mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey, agreed to have the monument erected on a Hudson River peer overlooking the World Trade Center redevelopment site, there was such a violent outcry from the local residents that the mayor was forced to rescind his offer. Tsereteli then spent the next two years trying to find a spot to erect his monstrosity, and ultimately got persmission to raise it in lowly, woebegotten Bayonne, where it was dedicated on September 11, 2006 -- but only after it was discovered that the plaque on the monument listing the names of those killed in the 9/11 attack included dozens of people who were still alive. At the ceremony, Tsereteli propagandized by stating: “All that I can say is in front of you. This Tear of Sorrow will become a tear of joy if the U.S. and Russia unite in the fight against terrorism.”
So let's see now. Two one-hundred-foot-tall presents in the area from foreign governments to the U.S. for Americans to review and compare (not that anyone is actually going to drag themselves all the way out to godawful Bayonne, but just theoretically speaking). One is the French Statute of Liberty and one is the Russian Tear of Sorrow. Well, perhaps the ghastly thing will serve a useful purpose after all. And if Russia continues down the path it is currently on, it will make a perfect tombstone for the nation that destroyed itself.
It's actually Russia's proof of how much more culture, taste and style it has compared to America. It's a 100-foot tall "monument" by Moscow sculptor Zurab Tsereteli called the "Tear of Sorrow" and supposedly commemorating victims of terrorism in the United States as a gift of the government of Russia. It's so ugly that when in September 2003, the mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey, agreed to have the monument erected on a Hudson River peer overlooking the World Trade Center redevelopment site, there was such a violent outcry from the local residents that the mayor was forced to rescind his offer. Tsereteli then spent the next two years trying to find a spot to erect his monstrosity, and ultimately got persmission to raise it in lowly, woebegotten Bayonne, where it was dedicated on September 11, 2006 -- but only after it was discovered that the plaque on the monument listing the names of those killed in the 9/11 attack included dozens of people who were still alive. At the ceremony, Tsereteli propagandized by stating: “All that I can say is in front of you. This Tear of Sorrow will become a tear of joy if the U.S. and Russia unite in the fight against terrorism.”
So let's see now. Two one-hundred-foot-tall presents in the area from foreign governments to the U.S. for Americans to review and compare (not that anyone is actually going to drag themselves all the way out to godawful Bayonne, but just theoretically speaking). One is the French Statute of Liberty and one is the Russian Tear of Sorrow. Well, perhaps the ghastly thing will serve a useful purpose after all. And if Russia continues down the path it is currently on, it will make a perfect tombstone for the nation that destroyed itself.
Labels:
neo-soviet failure,
russia
4 comments:
What does this look like to you?
Badly stylized female genitals?
Maybe that is why Russians have so many problems with population growth ;)
given that this is by a georgian sculptor, i'm surprised you didn't cite this as further evidence of anti-georgian sentiment in russia.
JOHN:
I hardly need any further evidence, it would seem that collecting names of Georgian children and mass deportations (which continue as we speak), to say nothing of an attempted coup d'etat, are more than sufficient.
But you raise an interesting point. Is he "Georgian" and if so what does that mean? Do you mean Georgian by race or by nationality? Does he hold a Russian passport or a Georgian one?
For instance, the #13 female tennis player in the world right now is Anna Chakvetadze. Is she Russian or Georgian? She holds a Russian passport, but if a Slavic Russian heard her name, would they recognize her a a "real" Russian? Given the way Russians are behaving towards Georgians right now, it's hard to imagine that any Georgian, even one born in Russia, could ever qualify for "real" citizenship in Russia in the eyes of Slavic Russians.
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