Neglected National Mall languishes

[Stinky The Clown]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090723/ap_on_re_us/us_neglected_national_mall

WASHINGTON – Crumbling sidewalks near the Jefferson Memorial are sinking into the Tidal Basin. Reflecting pools are filled with green, smelly water. And millions of visitors have trampled the soil into virtual concrete where grass can't grow.

The National Mall is in danger of becoming a national disgrace.

"It does not deserve the name 'National Mall,'" said Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the city's nonvoting member of Congress. "We ought to call it something else until it looks decent."

The Obama administration recently steered $55 million in economic stimulus money toward repairs, but Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says that's only a down payment on the nearly $400 million needed to fix up a national park that draws more visitors than Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon and Yosemite combined.

>snip<

Much more at the link to the full AP story.

[marmar]

1. Too bad.....It truly is the nation's gathering place.

Think of all the history there - "I Have a Dream" and so on.

[marmar]

2. Why would this post warrant an unrec? Jeezus.

n/t

[Deja Q]

6. Well, that's how DU runs. People have the right.

Doesn't mean it's wrong, however...

[lame54]

10. Why? - because I can...

actually it wasn't me - but I like to fit that phrase in whenever possible

:evilgrin:

[Stinky The Clown]

3. Why the anonymous, COWARDLY unrecs for this thread?

The thread is completely innocuous. A link to an AP story with NO commentary.

So, with that said, to whomever unreced this thread ...... FUCK YOU, you chickenshit, jerkoff COWARD.

[Liberal_in_LA]

4. If the thread were about saving puppies and bunnies, it would get unrecs.

:shrug:

[marmar]

5. Very true.....Some of the unrecs are just personal.

If poster A posts it, poster B unrecs it on reflex.

[KatyMan]

7. That's so weird

I very rarely look at who is posting what. The only person whose name really sticks out at me is A Schwarzenegger, only because I hope against hope for more Oscar stories...

[Mike Daniels]

8. Well, letting rec leagues play flag football and kickball on it hasn't helped

Even if you totally re-sod the entire "lawn" the only way to keep it in good shape would be to prohibit allowing people to walk on it. Good luck with that when you have millions of people visiting just that area alone each year.

[Stinky The Clown]

9. The concept is 'maintenance' ...... you're right. It will never be a teevee Scott's Fertilizer lawn

But it can better than it is.

If the rec leagues were confined to one area, that would be acceptable, even if the lawn turned to bare dirt each August. It could then be retilled and replanted each Fall. Not so expensive, really.

There are also turf techniques and lawn construction methods that can withstand extraordinarily high traffic. Not chep. But they do exist.

[bvar22]

11. Another sign of an Empire in Decline.

However, we DO have Billions to spend on our Armies of Foreign Occupation,

AND a $Billion to build a cool NEW Monument to American Capitalism in the Middle East!

"The U.S. is embarking on a $1 billion crash program to expand its diplomatic presence in Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan, another sign that the Obama administration is making a costly, long-term commitment to war-torn South Asia, U.S. officials said Wednesday.

The White House has asked Congress for — and seems likely to receive — $736 million to build a new U.S. embassy in Islamabad, along with permanent housing for U.S. government civilians and new office space in the Pakistani capital.

The scale of the projects rivals the giant U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, which was completed last year after construction delays at a cost of $740 million.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/251/story/68952.html