Vietnam Memorial Wall Replica Coming to Indiana

Residents in three Indiana towns will have the opportunity this year to see a scaled replica of the Vietnam Memorial through the Wall That Heals, a traveling educational and memorial experience.

The first 2018 Indiana stop, Salem on May 17-20, is sponsored by the Washington County Community Foundation. Executive director Judy Johnson offers that of over 100 communities nationally that applied to host the Wall That Heals, only 39 were selected.

The Wall That Heals will also have Indiana stops in Milan on September 6-8 and Middletown on September 27-30.

Of the various events that will be scheduled around the wall’s stop in Salem, Johnson says retired Lieutenant General Michael S. Tucker will be the guest speaker during the organization’s opening ceremony.

The Wall That Heals is a three-quarter size replica of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C., and is 375 feet long and 7.5 feet high at the tallest point. All names on the original memorial are included and visitors can do name rubbings on the replica.

The Washington County Community Foundation offers more on the organization’s web site:

Hosting The Wall That Heals provides a community with a multi-day experience of reflection that includes an educational experience for local schools and organizations on the history of the Vietnam era and The Wall.

The exhibit includes The Wall replica and a mobile Education Center that comprises digital displays of photos of service members whose names are on The Wall; letters and memorabilia left at The Wall by visitors; a map of Vietnam; and a chronological overview of the Vietnam War.

The exhibits tell the story of the Vietnam War, The Wall, and the era surrounding the conflict, and are designed to place American experiences in Vietnam in an historical and cultural context.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is one of the most visited memorials in our nation’s capital, with more than 5.6 million visitors each year. However, many Americans have not been able to visit what has become known to many as “The Wall.” The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF), the organization that built The Wall in 1982, wants to provide all veterans, their family members, and the general public across America an opportunity to visit the memorial.

“Taking The Wall That Heals on the road gives thousands more veterans and their family members an opportunity to see The Wall and honor those who have served and sacrificed so much,” said Jim Knotts, president and CEO of VVMF. “It helps veterans from all of America’s conflicts to find healing and a powerful connection through their common military experiences.”

More than 200,000 people visited The Wall That Heals in 2016. Since its debut in 1996, the exhibit has been on display in nearly 500 U.S. communities, as well as internationally during an April 1999 tour of the Four Provinces of Ireland, and a visit to Canada in 2005.

VVMF coordinates local stops of The Wall That Heals and the accompanying mobile Education Center. The current schedule and more information can be found at:  www.thewallthatheals.org.

Massachusetts to Legislators: If the Voters Grow Tired of You, You Should Make More Money

Things to like about Massachusetts: Well, Salem seems pretty cool. And you’ve got to respect the Celtics. I’ve always wanted to tour the Lizzie Borden House, so that’s a plus. Oh, and they have some very sound governmental policies … ok, maybe three out of four ain’t bad.

I’m going to tell you a story; we’ll call it "The Ballad of J. James Marzilli, Jr." Raise your hand when something sounds askew.

A state senator serves the public for over 20 years. He then resigns and announces he won’t seek re-election after he’s arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, and accosting a person of the opposite sex. However, his name remains on the ballot and he loses handily — what with all the alleged accosting and whatnot. Yet, he files to double his pension. In doing so, he cites a state law that allows elected officials under 55 with more than 20 years of "creditable" service to upgrade their pensions if they fail to win re-election.

Barbara Anderson of Citizens for Limited Taxation offers the indignation:

"The whole point of being an elected official is to do such a good job that you don’t get thrown out," she said. "So if there’s an incentive that if you do get thrown out and then get rewarded for that, that just kind of scrambles the entire system, which doesn’t work under the best of circumstances, but this just makes it worse."

And for good measure:

"They get an additional pension if their constituents get sick of them and throw them out? Am I hearing that right? Only in Massachusetts…"

Looks like the pension decision is being withheld until a verdict is reached in his court case.

Egat. One has a feeling voters and the taxpaying public of the Commonwealth might like to let Ms. Borden take 40 whacks at this law.