A Reflecting Pool that reflects the worst

From swamp to quagmire

Please read the substack article by Jonathan B. Jarvis, link at the bottom. 

From the article: 

Western author Wallace Stegner is quoted “National parks are the best idea we ever had. Absolutely American, absolutely democratic, they reflect us at our best rather than our worst.”

However…. 

… “since no-one in the National Park Service can talk to the press without retribution from the political appointees running the Department of the Interior. I have studiously avoided commenting on the Reflecting Pool debacle, because in light of the much greater transgressions to our parks, it is pretty insignificant. Bigger issues include defunding of the national parks, reducing park staff by 25%, the border wall construction in Big Bend National Park, the oil and gas exploration around Chaco Culture NP, the reductions of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase National Monuments, the removal of park signs that explain our nation’s complex history, and the suppression of climate science. The latest transgressions include seriously considering allowing a private developer to build a new, private entrance to Yosemite, allowing the use of bulldozers in an eligible wild and scenic river in North Cascades, and not outright rejecting the ludicrous idea of a major league ballpark in Grand Teton. You cannot make this s..t up. But as this political mess continues, I am beginning to see how the Reflecting Pool debacle literally reflects the Trump administration at its worst.” (emphasis added).  

Find the article by Jonathan B. Jarvis here: 

Reflecting Pool That Reflects the Worst Jarvis Substack

For more information on the current status of the Reflecting Pool: 

Here is a Newsweek article which shows the current status of the Reflecting Pool. The media is not reporting much so it is difficult to find much information. To summarize, the “work” is still not complete. The article contains aerial images of the destruction of the pool. 

“Aerial photos show different stages of the renovation work on the Reflecting Pool after U.S. President Donald Trump said the second round of renovations at the Lincoln Memorial site in Washington, D.C., was complete.

“I think they’re going to fill it up this week. The Reflecting Pool is totally complete, and we changed the old pipes,” Trump told reporters.

But the pool has not been filled as of Thursday morning, Newsweek‘s Leonardo Feldmen reported from the scene. Workers were still completing tasks on Wednesday, according to The Washington Post, seen spraying material on sections of the pool’s interior while grates for its center drain were not yet in place.”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/aerial-photos-show-reflecting-pool-181036635.html?