Monday, January 4, 2010

Clinton Presidential Center

The highlight of our after Christmas trip was a visit to the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock, Arkansas. We were able to walk over to the Center from our hotel, which was close by. Both are along a body of water that I thought was a riverfront, but is apparently David D Terry Lake. The locals thought it was chilly at 45 degrees. We thot is was a welcome, warm relief!
In designing the building for the Center the guiding principle from President Clinton to the architect was to make it look like a bridge, echoing his theme of "bridge to the 21st century." In this they were successful, and the site of the library is near the water and next to an old railroad bridge.

There was a quite a lot of information in the Center. Beautiful displays. Interactive locations. There was a full size replica of the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room. There were lots of helpful docents, such as the one who took a photo of our family. Once again, it is interesting to reflect again and in some detail about events which took place during one's own lifetime. We were reminded once again of what a good eight years this was for our family. Of course, these were important years for our daughters, who were then young. But it was also a time of economic growth for our family such as has not been the same since.

We got a couple of those little electronic devices that look like cell phones. When the user comes to a location there is a number, and when that number is punched into the device, there is a recording about what one is looking at. It was all Bill Clinton's voice. I think I had forgotten how articulate a person he is. Speaking easily and fluently. Sharing thoughts. While there may not be a one-to-one correlation, there is a sense that the speaker is a far more competent person when they speak clearly and articulately. Even the Romans emphasized oratory as part of the qualification for public office.



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