I wonder how he got involved in politics and law:

The meeting will be chaired by the Legal Adviser of the Department of State, William H. Taft, IV, and will be open to the public up to the capacity of the meeting room.

(From a DOS press release on the Meeting of the Advisory Committee on International Law Friday, May 16, 2003) And no, I am not taking potshots at him individually, but am justifiably peeved about the overarching phenomenon of "legacies" skating into positions of power. But by all rights, State particularly needs people who are both shrewd and have that kind of political clout.

In other news, I was wondering what people think of memorials and monuments.in general:
Possible clarifying questions: How do you think about and interact with memorials and monuments? The general public? What actually is a monument or memorial? Is there something about the general idea that those two words don't include? Any other thoughts?

Thanks :-)