Let me get to the point. I have a job where I am constantly thinking about cost (I know for example how much the four color folding map we were given would cost). Someone has to pay for the person at the gate to take my money, the campus itself, the bus, gas, upkeep, landscaping, personnel, on and on – and we get all this for six dollars!
Who’s paying for all this? Our elected officials feel that the story of Harper’s Ferry is important enough to spend what has to be hundreds of thousands of dollars to let people know the story.
There is a saying that goes something like, “if we do not know our history, we are condemned to repeat it.†I know it’s not the exact quote – but think about a modified version of the quote, “if we know our history, we can build upon it.†We become a better nation when we and our children know what has happened. John Brown is a hero to some, and a hated person of antiquity for others. But he and his story allow our society to move forward, having learned from him. A society moving forward is worth me paying the six bucks.
Knowing your history helps you to build upon the future, whether it be unmentionable or heroic. Just keep moving forward.
