JOPLIN, Mo. —
The decision to dig it up and move it may already be made, but some people in Joplin think the “Hope High School” marker should stay right where it is. Virtually everybody passes 20th and Indiana with some frequency and many look in its direction every time.
Since May 22 last year that sign has become an eye magnet. Sure, it was noticeable before that, but the duct tape was a work of simple genius that has made it an iconic symbol. It has become a monument. And not just for those in Joplin. It made national news. It represents what happened here that awful day.
But if the sign itself is an icon, its location is part of what makes it one. I can’t picture passing that intersection without seeing it.
Apparently, the plan is to put it in storage for display someday in a tornado museum. It doesn’t need to be stored. It doesn’t need a museum. It is already stored in the very place where it has the most meaning — right where it all happened.
So, to Dr. C.J. Huff and our city fathers, if you happen to read this, please think again. There is no better place for that marker right where it is.
The cross at St. Mary’s Church still stands where it did. The Hope High School sign should too.
Howard Forsythe
Joplin
Opinion
Your View: Why move it?
- Opinion
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Our View: Finding the way forward
Communication failures and the lack of a clear mission have given rise to turmoil and discord at Missouri Southern State University. The antidote to this is openness, frankness and the articulation of a well-defined purpose as the school moves forward.
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Your View: Finding audience for Bard
It was interesting to see Globe columnist Mike Pound’s recollection of college studies of the Bard of Avon in association with the upcoming production of “Macbeth.”
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Your View: Shifting opinions
I have a suggestion for a Joplin Globe feature. Reprint all the letters and columns from years past that were in favor of the Patriot Act and how people who showed any concern over it “wanted the terrorists to win.”
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James Whitford, guest columnist: New definition needed
I remember meeting a man on the main road through Fond Parisien, a small community on the eastern side of Haiti.
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Our View: Connecting the town
Well before the 2011 tornado, Joplin had a problem with “connectivity.” That’s right. The flow of traffic — whether it be cars, pedestrians or bicyclists — has been a sore spot with us for years.
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Your View: Bold leadership needed
Dear City Council Members, Let me first thank you for your service to our community.
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Other Views: Debt of honor
In Afghanistan, the Taliban have promised to kill Afghans who worked for the Americans and their families. In Iraq, similar threats were made by radical Islamic insurgents.
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Herb Van Fleet, guest columnist: Big Brother is always watching and listening
Sen. Church made that statement 38 years ago. He chaired a committee that was formed to develop legislation to rein in the CIA, FBI, NSA and other intelligence agencies, which had been operating outside the bounds of the law, including the Constitution.
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Geoff Caldwell, guest columnist: Jury still out on whistle-blower’s actions
Whether you see Edward Snowden as a hero, a traitor or something in between, there is no denying that the admitted “leaker” has opened up an industrial-size can of National Security Agency worms.
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Trish Patton, guest columnist: Downtown group needs stakeholders' support
On Tuesday the Downtown Joplin Alliance (DJA) tabled the Community Improvement District (CID) initiative.
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