Well, officially, the San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge. There is an effort underway to rename the bridge after former President Ronald Reagan. Great, I'm thinking, honor a great American. There is also a counter effort underway to prevent the name change. David Klowden is heading the counter effort:“I started this page because I don't want the San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge renamed the ‘Ronald Reagan Memorial Bridge,’ he writes on his Facebook page. “I know there are many San Diegans who agree with me that this effort by a very partisan right wing individual to politicize a non-political local landmark is unnecessary. Please help me protect the name of the bridge ….”So what do you think? At first, I was pretty miffed and it seemed like a typical leftist reaction to the greatness of Reagan. But I also thought, in 1987, San Diego voters voted to restore Market Street to its original name after a short spell as Martin Luther King Way. I'm also still miffed about the Murph being renamed after a local firm beginning with the letter Q. Is this issue so different?
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Klowden does not see this as a liberal-conservative issue. “This city has a tradition of not having traditions” he said. “When it comes to preservation, I’m fairly conservative.”
Contrariwise, its only a bridge, not a piece of San Diego history, the way Market Street was. And supposedly serious coin, to the tune of $18 million, changed hands to get the name of Jack Murphy Stadium changed.
What do you think? Please vote in my poll.
Cross posted to sdrostra.com. (Where my career might be short lived, judging by the comments on my last article.)
Reagan a right-wing partisan? I'm confused. I've been bombarded for the past week with Op-eds from the MSM on how Reagan actually goverened as a centrist/moderate so just throw that "partisan" stuff out the window.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the city fathers, a few years back tried to get the merchants downtown to switch Market Street back to "MLK Blvd." The merchants revolted as the unspoken secret that everyone knows is that in our big cities, the MLK Blvd. tends to run through the crappiest parts of town. Amid cries of racism, the Market Street business owners were simply acknowledging a business fact.
For no other reason than it will cheese-off all the right people, rename the bridge as with the case of the Mt. Soledad cross, the bridge is indeed a San Diego landmark recognized by many as such
RE: The SD Rostra -- from the editors point of view, the more comments the better. When I wrote for the SD News Network, I was one of their favorite pundits, because of the intense comments that would flow. Your pieces are actually getting traffic, I am sure. Certainly, the next step is a t-shirt line. :)
ReplyDeletehttp://www.imageisus.com/DooDooEcon/?SectionCode=15
The Coronado Bridge is a landmark in architectural design...considered one of the nearly perfect Minimalist designs of the 20th century. It would be a cultural mistake to rename it, even after someone as beloved as Reagan. While not quite as famous, it would be like renaming the Empire State building or the Golden Gate Bridge.
ReplyDeleteWow, all the Tea Parties are weighing in. Thanks guys.
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