There are some reasonable thoughts in this article about the plight of battlefield preservation vs. development--and there have been many since the advent of the "Walmart-Orange County" debate. However, given I live close to this location, and take the route mentioned (up Rt 20, turn rt on Rt 3 to get to I-95) when we want to go north, I'm getting angrier every time I read one of these articles and realize the easy deceit being perpetrated on those who have never been to that area or understand the "lay of the land" being pontificated on. While I am no big fan of Wal-Mart, the proposed site of the Wal-Mart has no bearing on the beautiful scene with the grassy fields, the forest, the ranger station.. those two places are a mile or more apart.. the Wal-Mart would sit across from a gas station and fast food restaurants and next to another gas station and restaurant.. in an area that I believe is officially part of the original battlefield, but is not historically preserved or accessible in any way (think "vacant lot of weeds"). Whether every inch of the original battlefields, even those that no general citizen is aware of or can access, should be preserved may be another debate. I'm not sure I have a relevant opinion on that, but it's obvious that the writer is not mentioning the pre-existing businesses on those pads already and instead talking of the beautifully preserved state park down the road a bit in the hopes that readers will believe the Wal-Mart is going up right on the hallowed grassland that he and his family walked upon.
To me it cheapens the whole debate and I've been mostly unimpressed with anything I've read about the Orange County Wal-Mart for the national audience. Would be nice to see someone with authority write an article with the same concerns about development that also will give all the facts about location and impact to the battlefield.
Thanks for the perspective of a local. I toured The Wilderness and Spotsylvania back in the early 90s. They seemed relatively unimpacted by development. The battlefields around Richmond, on the other hand, are basically gone.
By the way..rereading my comment I sound a little more "outraged" than necessary :) Hopefully you understood my basic point--writers, especially those who expect the readership not to be well versed in a particular locale, can take advantage of a situation for their particular viewpoint. I'm not even opposed to his general viewpoint (battlefields vs. development) but opposed to what I perceive is a method to attract sympathy to a cause with potential missing detail, similar to a major national campaign re: the same wal-mart that included big name Hollywood stars, etc. Maybe I'm tainted by my prior interaction with that web campaign :)
No worries! I totally got your point. I'm not a big fan of Walmart (though we do shop there once in a while) but I can see the snobbery in some of the anti-Walmart media coverage. Hopefully there will be sensible compromises made between battlefield preservation and development. I'd love to take my son on a tour of Grant's Overland Campaign some day!
There are some reasonable thoughts in this article about the plight of battlefield preservation vs. development--and there have been many since the advent of the "Walmart-Orange County" debate. However, given I live close to this location, and take the route mentioned (up Rt 20, turn rt on Rt 3 to get to I-95) when we want to go north, I'm getting angrier every time I read one of these articles and realize the easy deceit being perpetrated on those who have never been to that area or understand the "lay of the land" being pontificated on. While I am no big fan of Wal-Mart, the proposed site of the Wal-Mart has no bearing on the beautiful scene with the grassy fields, the forest, the ranger station.. those two places are a mile or more apart.. the Wal-Mart would sit across from a gas station and fast food restaurants and next to another gas station and restaurant.. in an area that I believe is officially part of the original battlefield, but is not historically preserved or accessible in any way (think "vacant lot of weeds"). Whether every inch of the original battlefields, even those that no general citizen is aware of or can access, should be preserved may be another debate. I'm not sure I have a relevant opinion on that, but it's obvious that the writer is not mentioning the pre-existing businesses on those pads already and instead talking of the beautifully preserved state park down the road a bit in the hopes that readers will believe the Wal-Mart is going up right on the hallowed grassland that he and his family walked upon.
ReplyDeleteTo me it cheapens the whole debate and I've been mostly unimpressed with anything I've read about the Orange County Wal-Mart for the national audience. Would be nice to see someone with authority write an article with the same concerns about development that also will give all the facts about location and impact to the battlefield.
Thanks for the perspective of a local. I toured The Wilderness and Spotsylvania back in the early 90s. They seemed relatively unimpacted by development. The battlefields around Richmond, on the other hand, are basically gone.
ReplyDeleteBy the way..rereading my comment I sound a little more "outraged" than necessary :) Hopefully you understood my basic point--writers, especially those who expect the readership not to be well versed in a particular locale, can take advantage of a situation for their particular viewpoint. I'm not even opposed to his general viewpoint (battlefields vs. development) but opposed to what I perceive is a method to attract sympathy to a cause with potential missing detail, similar to a major national campaign re: the same wal-mart that included big name Hollywood stars, etc. Maybe I'm tainted by my prior interaction with that web campaign :)
ReplyDeleteNo worries! I totally got your point. I'm not a big fan of Walmart (though we do shop there once in a while) but I can see the snobbery in some of the anti-Walmart media coverage. Hopefully there will be sensible compromises made between battlefield preservation and development. I'd love to take my son on a tour of Grant's Overland Campaign some day!
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