Of course, Nick Coleman thinks we should all feel guilty!
Posted by Ryan at October 10, 2005 09:35 AM | TrackBackMy hometown has the distinction of being named after the navigationally-challenged Spaniard:
CC: "Hello, India!"
Natives: "Umm, this isn't..."
Chris: "You there, friendly Indian person -- Which way to Calcutta?"
N: "Cal-what-a? Look, I don't know where you think you are, but I think you have the wrong..."
CC: (aside, to his crew)"Look how friendly and docile they are. They will make excellent servants!"
So anyway, the tiny little group of mostly old-money rich folks who call the shots in my hometown all apparently live in a bubble, because it didn't occur to them that throwing an international festival to celebrate the 500th anniversary of landfall, which involved among other things building a 1/3 scale replica of the Santa Maria and floating it in the city's river, might present a PR problem. And by PR problem, I mean "massive throngs of pissed-off descendents of the original population descending on the event and protesting it for its duration."
So what started out as a brilliant scheme to attract international attention to the city (which has frankly always had a bit of an inferiority complex about its standing in the world) ended up mostly making it a lightning rod for historical outrage over colonialism and genocide.
It was hilarious.
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