As a Military Historian, it’s hard for me to see, hear or experience things of our modern world without an image or sound bite popping into my head from yesteryear. Some things we would prefer not to revisit, but historians know that good or bad, the past teaches us important lessons.

Relating this comment to the newly opened Obama Presidential Center, the first image to pop into my head when I saw it was another ominous-looking, tall, concrete building.

Throughout Nazi-occupied Europe in World War II, they built numerous concrete anti-aircraft Flak Towers like the one shown here.

The towers are not identical. The Nazis issued construction specifications that emphasized a tower’s end use, and not exacting details that were unnecessary. This gave local contractors the flexibility to adapt their work based on location conditions.

Germany built these deadly structures to engage Allied bombers flying combat missions day and night. Even though all of the Flak Towers were bombed many times, very few were destroyed due to their rugged design and construction.

If I make a visual connection between two things, I figure that I can’t be the only person who sees it. I find it distressing that someone – an architect, public relations agent, geopolitician or historian – didn’t voice a concern about the Obama Center’s visual similarity to a Nazi Flak Tower.

I’m not expressing or implying any real connection between the two topics. I’m merely emphasizing that in any endeavor that will be in the public eye 24/7, you cannot limit your efforts to mitigate downstream negativity.

President Obama and his advisors should have done a better job in avoiding self-inflicted gaffes.

vietvetsteve@reportnatlsecykinetics.com

Seattle, Washington, USA

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