Finally - A Memorial

Last week I arrived in Washington DC on June 14 -- two days too late for the dedication ceremony of the Victims of Communism Memorial (http://www.victimsofcommunism.org/) which is located at the confluence of - Massachusetts Avenue/New Jersey Avenue/G Streets , North West.

That evening an awards dinner was held to present the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom to:

• William F. Buckley, Jr.
• Senator Henry M. "Scoop" Jackson (posthumous)

Being the Cold War Warrior that I am I regret missing an enormously important event such as this one. I was reminded of this event when I started reading the new book, "The Reagan Diaries", last week which should provide a wealth of insights on this particular period of history. As I reviewed the website for this memorial I noticed that a weblink of interest was included for the Terror Museum in Budapest, Hungary which I toured with my buddy Steve years ago. We were told by the locals that the original name of this museum when it served as the Hungarian Communist Party's torture chamber was the "House of LOYALTY" -- now that should frighten all of us!!

This is clearly a place I need to visit on a future trip to Washington DC and one I hope today's students visit since I fear our school system does not study the Cold War to the depth that is needed to better appreciate our current freedoms. The Soviet Union's Joseph Stalin killed more people than Germany's Adolph Hitler ever did but is that ever discussed in our schools?

Todd