Editor:
It never ceases to amaze me that the council members and management are the only creatures on this planet able to talk out of both sides of their mouths and say opposite things at the same time.
The debate over the "Chain Reaction" structure has been a long and laborious one where it has met an impasse with the public of what to do about it. It has about as much reverie as Dr. Doolittle's Pushme-Pullyu.
We have a college in this city that offers a wide curriculum of degrees in fields that the students are focused on to begin their careers with. Why not have the engineering and art department students work together in solving the dilemma of the problem of "Chain Reaction?" This is a golden opportunity to gain experience toward their careers and be creative while doing something good for the community.
Who knows what a bright group of students could do? They can easily be supervised by a teacher or two who is already on salary. Working within the budget of $90,000 would be challenging yet, not impossible to do to make the art work sound and aesthetically preserved. Grants could subsidize some of their efforts as well as major companies all the way to the Army Corp of Engineers ready to give sage advice to them on the project. The students will gain the experience needed for life after college in their selected careers while maybe creating something revolutionary no one has ever thought of before as inspiration is a very powerful tool in one's mind. Thomas Alva Edison, Marie Curie and Alexander Graham Bell would agree.
Where to move "Chain Reaction?" A reader once stated in the letters to the editor that the perfect place for it would be at the Museum of Flying at the Santa Monica Airport. Santa Monica College also has a satellite campus there as well as city owned property especially where Briles Wing and Helicopter used to be. This is a great idea to place it at the museum as the delivery vehicles for the two atomic bombs were Boeing B-29's. Docents could explain the mechanical workings of the B-29, their crews, why the bomb was used, their devastating effect and why we should never, ever use nuclear weapons again.
Moving "Chain Reaction" would not be a Herculean feat. The city has crews and machinery that could easily and slowly, place the structure on the back of a flat bed truck (I'm sure the city has one of those), secure it and transport the structure in the middle of the night to avoid impeding daytime traffic to the airport facility.
If the Druids can build Stonehenge, the Egyptians the pyramids, the Mayans their temples and if modern man can move a space shuttle from LAX to downtown L.A. this can be done. Since the city's workers are already being paid to work, this wouldn't cost anything out of the city's pocket.
Whitney Scott Bain
Santa Monica
