No Peace Center for Alcatraz
Travel Blog • Jim Benning • 02.07.08 | 11:45 AM ET
San Francisco voters rejected a proposal this week to turn Alcatraz Island—the former prison site and ridiculously popular tourist attraction—into a “global peace center.” Whew. Given the rough U.S. economy, I’m afraid any move that could threaten the bustling Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary souvenir T-shirt industry could be this nation’s ruin. Sure, peace center T-shirts would sell, especially in San Francisco, but they wouldn’t do Federal Penitentiary numbers. For a vicarious visit and a few grim statistics, here’s video of the approach to the island from a tour boat:
Photo by Leto A. via Flickr, (Creative Commons).
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Jim Benning is the editor and co-founder of World Hum.
John M. Edwards 02.07.08 | 8:51 PM ET
Hi Jim:
I kind of like the idea of making the ruins of an infamous prison into a peace center: you know, “Birdman of Alcatraz” stuff wherein though the body may be incarcerated, the spirit may roam free. One of my favorite myths about the place involved the escape of a legendary member of a secret fraternal order, with the initials A.C., who apparently broke out by cutting away at his prison-cell wall with an ordinary kitchen utensil: a spoon! His long-distance swim through shark-filled waters at least resembles the heroic escape of Papillon.
LUANNE FREEMAN 02.08.08 | 1:06 AM ET
Good job. No hype. We lived on Alcatraz from 1958-1963. Thanks for sticking to the facts. Obviously you are not a former inmate.