On April 19th, 1995 a bit over 15 years ago, a Yellow Ryder Truck filled with an Improvised Explosive Device blew up in front of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. At first it was assumed that this was the work of some Al Qaeda type Islāmic organization, but it turned out to be a couple of good old fashioned American rednecks. Home Grown Terrorists, what a concept.
The Oklahoma City Memorial is a very interesting place. An emotional experience as you move in and around the various bits of broken cars and buildings and lives. The last time I visited the Oklahoma City Memorial I was unhappy because I couldn’t find a parking space near the site, which is now a National Park. I lucked out this time and found an open parking meter right across the street.
The Wife and I walked around the grounds with the Empty Chairs and the Reflective Pool and the Giant Arches. It is a feeling of being in a sacred place. They have done a perfect job of transforming the act of terrorism into someplace quite and reflective.
The exhibit takes up the better part of three floors and there are many people here and there explaining the significance of this and that. There is a pretty good sized model showing the area of Oklahoma City that was effected by the blast. There are odd works of art scattered through the exhibit that had once been on display in the Murrah Federal Building and had survived to be on display here. There were flags and helmets and other tributes to those that volunteered to help during the disaster.
One of the more interesting exhibits is the twisted metal remains of the Ryder Truck and the map with dots where the bits of debris had landed. There was also a bit of information of Nichols and McVeigh and how everyone assumed that it was an Islamic extremist group.
I remember thinking how odd it was that anyone would attack Oklahoma City-not exactly an icon of the America government, so far as I knew. The Wife’s first thought was that it was someone unhappy about having to pay taxes, since it happened so close to April 15th.
In the end there was no sense to be made of any of it. On the plus side, it changed the law so that all Federal Building were required to have some form of protection, even if is nothing more than a metal detector and a few barricades out front.
As we were leaving the grounds, we went to look at the Tree which survived the blast and is given a place of honor at the site. Under the tree were a couple of smiling idiots who looked like newlyweds having their portrait taken with the arches and empty chairs over their shoulders. They were laughing and smiling and posing, as if they were standing in a botanical garden. I wonder if idiots have wedding pictures taken at Ground Zero or Auschwitz? Probably so.
But the happy morons were the only disrespectful people I saw that day. Everyone else was somber and serious and gave the site the respect it deserved. The Oklahoma City Memorial is well worth a visit, if you happen to be in OKC sometime.
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