In a message dated 12/11/2006 8:07:45 A.M. Pacific Standard Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
Why? These were elementary school kids, not adults. They placed the
items in the capsule that were important to them. Does a time capsule
have to be a political/social representation of the whole country in
order to be a "good" one?
Paul,
I was not judging the school kids time capsules or the games they played in
selecting things for their time capsule. This is a Free Country and anyone can
put anything in a time capsule and, in our age, there is no definition of a
good or bad time capsule. However, someone did state there were 19th century
rules for the contents of time capsules. Having read that, my opinion is
(and was) that time capsules should reflect the important issues of the times
and that led me to think about the things I would hope people in one or two
centuries would think about 1968.
This discussion has opened a new "can of worms." What IS a time capsule? Is
it just another form of temporal graffiti, or a joke on time, or a statement
of socio-economic and political issues, or a religious/spiritual message? Are
time capsules solely created for dedicating a building? And, what are the
historical and cultural underpinnings of time capsules? And to Susan Walter's
issue of "etic and emic," is anyone in the future allowed to question the
value, truth, or meaning of the contents of a time capsule? Who is to say? I feel
time capsules are fair game for open discussion, critique, and exchange of
ideas.
Ron May
Legacy 106, Inc.
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