l'abomination de la France

On a previous (business) trip to France, I found a few minutes to sit across from the entrance to the Louvre and admire the handy work of I.M. Pei. When I related this fact to my French colleague, he asked "So, what do you think of our Abomination?" By this, he was referring to the same work of Mr. Pei: the glass pyramid in the plaza of the ancient building that currently houses the museum. I dodged the issue by replying that I thought the structure was beautiful, but sadly misplaced, which elicited the appropriate balance of understanding and respect for Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.



But, what stuck in my mind is the idea that something can be both despised and valued at the same time. Here was what is universally acknowledged as an eyesore in its location, and yet, there was a tremendous amount of pride in the pyramid nonetheless. It is a nuanced view of the world that seems to be sadly missing in the good ol' U S of A. For us, something always seems to be good or evil, with us or against us, but it seems like it would do us a world of good to at least consider the redeeming value of something that we might otherwise be inclined to dismiss. Okay, enough pontification...