Dictators, in particular, are fond of erecting large, flattering statues of themselves. It seems they need to see a physical structure to reinforce the notion of their fleeting greatness. They also tend to have large military parades to reassure themselves of their power. And then when their moment in history disappears, their statues come tumbling down ala Saddam Hussein.
In light of that, I was fascinated to learn of the new statue of Sadar Patel in Gujarat, India. Rather than a figure of imposing power, this represents a man in quite ordinary clothing, shoes with toes missing, an unflattering middle-aged girth. Sadar was a key figure in India's freedom movement in the 1940's and a popular deputy prime minister.
This statue, known as the Statue of Unity, is a record 597 feet tall.
In comparison, the Statue of Liberty is a mere 305 feet.
My fear is that Donald Trump will hear of this statue and will want to build one of himself, only larger of course. He is into building things with his name attached. After all, he is the one who after the World Trade Towers collapsed on 9/11 proudly remarked that Trump Tower was now the tallest in NYC. He is, also, the man who admires dictators, whether Kim Jong-un or Vladimir Putin, and their military parades.
How could he resist building a "big, a very big" statue of himself? And, of course, Mexico will pay for it!
Or perhaps, he will redo Mount Rushmore.
Or maybe a classic nude.
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