LANDMARKS AND EARMARKS

If one seeks a place shielded from our economic woes, the north-west quadrant of Washington is a good choice. Senators, diplomats, lobbyists and even a few rich journalists are denizens of the leafy streets of Georgetown. The affluence there surely confirms the government-loathing suspicions of Tea Partiers: unlike Detroit, the government never really shrinks. This part of Washington is thriving.

Along these lines, much metaphorical tea was cast overboard thanks to government plans to give the Smithsonian $150m for capital improvements to its (mostly DC-based) institutions, in an earmark tucked into the February 2009 economic stimulus bill. Some of the cash was for "re-sodding" the National Mall, a boon for frisbee players perhaps, but not the unemployed. ProPublica, an online purveyor of investigative journalism, criticised the earmark because it mainly supports Washington, DC.

But a recent story in the Washington Post revealed that not all landmarks are treated equally, even in the cash-soaked north-west quadrant. The article disclosed that the 100-year-old National Cathedral (spry by European standards) may sell off some of its rare book collection because it can no longer afford the staff to care for them. Owing to the First Amendment, the government cannot make laws “respecting the establishment of religion”; ie, churches don't qualify for a federal bail-out.

The National Cathedral, sixth-largest in the world, has been struggling for years. Its budget has shrunk from $27m a couple years ago to $11m, and staffing has been reduced from 170 to just 70. Its endowment fell from roughly $70m to $50m today. The greenhouse is closed and a programme to fight global poverty is in jeopardy. Such downsizing poses problems for an institution that holds big events, such as three presidential funerals (Eisenhower, Ford and Reagan).

Some of the books headed for the block are national treasures. Among the reportedly 2,000 on the list (out of a collection of 8,000) are volumes given by Queen Elizabeth II and Haile Selassi, an Ethiopian emperor, along with a Dutch Bible that was the first written in a modern language.

The books may benefit from a better home. Though the cathedral has nearly 400,000 visitors per year, few see them at the moment. (There are mutters that DC's Shakespeare Library might take them, which would afford more chances for scholarship.) It would be a shame to split up the collection, and it could be a national embarrassment if gifts from the Queen hit the auction block (especially given the kerfuffle over Obama's decision to give her a bunch of DVDs last year, none of which were compatible with British players anyway). But given the flack this administration has received for propping up other industries, it seems the government should take advantage of the opportunity to leave the God business to its own devices.

~ ALEXANDER EWING

Picture credit: ~MVI~, Wonderlane (both via Flickr)