Stories that wreak of the sort of death and destruction that the American homeland has suffered only once, during the Civil War. The goal of the monument is to commemorate, to make sure that no one forgets, what occurred on Okinawa. But it is much more than that. It is also intended to be a place for meditation and learning, a place for people to pray for world peace. As well they should.
Many people seem to view war abstractly, as a kind of international game.
But the human costs are always catastrophic. Okinawa's experience offers a sober reminder of the horrors of war, something, sadly, that mankind constantly seems to forget.