On November 11th more than a half century after World War II ended, President Clinton presided over a symbolic ground breaking for the National World War II Memorial in our nation's capitol. The Memorial will presumably be located on a 7.4 acre site halfway between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument on the Mall.

Unfortunately the ground breaking only amounts to a dry run because of a court order enjoining the actual construction of the Memorial.

Here's the issue. The opponents object only to the location of the Memorial, alleging that it would "sever the connection between the Washington Monument" and "change forever the magnificent open spaces and vistas" of the Mall.

Supporters of the location include about 450 veterans organizations (according to the New York Times) who say that the design is open and preserves views in all directions; that most of the site consists of trees, grass and fountains.

Well, with only about one-third of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II still alive, (dying at the rate of 1,500 a day) let's hope that reason prevails and the job gets done before all of us meet our maker. What a joke. It's 55 years after the end of the WWII, 13 years after Congress first considered the idea of the Memorial, 5 years after Clinton actually dedicated it and the site still looks like a neglected Iowa corn field.