Doing the Right Thing

Mark V. Vlasic and Tess Davis have a hard-hitting op-ed piece in the New York Times ("When Museums Do The Right Thing", May 17, 2013 ) "Stones and bones rarely make the front page, and even less frequently in the same month, but this has been no ordinary month. And it’s not over yet":

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York should likewise be praised for refusing to hold on to looted antiquities. Unlike Prokopi, museum authorities did not wait for a court order or lawsuit to return stolen property, thereby demonstrating that it is never too early to do the right thing. In light of this month’s news, it is hoped that Sotheby’s and others will realize that it’s never too late, either. As Edmund Burke said, “All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”

read the rest here. 

Vignette: Rather clever graphic by Cristóbal Schmal