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Olav Aaraas <[log in to unmask]>
Sat, 21 Dec 1996 20:41:00 -0500
text/plain (19 lines)
Dear John,

Thanks for your quick answer! Yes, I quite agree with you: The turn of the
century has to be on the 1st January 2001, and it's quite clear that there
will have to be some kind of celebration on that day. The trouble is that
the rest of the world, including commercial TV channels, newspapers,
hotels, restaurants and even governments will start the celebration one
year earlier (like you are going to in Great Britain). So, what will the
role of the museums be? Should we refuse to take part in 1999, let the
train roll out from the station without entering, or should we say: Let's
celebrate that we are passing into the last year of the century, and let
this celebration be the preparation for the REAL turn of the century? This
is quite a dilemma. In 1900, Sweden and Germany were the only countries to
celebrate 1899/1900, while the rest of Europe, in spite of protests from
their citizens, insisted upon celebrating the year after. This time things
will be different. We're having a problem...

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