Post #208670 by mbonga on Thu, Jan 19, 2006 6:02 AM

On 2006-01-18 23:02, christiki295 wrote:
Any possibility the exhibit will reappear elsewhere, or is hidden away forever in the Smithsonian wherehouse?

I forgot to mention: I think I heard somewhere that the museum is obligated to extract and show visitors any items they wish, upon demand, because it is a public service, paid for by public taxes. But I don't remember if it was the museum that had that policy, or some other library/archive in DC. Still, it sounds right, and in this case, with so many people lamenting the demise of that exhibit, it would be worth checking on. I'll check on that the next time I'm up there, probably this weekend. I'll let everybody know.

(Like so many other government loopholes, they don't advertise that fact, for practical reasons. Kind of like when banks don't let you know that you could legally write a check on an eggshell, or that courts don't let you know that you're not obligated to vote guilty even if the evidence demands it, if you think the law itself is bad.)