The Rice Paddy at Ground Zero

I think of the small rice paddy as being symbolic..the concept is endless.

Try soybeans next. Green in the summer and this beautiful golden brown in the fall.

Rice is grown commercially in Northern California, and the fields are easily identified even at freeway speed from their bright green color. Probably many drive by them without recognizing it, simply because they have never been told or stopped to think about it, just as so many are astonished to realize that strawberry fields can be identified by the layers of plastic (to keep the berries off the ground).

Can we stop referring to the World Trade Center area as "Ground Zero.?"

Kong-Min Lee, 10, who was visiting New York with his parents from South Korea, had no trouble identifying the plant. Although he didn’t expect to see it on his trip to New York City. “It’s rice,” he said. “But why is it growing here?” The beauty of art lies in the questions it raises. And at 10, Kong-Min is at that age where questions come in a downpour. Seeking, and finding, answers makes life’s struggles bearable. “But why is it growing here?” Why, indeed?

The art discourse with its new-entertaining installations is another debasement of standards, political, artistic, multicultural..... Everything is lost: is it art discourse? commercial rice discourse? business discourse? cultural discourse? political discourse?

For rice connoisseur, The world’s best rice comes from Thailand

Kong-Min Lee, 10, who was visiting New York with his parents from South Korea: “It’s rice,” he said. “But why is it growing here?” “We wanted to create something that amplified renewal through remembrance,” Ms. Chang said. Thanks for clarifying.

"Paddy" is the word for rice in most Southeast Asian countries. So the article headline reads: "The Rice Rice..." to many Asians. The installation could be a paddy field or a rice field but not a rice paddy...to be a correct description.

I remember the wheat plantation from 1982. Those behind sought suggestions for what do do with the harvest. I wrote a letter wherein I suggested eating it. Never heard back.

Why plant rice? There are millions of acres planted across the globe. How about Zizania Palustris or Z. Aquatica those are the native northern rices grasses. Zizania Aquatica actually is native to the Hudson river drainage. Maybe we should teach folks about underutilized ag crops that are truly adapted to the region.