The Death Star?

This picture on the left appears to be the reactor core of the Death Star.  Looking down into the hot blue nuclear furnace, this reminds me of the scene where Obi-Wan has to disable the tractor beam so that the Millennium Falcon can escape the clutches of the evil empire (shown on the right).  

Actually the picture on the left is not really from Star Wars.  It is a photo from the inside of the Reichstag Dome in Berlin looking down into the debating chamber of the Bundestag below.   The blue things are the seats of the Bundestag.  

The symbolism of the dome, which is open to tourists, is that the people should always remain above the government.  And the futuristic design is supposed to symbolize that Germany is moving into the future away from its ugly past.  (These interpretations are gleaned from Wikipedia.   I am not wise enough to be able to interpret architecture on my own.)  

While I like the idea of having such symbolism, you might think the architect, Norman Foster, might have designed something that looked a bit less like the inside of the Death Star (he also designed London's futuristic Gherkin).   On my visit to the Reichstag Dome, I half expected R2D2 to come running around the corner at any moment. 

And in this photo, my friend Sabine is contemplating making a jump to the control tower so that the X-wing fighters of the Rebel Alliance can escape the tractor beam.

May the Force be with her!




Added: How could I have mentioned the death star without posting a link to this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sv5iEK-IEzw