The Washington Post reports that Sunday will mark the 200th anniversary of the historic duel between Vice President Aaron Burr and former-Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton. An interesting article, the Post notes that descendents of the two great men stage a reenactment of the event in Weehawken, New Jersey at 10:30 AM today.

The AP writes of the event:

"The bitter grudge between their ancestors has long faded, but on Sunday descendants of Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr marked their paces with pistols in hand. Antonio Burr, a descendant of Burr's cousin, arrived by rowboat in period costume and fired a replica of the .54-caliber pistol that mortally wounded Hamilton 200 years ago in the July 11, 1804 duel.

Douglas Hamilton, a fifth-great-grandson of Hamilton, feigned the historic hip wound, dropping to one knee and then falling to the ground in a sitting position.

The event was the families' first meeting in two centuries.

'It wasn't something on my top 100 list, but it was nice to meet Antonio Burr,' Douglas Hamilton said afterward. 'He seems to be a very nice man, though I'm not sure I'm going to be on his Christmas card list.'

Still, Douglas Hamilton noted his famous ancestor had forgiven Aaron Burr on his deathbed and so could he."

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I think it's very interesting that the debate over the Burr-Hamilton feud continues today, especially given the fact that we're already beginning to discuss how "history" will judge the current administration. I think it's likely that people will maintain strong convictions on Bush 43 for decades, if not centuries, to come, just like they do of almost every political figure. If history's treatment of Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton serve as an example, we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg in this debate that will continue for centuries to come.