I found it interesting that today we celebrate 50 years since Kenendy's powerful inauguration speech. I don't wish to direct commentary on this but all you all to watch the video and reflect.
I wonder if Kennedy were around today if he would be a democrat, a republican, maybe even a tea partier? The rhetoric is interesting nonetheless.
Shoot, man.... the rhetoric of politicians is meaningless. I've heard Obama give speeches that could have been written by Reagan himself. That said, I've been saying for a long time that the democrats of Kennedy's era were more conservative than today's republicans. Kennedy was also a man who believed in America and uniting it, not tearing it apart and dismantling it by pandering to America's enemies, and pitting races against each other as we see today by our current illustrious leader.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite lines are really at the end. People have seriously forgotten to ask what they can do for their country. I also love his charge to make God's work on this earth our own work.
ReplyDeleteNo politician is without flaws, or is going to be in perfect agreement with us all on issues. But if we the people do follow many of the principles that were spoken of in the video, I think we would be a better country for it.
As Kennedy himself pointed out in a speech intended for delivery on November 22, 1963, he did a lot for his country.
ReplyDelete"In nearly every field of national activity, this country is moving again--and Texas is moving with it. From public works to public health, wherever Government programs operate, the past 3 years have seen a new burst of action and progress--in Texas and all over America. We have stepped up the fight against crime and slums and poverty in our cities, against the pollution of our streams, against unemployment in our industry, and against waste in the Federal Government. We have built hospitals and clinics and nursing homes. We have launched a broad new attack on mental illness and mental retardation. We have initiated the training of more physicians and dentists. We have provided 4 times as much housing for our elderly citizens, and we have increased benefits for those on social security."
I think it is fair to say that we have not had a decent President since JFK. He actually believed in America and worked to make it great, even when that meant taking a politically unpopular course of action.
Kennedy is hardly a socialist as your selected quote implies. Nice try Charles.
ReplyDeleteNo JFK was a liberal. Nowadays anyone who was considered a liberal in the early 1960's is called a socialist and anyone who was considered a conservative back then is called a liberal. Take a look at the social programs and regulations enacted by conservative (at the time) Republican president Richard Nixon.
ReplyDeleteI think it is fair to say that we have not had a decent President since Reagan. He actually believed in America and worked to make it great, even when that meant taking a politically unpopular course of action.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Nixon, one of the worstactions he took was to create the EPA. Talk about an uneeded redundancy.
ReplyDeleteEvery State already had their own ecology departments and the Federal government already had environmental jursidiction ove their own land. One more creep into state business.
With respect to pollution in water or air spilling from one state to another, there was already legal precedent for that.
All the EPA did was create entrenched beurocracy that was redundant to State agencies and works to further control peoples lives.
It also erodes seperation of powers since it like many agencies created in the latter half of the 20th century meld executive,legislative and judicail functions under one command and control structure. Very bad juju!