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Posts Tagged ‘Martin Luther King’

Behind the 47 GOP Senators’ Letter to Iran: Insidious Race-baiting Perhaps?

Posted in Living History, Politics, Racism, Self Improvement, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 16, 2015| 3 Comments »

“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”  ~President John Adams, c. 1798

This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the 54-mile Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights Marches led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Such began on March 7, 1965 and would become known as “Bloody Sunday” due to the beatings and serious injuries inflicted by Alabama State troopers using billy clubs on the nonviolent, multi-racial marchers.

This soon led to the 1965 Voting Rights Act (VRA) being signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ), who used his political powers to get the bill through Congress.

Since the U. S. Constitution only gives American citizens the right to vote, the States are free to set the operating rules. Which most Segregated States, being die-hard racists, had patently abused! As more extreme rules were set to purposely disenfranchise African Americans, thus denying the moral intent of our U.S. Constitution, the struggle for voting rights arose and ultimately created the 1965 VRA. Sadly, the struggle to vote continues in part.

According to President Obama: “Right now, in 2015, fifty years after Selma, there are laws across this country designed to make it harder for people to vote…the Voting Rights Act, the culmination of so much blood, so much sweat and tears, the product of so much sacrifice in the face of wanton violence, stands weakened.”

As President Obama also said: “We know the march is not yet over.” Yet, this was a very special event! Particularly, for those of us who lived through the turbulent 60s and saw on live television, the Selma Marches that racism brutally tried to stop.

Thus, having President Barack Obama, the first African American president, and a host of others recreate this historic march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge while holding hands with “foot soldiers” John Lewis, now a U.S. Congressman, and Amelia Boynton Robinson, now crossing in a wheelchair, was very significant for all Americans amid the ongoing struggle to end the disease of systemic racism in our beloved country.

It is estimated that 40,000 people attended, mostly African Americans, but not all. Of course, for many, just being there and crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge likely meant more than the actual event. As it was for me years ago, it likely was a pilgrimage, a silent prayer of thanks offered up to the great “foot soldiers,” an honorable phrase coined by Dr. King, who bravely took the blows, endured the pain, and kept marching for us all. Yet, such suffering is never, ever in vain!

Hit by the Reality of the GOP’s Unprecedented Letter to Iran

Yet, little did any of us suspect that behind the pride and pageantry of the widely televised commemoration of the Selma Marches lurked a group of 47 U. S. Senators seeking to usurp the negotiating powers of the United States President and act in its stead, or so it appears.

Thus, that Monday, via national television, the reality of such unprecedented arrogance hit most of us like a ton of bricks, so to speak. Having to set aside my own reflections on the Selma March tribute, soon I began to wonder. Initially, it was unbelievable! Yet, like a lot of Americans, given the sharp comments posted online, it soon was infuriating.

Who would have thought that 47 U.S. Senators would sign a letter stating their emphatic disapproval of the not-yet-known outcome of the ongoing negotiations between the United States, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, China, and Iran regarding Iran’s nuclear program, and then send it to Iran’s leaders!  Who would have thought the wily GOP[1] would take such overt action, but they did!

Reactions to the GOP’s Unprecedented Letter to Iran is Telling

Naturally, the White House was furious as are most concerned Americans. According to many reports from both near and afar, seems the GOP Senators’ letter is failing rapidly…as it must. Thus, many publications across the political spectrum have firmly denounced the letter.

Given our right to petition our government, it is important to note that many Americans are calling for the 47 GOP Senators to be charged with treason. For more information: See Petitions at WhiteHouse.gov re violation of the Logan Act, a 1799 law which forbids unauthorized citizens from negotiating with foreign governments.[2]

In this article titled, European officials Criticize Republican letter to Iran, Secretary of State John Kerry, U.S. Negotiator to these talks, allegedly states the letter: “Risks undermining the confidence that foreign governments in thousands of important agreements commit to.” Yet, Secretary Kerry, being a true patrician, will likely handle the Republican’s unprecedented intrusion with the same dignity and style we all have seen in him over the years.

In his Statement on the Senators’ letter to Iran, issued March 9, Vice President Joe Biden states among other things that: “This letter sends a highly misleading signal to friend and foe alike that our Commander-in-Chief cannot deliver on America’s commitments—a message that is as false as it is dangerous.” We hear you, Vice President Biden, loud and clear!

In this Huffington Post article, ‘I’m Embarrassed’ For Republicans Who Sent Letter To Iran, President Obama allegedly states: “I’m embarrassed for them,” Obama told Vice News. “For them to address a letter to the ayatollah — the supreme leader of Iran, who they claim is our mortal enemy — and their basic argument to them is: don’t deal with our president, because you can’t trust him to follow through on an agreement… That’s close to unprecedented.”

Of course, Iran has also responded. This is very telling given the past warmongering of the Republican Neo-cons who lied about Iraq having “weapons of mass destruction” to justify their war on Iraq, and who may well be behind the GOP’s letter to Iran, or so it appears.

In this article titled “Iran’s leader: Fall of U.S. ‘political ethics’ highlighted by GOP letter,” the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, allegedly states: “Every time we reach a stage where the end of the negotiations is in sight, the tone of the other party, particularly the Americans, becomes harsher, harder and more aggressive.” IRNA, the official news agency, quoted Khamenei as saying, “This is the nature of their tricks and deceptions.”

Warmongering again! Or could the Republicans simply be trying to undermine the Democrats and the Obama Administration so as to gain political support in the 2016 presidential elections? Though good reason dictates that this recent affront to President Obama’s authority is not only unwise, an unprecedented breach of protocol but is also quite dangerous. Then again, who said the GOP’s soulless strategy actually cared about anything except winning!

Insidious Race-baiting, The GOP’s Soulless Strategy

Race-baiting, a popular idiom now part of the American lexicon, is a hateful scheme generally used to arouse the ridicule, prejudice or fears of one racial group regarding another through speech or inference, particularly when deployed as a political tactic.

A recent example of race-baiting was the relentless use of contemptuous cartoons by Charlie Hebdo’s founding publisher in Paris, which, of course, ended tragically. Race-baiting was recently used in a film titled, The Interview that infers the removal of a North Korean leader, which caused a mini cyber stir between the East and the West, so to speak.[3]

In 1980, Ronald Reagan’s first presidential campaign stop was in Philadelphia, Mississippi, former Klan vicinity where the young Voting Rights activists: Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner and James Chaney were tragically gunned down by angry whites in 1964. Hardly a Civil Rights advocate, former California governor Ronald Reagan successfully used the classic race-baiting code, “I believe in states rights” [4] to affirm where he was really coming from, and has been a revered hero of the Republican Party since, which continues to divide our nation.

Thus, as if to infer that “white folks” are still in charge, it is no accident that the 47 GOP Senators (mostly all white) issued their unprecedented letter to Iran the day after the Selma March Tributes, or so it seems. Overly assured by years of insidious race-baiting campaigns that proved successful, the GOP Senators knew exactly what they were doing. Of course, being all too familiar with the Republicans’ soulless tactics, African Americans would also know.

Yet, what the wily GOP did not seem to anticipate were the reactions of the other “white folks” in our fair land, who would not only disagree with their unprecedented actions but be outraged. See, Some Republican Senators Surprised by Backlash to Iran letter.[5]

Although many Americans are calling for charges against the erring senators under the Logan Act of 1799, it has only been used once. Then again, perhaps that’s the problem! The unparalleled arrogance of the 47 GOP Senators speaks volumes to the ego’s refusal to respect the law when left unaccountable. Hence, the democratic of rule thumb: no one should be held above the law, including its lawmakers.

Thus, in order to preserve our American democracy let this be the start of something new…real equality for all and a swift accountability of our government officials in times of crisis!

Meanwhile, we can take heart in these immortal words from Sr. Winston Churchill during WWII: “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”

© Delores L. Adams and The Aunt Jemimah Post 2012-2015. All rights reserved.

[1] Oft-claiming to be the party of Abraham Lincoln, the GOP (the Grand Old Party) is far from what it once was. Founded by anti-slavery activists in 1854, it allegedly made a dramatic shift in the early 70s to what it is now.

[2] For more information see Petitions at White House.gov : “We Petition the Obama Administration to file charges against the 47 U.S. Senators in violation of The Logan Act in attempting to undermine a nuclear agreement”:

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/file-charges-against-47-us-senators-violation-logan-act-attempting-undermine-nuclear-agreement/NKQnpJS9.

[3] This contentious 2014 Hollywood film titled The Interview, stars Seth Rogen and James Franco.

[4] From the New York Times article: Righting Reagan’s Wrongs? by Bob Herbert, November 13, 2007.

[5] Ref: Some Republican Senators Surprised by Backlash to Iran letter by Sean Sullivan, Washington Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/03/12/some-republican-senators-surprised-by-backlash-to-iran-letter/?wpisrc=nl_headlines&wpmm=1 .

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A Clever Satire, So Why Am I Not Laughing?

Posted in Art and Showbiz, Politics, Self Improvement, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 19, 2015| 2 Comments »

“Love ye one another as I have loved you.”

~Jesus the Christ, John 15:12

Bricks and stones may hurt my bones, but words can never harm me. Remember that? When we were kids at home, this was our favorite retort against harmless name-calling. As we were not allowed to say unkind words to each other, which, today, still instructs me. In fact, back then to even think about calling each other “a lie” risked the wrath of our mom, as that was generally considered very offensive.

And so, early on, we kids learned how to respect other people, which is an impersonal form of Universal Love (compassion, kindness) that I was destined to realize later in life.

Of course, once in the real world, away from Mom’s refined rules of behavior, I would soon realize how hurtful words could be, and naturally avoided such whenever I could. Sadly, this was not always easy as there were, and still are, some folks who delight in using clever ways to hurt or even devastate others with their cruel expressions while giving a false pretense of having either good or amusing intentions. With a natural aversion to violence of any kind, I managed to stay true to my homespun values, and still do.

Charlie Hebdo, a Once Obscure French Magazine

Sadly, with all due respect to the victims, their friends and families, and that classic nation known as La Belle France, this brings us to the January 7th assassinations in Paris of Stéphane Charbonnier, Charlie Hebdo’s main publisher, and the other sacred souls tragically caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Done by woefully misguided assailants and later killed by the French police, railing against the magazine’s graphically obscene caricatures of their highly respected religious founder was their cause. Yet, this, of course, is never the way of the wise and the compassionate.

As we are meant to live for a cause and find a better way, a way that extends life and uplifts us all! Thus, the fatal actions of the ill-advised assassins must be widely condemned, together with the hateful images routinely published in the Charlie Hebdo Magazine.

Initiating a most tragic, international event that is still ongoing; a week later on January 14, this once obscure French magazine, heretofore barely surviving financially, boldly publishes yet another offensive cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad, though less profane perhaps.

Nonetheless, this controversial issue is now selling in the millions according to CNN’s live reports from Paris. So why am I not laughing, indeed!

Free Speech or the Money

Recently, Dr. Tariq Ramadan, a renowned professor of contemporary Islamic studies at Oxford University, appeared on Democracy Now, a popular radio program, with hosts Amy Goodman and Nermeen Shaikh during their continued coverage of the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris.

While Dr. Ramadan rightly condemned the tragic killings and expressed condolences to the victim’s families, he also well stated that the cartoonist’s practice of “nurturing controversies” by insulting the Prophet or Islam is neither intelligent nor a decent way to deal with freedom of expression, though their rights must be protected.

Of course, Dr. Ramadan’s mention of the magazine’s allegedly known financial challenges that included bankruptcy over the last two years, “which has nothing to do with courage” but more “to do with making money” by mainly targeting the marginalized Muslim community, is not only stunning but heartbreaking, having known such in my own country.

Sadly, instead of taking the old ‘do or die ‘stand for the right to free speech as often touted by Stéphane Charbonnier deemed proud to offend, who once said he would rather “die standing than live on my knees”, he could have chosen to ‘live’ a better way. The way of a real comic, a genius whose sole purpose is to humor rather than savagely offend!

Instead, likely feeling invincible, could Charlie’s doomed editor have arrogantly dismissed the previous attacks on its offices, the ensuing death threats and allegedly stoked the flames of religious controversy just for the money?

Of course, as many well know, it would not be the first time that arrogance, combined with sheer tenacity, has overwhelmed commonsense in the hard pursuit of money.

But, what about the consequences, the tragic cost of human life, the suffering of those left behind? Is humanity more important than the money? And what of the increase in the systemic fear that seemly has engulfed the country, if not entire the world?

Only Love Can Cure the Disease of Fear

To mourn the devastating losses and assuage the mounting fears after the catastrophic attacks in Paris that ultimately killed 17 people, that following Sunday with more than a million people behind them, over 40 world leaders (and/or their envoy) came together, linked arms and marched down the historic Boulevard Voltaire in a Rally for Unity against fear, now deemed “the largest demonstration in French history”.

Ultimately inspired, it was a great statement of resolve that quietly personified “La Marseillaise,” the rather bloody but very passionate French national anthem (sounds better in French). This moving anthem is said to be first sung by army volunteers marching in the streets of Marseille in the late eighteenth century.

Of course, seeing Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel marching at the center of her male equals was also very significant. As poignant memories of Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King marching in the rural streets of Selma Alabama, not too long ago, for peace and justice against the madness of systemic hatreds rushed into my mind.

Yet, having not learned how to love one another successfully thus far, here we are again beset by that insidious virus of systemic fear! This time marching in Paris France no less.

Thus, as Dr. King once said in part: “Hatred and bitterness can never cure the disease of fear; only love can do that. Hatred darkens life; love illumines it.”

And so, the united march against pervasive fear and social injustices persists until humanity finally wakes up and gets it right.

Getting it Right!

First, relative to free speech, society needs to make clear, at all times, the difference between free speech and hate speech and stand behind it. As this has not always been made clear by the news media during its recent Charlie Hebdo discussions, which are still ongoing.

Of course, while bound by its own laws that protect free speech, as reported recently, on occasion the French authorities did attempt to deter the wretched contents of Charlie Hebdo. Sadly, though receiving copious death threats continuously, usually by mail, the magazine’s editor, Mr. Stéphane Charbonnier was not deterred, which ultimately led to his death.

Next, rather then going into denial as many in government and the media seem to be, now is the time to wake up and get it right. Owing to advanced technology and evolution in general, the world has changed completely!

Many people of a different hue or religion have been living in European society for some time now. Thus, generations have been born and raised there, and are now free to live and make their own choices. Thus, European rule is no longer isolated and free to decide what “those people” from distant lands should like and how they should feel.

Moreover, as we now know, unlike most rational people who have learned the wisdom of peaceful protest when marginalized by society’s injustices, some of “those people” who decide to think differently are foolishly willing to die for their beliefs, much like Stéphane Charbonnier then editor of Charlie Hebdo as previously stated.

While malicious propaganda, now trying to pass as free speech, has been used in the past to subjugate and marginalize certain groups of people, usually for economic gain, today such undemocratic socialization is fast becoming obsolete! As its intended targets are now more informed, more connected, and much more aware of the psychological dangers inherent in hateful propaganda.

And so we all must wake up, learn from our miserable mistakes heaped on the rest of humanity for far too long, and change for the better! And thus resolve to not let the terribly misinformed individuals on both sides of the equation continue to die.

Instead, let’s begin, first by example then by our healing words, to teach each one how to live, how to love unconditionally, and, most importantly, how to laugh! It is then and only then can humanity begin to get it right!

Hope for a New Day

According to a recent article in the Washington Post (Massive Crowds Join March for Solidarity in Paris), France’s chief rabbi Haïm Korsia is quoted as saying: “Why do we always have to be united by tears?”

That said, here is hoping that one day, when the climate is favorable to more colorful attire, a march for Peace and Unity will soon be held. Again, bringing together world leaders and religious scholars to lead a march down the historic Boulevard Voltaire.

Since only love can cure the disease of fear, this time a more positive mantra that simply states “I am Loved” will do splendidly. As this affirms who we really are!

And so, with each one affirming “I am Loved” by millions of people everywhere, the world would change instantly! Thus a divine promise is fulfilled.

As we are all in this together, on that day humanity will take a giant leap towards getting it right! And the real work for world peace and unity truly begins.

© Delores L. Adams and The Aunt Jemimah Post 2015. All rights reserved.

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Assassination of JFK: Not Who but What Killed JFK is the Better Question

Posted in Living History, Politics, tagged , , , , , , , , , on November 22, 2013| 18 Comments »

For all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these, ‘It might have been’.  ~John Greenleaf Whittier

Today on the fifth anniversary of JFK’ assignation, I found myself glued to the television watching the heartbreaking events of JFK’s death and remembering. It seems like yesterday rather than fifty years ago. The pain is still fresh and the vivid images on television instantly take me back to that searing moment when first told of JFK’s death.

I was a young woman then, working for a wonderful employer who naturally treated me more like a daughter than an employee.  Being Jewish and true to his cultural values, thankfully he saw me as a person rather than a poor colored child, which made all the difference.  Though I would never allow myself to feel subjugated per se, still it was great not having to fight for his respect.

In fact, during segregation (Jim Crow) the Jewish people were known to treat us African Americans quite well; thus, many in the Jewish community joined with a group of multi-racial activists and helped found the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, c.1909) and later marched with Martin Luther King of course.

Being one of those small businesses that President Obama glowing speaks of, their wholesale fabric company was founded by two very generous brothers. Morty and Norman who generally treated all of us like family.  Much to their credit, the brothers maintained an employees’ profit sharing trust fund, which came in handy when I left the company.  And much like Mr. Fezziwig in the Dickens’ classic, A Christmas Carol, who always ordered a great Christmas feast for his employees, Christmastime there is still one of my fondest memories.

Also being a company of multi-racial employees, we jokingly referred to ourselves as “the Little UN” (United Nations). Yet, being young and more concerned about the latest movie and partying on the weekend rather than politics, we rarely spoke of the young, dashing JFK, until that day!

“Hey, Somebody Just Shot Kennedy in Dallas!”

Unlike his brother Norman who walked and talked rather fast and generally yelled when exasperated, though he never fired anyone and we knew that, Morty was the cool one.  Having all the wit and charm of the gifted salesman he was (which reportedly started the company) and likely quite the ladies’ man before settling down, Morty, being tall and lanky, generally walked slowly and deliberately, yet ready to chat and trade jokes with the best.  Now semi retired due to a heart condition, Morty stayed around the office most of the time much to the chagrin of the other ladies there, though I thought he was quite funny and would typically laugh at his jokes and funny stories most of the time.

Of course, unbeknownst to us, that day would indeed be different in the office. As America would never be the same, which would affect all of us in ways not yet imagined.

Being their PBX Receptionist (then a glorified telephone operator, now an obsolete term given our advanced technology), my desk was right outside the entrance to their offices.  So I was the first to see Morty uncharacteristically rushing through the office, and quite shaken by what he had just heard on the radio.  Soon he would sadly announce that Kennedy was dead!

With that, most of us working up front burst into tears. That day, race or ethnicity, or whether one was Democrat or Republican just did not matter. We simply were reacting to that which hit us in the deepest part of our humanity.  Our beloved president was dead. Some fool, some idiot had just killed him.   We were deeply wounded, plain and simple!  And just could not stop crying.

“Your People Have Lost A Friend.” 

Soon, as with the rest, once started, I too could not stop crying.  In fact, I am in tears even as I now write, and that was over fifty years ago.  After telling us, Morty immediately heads to the warehouse out back so as to deliver the sad news to the rest of his employees.  Sitting at the receptionary stunned and typically trying to make sense of it, eventually I look up and see a more somber Morty headed for his office.

He stops by and quietly says something that I shall never forget, as no true words were ever spoken at that moment: “Your people have lost a friend.”

With that, it seems everything came into focus; the flood gates opened and as the words began to sink inwardly, I cried and could not stop crying.  And, of course, would never forget this day!  Thus every November 22 since, I would prayerfully remember JFK and that fateful day.

Actually, even as I write today, I think this is what lies at the heart of our so-called “fascination” with the assassination of JFK.  For the world had truly lost a great friend.

Morty said it best that day, and thus he was feeling it too, which simply means that humanity had, indeed, lost a great friend.  Once our collective humanity wakes out of its materialistic stupor and find that a true friend is all that we ever need both near and afar, together we have taken a giant step toward lasting world peace for sure.  Meanwhile…

A National Day of Mourning Was Declared

As we know, JFK was assassinated on a Friday so we go home and virtually mourn all weekend. Monday, the day of his funeral, would be the national day of mourning.  My sister and I shared an apartment.  And I clearly remember both of us being glued to the television watching whatever was on.  Of course, fifty years ago television, as we now know it, simply did not exist, neither did VCRs or DVDs.  So we virtually had little to distract us from our deeply felt sorrow. Besides, who felt like getting with friends playing cards, going out partying, or reading a good book.  Sadly, watching television, though depressing, was all that we could do.

And so, forever etched in my mind are the endless stories of Abraham Lincoln, the solemn comparisons of JFK to Lincoln and of course the funeral cortege with its haunting images: the Kennedy family, the beautiful and always fashionable Jackie Kennedy even in mourning attire, little Caroline kneeling at her father’s casket and, of course, little John-John (as his dad use to call him) saluting his beloved father as the historic, horse-driven caisson rolled by.

Afterwards, it would be a long time before these following words, respectfully whispered by media reporters, or the key music played during the funeral procession, would cease to bring back the very vivid and emotional recollections of JFK’s death: the grassy knoll, the cortege, the caisson, the White House rotunda, the heart wrenching symbol of a fallen soldier (a lone black horse with an empty saddle and boot attached); and, of course, the iconic music of Hail the Chief, Taps, and Chopin’s Funeral March (now played at state funerals), which is still quite beautiful as it both soars and ennobles the human spirit.

Today, now I understand the importance of reliving tragic events, for until we reconcile the feelings that are still haunting us we miss the lesson of forgiveness that it came to teach us.  And so after having done much research these past few days, I’ve come to the only conclusion…at least for me, that is.

Not Who but What Killed JFK is the Better Question

Rather than being consumed by who killed President Kennedy, which we will never know for sure, I’ve made peace with considering what killed JFK, which is far more practical and much more edifying in my opinion.

Sadly, it is most likely that a confluence of envy, materialism and primal fear in certain high places is the real culprit behind the conspiracy that foolishly murdered our beloved President Kennedy.  Was he perfect? Of course not!  Did he deserve to die like that?  Hell no!

For those given over to resentment of President Kennedy’s wealth, eloquence, good looks and a winning smile, along with his wife, Jackie Kennedy’s great beauty and regal bearing, envy was their motive.  For those blinded by the unnatural love of money and world power, material gain was their motive.  And for those wrongly misguided by the primitive notion of survival of the fittest, immediate war was their objective.

Of course, as with most badly conceived strategies, we ultimately loss that war and with grave consequences, no less!  Sadly, today the envious voices and various national and international crooks are still among us, and thus are still trying to rule the world.  Yet, thankfully, the ever glorious legacy of JFK forever lives for those of us willing to see its light!

President John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s Living Legacy

Wisdom has taught me to never take lightly the kindness of a good friend, for such will ever shine long after leaving our world. And, most of all, never expect too much from another human being, which I am still working on, for we are not that perfect.  Yet friendship surly abounds, there to bless and support us when needed.  Such is the law of Universal Love.

Of the major things either started or completed by JFK during his thousand-day presidency, which are well documented: the Peace Corps, the Space Program, solving the Cuban Missiles Crises; and the proposed Endowment for the Arts, Civil Rights and Medicare bills that his successor, President Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) later signed into law, to which we are grateful, it was JFK’s innate goodness and vision for world peace that is most inspiring, in my opinion.

Thus, President Kennedy continues to inspire us through the gift of his noble thoughts:

As to the presidency: “I would say that the problems are more difficult than I had imagined them to be. The responsibilities placed on the United States are greater than I imagined them to be, and there are greater limitations upon our ability to bring about a favorable result than I had imagined them to be. And I think that is probably true of anyone who becomes President… It is much easier to make the speeches than it is to finally make the judgments, because, unfortunately, your advisers are frequently divided. If you take the wrong course, and on occasion I have, the President bears the burden of the responsibility quite rightly. The advisers may move on to new advice. (JFK during an interview for radio and television on December 17 1962).”[1]

As to the great responsibility of every able American citizen, once heard, who can forget these immortal words spoken by JFK during his inaugural address on January 20, 1961: “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”

Least we not forget.  Peace to all and do Keep the faith!

© Delores L. Adams and The Aunt Jemimah Post 2012-2013. All rights reserved.

[1] John F. Kennedy: “Television and Radio Interview: “After Two Years – a Conversation With the President.””, December 17, 1962. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=9060.

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