John F Kennedy was a unique President and individual. He, unlike many heads of State, encouraged people to question the government, to get themselves informed and have their own ideas and opinions. He empowered American people to be aware and make sure that their Constitutional Rights were in no way compromised. He understood that people have to be actively involved in keeping their freedom, and encouraged an entire nation to do this.
It is very interesting to read some of the things that he said fifty years ago. It is interesting how applicable these ideas are to today's world.
On April 16, 1959, John F Kennedy said the following passage:
"The Bill of Rights is the guardian of our security as well as our Liberty. Let us not be afraid of debate or dissent- let us encourage it. For if we should ever abandon these basic American traditions in the name of fighting Communism, what would it profit to win the whole world when we have lost our soul?"
What really caught me about in this quote is that the world "Communism" could just as easily be "Terrorism." It seems that there is always some boogy-man movement that is threatening to come in and destroy our nation. There is always some reason to give up our rights for a bit of "security" from these terrible, elusive movements.
We have come, as a Nation, from having a President who wanted a truly empowered and free people to having a President who is annoyed when asked to simply present his birth certificate. We are a nation who's headline news revolves around celebrity lives and scandals rather than the slow disappearance of our fundamental Constitutional Rights.
John F Kennedy knew that freedom is not a given. Total power corrupts totally. People have to be active participants in order to maintain what is rightfully theirs. He said repeatedly what we need to do to hold onto our rights, he gave us the formula. He said there needs to be debate, meanwhile the new Patriot Act is passed with very little debate. Right now there is a new Bill presented in Congress that that will allow any person who is a threat to "national security" to be arrested without a trial. A direct violation of the 6th Amendment. Not only is it not being intensely debated, the media is not even informing the nation that this is happening.
We are a nation that is losing its soul. The essence of freedom and liberty is dissolving, being replaced with a mixture of fear and apathy. It is time, as a nation, for us to wake up and claim what is rightfully ours. To insist on no less than what our forefathers intended for us to have.
"Thomas Jefferson once said that if you expect a people to be ignorant and free you expect what never was and never will be" -John F Kennedy
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