American University Speech Plus 60

This is the week of the 60th anniversary of John F Kennedy’s speech at American University (June 10, 1963).

As I wrote last year, his words are as relevant – if not more so – today than they were then.

Since my earlier post, the war in Ukraine has continued to escalate with President Joe Biden crossing his own red lines in terms of what aid the United States and its NATO sycophants are providing to the Kiev regime.

I fear we will soon see the use of NATO F16 fighters in Ukrainian air space – piloted by “volunteers” from NATO countries, including the United States. That would mark a dramatic escalation into direct conflict between the United States and Russia. The road from that point to use of nuclear weapons would be terrifyingly small.

This path must be abandoned.  No current political issue – whether Ukraine, or Taiwan (for the neocons have started promoting war with China over that island) is worth the threat to life on Earth.

And certainly not the political aspirations of Joe Biden who wants to be seen – as reported in the US media – as a “wartime President” to enhance his reelection bid for 2024

Whether with Vladimir Putin or Xi Jinping, the words of JFK on that summer day 60 years ago remain relevant and vital -whether speaking of Russians or Chinese:

No government or social system is so evil that its people must be considered as lacking in virtue. As Americans, we find communism profoundly repugnant as a negation of personal freedom and dignity. But we can still hail the Russian people for their many achievements, in science and space, in economic and industrial growth, in culture and in acts of courage.

Among the many traits the peoples of our two countries have in common, none is stronger than our mutual abhorrence of war. Almost unique among the major world powers, we have never been at war with each other. And no nation in the history of battle ever suffered more than the Soviet Union suffered in the course of the Second World War. At least 20 million lost their lives. Countless millions of homes and farms were burned or sacked. A third of the nation’s territory, including nearly two thirds of its industrial base, was turned into a wasteland, a loss equivalent to the devastation of this country east of Chicago.

So, let us not be blind to our differences. But let us also direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s future. And we are all mortal.

 

 

Author: Tom

1 thought on “American University Speech Plus 60

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.