There were two significant events that happened in my life where sea change occurred in my way of thinking. Both of these events were momentous in my evolutionary journey, which has resulted in entirely new ways of thinking about the way humans relate to each other, and war -- it changed my life.
An impetus for change in my life ensued while traveling as a road musician in the south in the late 50’s and early 60’s, where I witnessed first hand, and very much to my chagrin, the discrimination and hatred that King was speaking and writing about. An impetus for change ensued during the years of the Vietnam War; the war, in all of its political, cultural, and military context, significantly changed my thinking about our government, society, the real reasons we wage war, military leadership, and of war itself. Racism and militarism had become, for the remainder of my life, my life’s passion. I now have an unquenchable need to speak out against racism and war, and to promote diversity and peace.
That is why this particular election for president is essentially important to me.
In my lifetime, there have been two speeches that I consider to be the most poignant, and significant. They are: “I Have a Dream” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., August 28, 1963; and the American University commencement address of President John F. Kennedy, June 10th, 1963.
The unfinished year, an article by James Carroll, ties the importance of these two iconic speeches of 1963 to today “like a time capsule”: “The thematic commitment to the future required a revisiting of the past - a specific time in which this nation's still unrealized dream was born.”
I invite all to take the time to read the American University commencement address of John Kennedy, and the “I Have a Dream” address of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. If you are familiar with them, please read them again; if you are not familiar with them, it will be a disservice for you not to read them. They are significantly and meaningfully important concepts for Americans as well as our world.
Regardless of ones view of King or Kennedy, the messages delivered in their speeches are inarguably moral, and deserve America’s best effort for their fruition.
Barack Obama’s 2008 democratic convention speech is also full of meaning and significance. Senator McCain said, “Senator Obama, this is truly a good day for America. Too often the achievements of our opponents go unnoticed. So I wanted to stop and say, 'Congratulations.'" Obama’s message too disserves America’s best effort for its fruition.
We have not heeded the vision of these men and the significance of their messages. Sad to say, although America’s attitude toward race seems to have improved, there nevertheless continues to be an undercurrent of de facto racism in our country. Factors of race are still influencing our daily lives and our decisions.
Kennedy said, “The United States, as the world knows, will never start a war.” This statement certainly has no meaning in America today -- we have broken that sacred vow, and it cannot be changed. We place more importance that our President have the attributes to be commander in chief than we insist that the man or woman who is running for the presidency of the United States be of moral character, and who will also attend to the societal needs of our country.
If we in fact want meaningful change, not just another face with the same old attitudes and beliefs, we must heed the messages of King and Kennedy. If we don’t, we are doomed, because America’s commitment will continue to be to a nation of militarism, hate, despair, inequities, and the capitalist ethos of chaos, waste and destruction.
The change I expect is not as Fred Thompson expressed it: Thompson said he believes McCain and Palin will "take the federal bureaucracy by the scruff of the neck and give it a good shaking”; the change I expect is the kind of change expressed by Barack Obama in his Democratic convention speech.
Not one of the candidates for president of any party satisfactorily spoke out against war. No one promoted the benefits of peace as the way to authentic freedom. Many spoke out against the Iraq War, including, in an admirable way, Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich, but none took a hard stance for peace as opposed to war.
America needs a conglomeration of ideas and concepts of governance and economics as presented by Ron Paul; the heartfelt opposition to war and dedication to peace of Dennis Kucinich, not just Iraq but all war; the societal consciousness, leadership skills, gravitas and charisma of a Barack Obama, who can frame that ideology and present it in a logical and convincing way, with the understanding that this is achievable over time.
The Republican convention was all about war: McCain the war hero. It was primarily all about the glorification of war. Those of the generation who did not live through the zeitgeist of the 60’s and 70’s must critically think about the Vietnam War. Vietnam was a disaster. McCain, not someone who was conscripted, a career officer, voluntarily flew missions at altitudes of 18,000 to 25,000 feet (three to five miles) while making bombing runs over North Vietnam. He did not have to engage the enemy one-on-one where targets were more specific, but simply drop bombs. B-52’s dropped their bombs at altitudes of 35,000 to 40,000 feet. These missions took skill and there were risk, but they were not, to a certain degree, very courageous; a grunt on the ground needed less skill, but certainly took more risk and needed a higher degree of courage to be effective. These bombing missions were designed to terrorize North Vietnam, and those missions killed more civilians than military specific targets.
John McCain did serve his country and did what this country expected of him. He was not naïve, ignorant, or uninformed, and he certainly understood the risk and the probabilities of being shot down with the subsequent loss of his life or of being captured. In this sense, the sense of dedication we ascribe to those who fight wars, he is a war hero. However, John McCain stands as a metaphor of what we need to change in America.
I don’t want a maverick, nor do I want a conformist for President. I want a man or women who have character, gravitas, and charisma, who can make decisions based on the facts and then who can deliver that judgment in a message to America in an honest and coherent way.
McCain and the republican party claim the mantra that above all “Country First.” In view of that mindset, the following is an interesting quote by Adolf Hitler: "It is thus necessary that the individual should finally come to realize that his own ego is of no importance in comparison with the existence of his nation; that the position of the individual ego is conditioned solely by the interests of the nation as a whole...that above all, the unity of a nation's spirit and will are worth far more than the freedom of the spirit and will of an individual...we understand only the individual's capacity to make sacrifices for the community, for his fellow man.”
I believe ones family must come first. By putting your family first you are putting your community and your country first. This is the only way our country will be strong. It is families that bind and interlace communities together in common cause; communities are the bedrock of America.
America must ignore the tomfoolery and obfuscation of this presidential campaign, and concentrate on the candidate that considers you and me as the most important consideration of an American President.
“We have also come to this hallowed spot [the Lincoln Memorial] to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.” Martin Luther King Jr.
The “fierce urgency of Now” is upon us. The time and season to make epistemic and factual change is Now. We do not have “to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism,” in the sense that this statement was made, but we do have to begin a process that over time will accomplish the goals of King and Kennedy.
The best choice we have Now for a candidate for president who will work for diversity and inclusion for Americans, as well as for peace as opposed to war by working on our behalf to achieve peaceful outcomes, is Barack Obama.
As Senator Obama stated about change: through grass-roots initiatives change will not come from Washington; it will come to Washington.
The time and season for change is Now, and it is all up to you and me!
