History Repeating
What is the spirit of 1967? What is the mood of America and of the world toward America today? It is a joyless spirit - a mood of frustration, of anxiety, of uncertainty.
In place of the enthusiasm of the Peace Corps among the young people of America, we have protests and demonstrations.
In place of the enthusiasm of the Alliance for Progress, we have distrust and disappointment.
Instead of the language of promise and of hope, we have in politics today a new vocabulary in which the critical word is 'war': war on terror, war on drugs, war on poverty, war on ignorance, war on crime, war on pollution. None of these problems can be solved by war, but only by persistent, thoughtful, and dedicated attention. But we do have one war which is properly called a war - the war in Iraq, which is central to all the problems of America.
A war of questionable legality and questionable constitutionality. A war which is diplomatically indefensible; the first war in this century in which the United States, which at its founding made an appeal to the decent opinion of mankind in the Declaration of Independence, finds itself without the support of the decent opinion of mankind.
A war which cannot be defended in the context of the judgment of history. It is being presented in the context of an historical judgment of an era which is past. 9/11 appears to be the starting point of history for the administration and for those who attempt to support its policies. What is necessary is a realization that the United States is a part of the movement of history itself; that it cannot stand apart, attempting to control the world by imposing covenants and treaties and by violent military intervention; that our role is not to police the planet but to use military strength with restraint and within limits, while at the same time we make available to the world the great power of our economy, of our knowledge, and of our good will.
The bold text is mine. The "war on terror" and "war on drugs" are mine. "Iraq" was originally "Vietnam", "9/11" was "Munich", "administration/its" were "secretary of state/his". The speech was delivered by Senator Eugene McCarthy in Chicago, on December 2, 1967.
In place of the enthusiasm of the Peace Corps among the young people of America, we have protests and demonstrations.
In place of the enthusiasm of the Alliance for Progress, we have distrust and disappointment.
Instead of the language of promise and of hope, we have in politics today a new vocabulary in which the critical word is 'war': war on terror, war on drugs, war on poverty, war on ignorance, war on crime, war on pollution. None of these problems can be solved by war, but only by persistent, thoughtful, and dedicated attention. But we do have one war which is properly called a war - the war in Iraq, which is central to all the problems of America.
A war of questionable legality and questionable constitutionality. A war which is diplomatically indefensible; the first war in this century in which the United States, which at its founding made an appeal to the decent opinion of mankind in the Declaration of Independence, finds itself without the support of the decent opinion of mankind.
A war which cannot be defended in the context of the judgment of history. It is being presented in the context of an historical judgment of an era which is past. 9/11 appears to be the starting point of history for the administration and for those who attempt to support its policies. What is necessary is a realization that the United States is a part of the movement of history itself; that it cannot stand apart, attempting to control the world by imposing covenants and treaties and by violent military intervention; that our role is not to police the planet but to use military strength with restraint and within limits, while at the same time we make available to the world the great power of our economy, of our knowledge, and of our good will.
The bold text is mine. The "war on terror" and "war on drugs" are mine. "Iraq" was originally "Vietnam", "9/11" was "Munich", "administration/its" were "secretary of state/his". The speech was delivered by Senator Eugene McCarthy in Chicago, on December 2, 1967.
posted by Dan at 3:34 PM
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1 Comments:
I like those edits. Some things never change, huh?
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