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WPCNR NEWS AND COMMENT By John F. Bailey. (reprinted from November, 2001) UPDATED. November 22, 2021:
Someone made a big mistake again this year. The papers on November 22nd had no reference to the day John F. Kennedy was shot and killed. Today.
Three gunshots on November 22 at 1 in the afternoon just about an hour and a half ago in Dallas, Texas murdered President John F. Kennedy.
Today is the day in Dallas 58 years ago on Friday afternoon when President John F. Kennedy was shot riding in his motorcade in front of the Texas Book Depository Building.
November 22, 1963. A most unfortunate coincidence that someone should have noticed.
Fifty-eight years ago today at about midday eastern standard time, President John F. Kennedy was shot in Dallas, Texas.
When I heard the news, I was heading up the steps of Gray Chapel at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio. It was sobering news. Then within the hour it was reported that the President was dead, and the search was on for potential suspects.
It was the first time in my life a national event had ever affected me.
Persons in their mid-70s can probably remember exactly what they were doing when they heard that electrifying news.
Disbelief. Concern. Sadness. Grieg. Nothing you could do about it.
Who would shoot the President? How could they? The President no matter who he was was revered and respected at that time — not ridiculed, mocked, vilified, and criticised for his every move as President Biden is today.
President Kennedy’s popularity was ebbing at that time in 1963.
The public was initially inspired by the vision of Camelot and the likable, energetic young president.
However, by the time he was assassinated, President Kennedy was coming under harsh criticism for his foreign policy and his inability to move an agenda through congress. (Sound familiar?)
He was pushed around by congressional heavyweights — eerily not too much different from our President today, who today pushes congress members to pass voting rights and immigration reform and is blocked blocked blocked by congressmen and senators who know better.
When Kennedy was shot, the American public, even those who disagreed with his politics and considered him in over his head in the presidency, were stunned by grief and horror.
Nothing had happened like that in America since 1901 when President William McKinley was assassinated.
An entire nation reflected in guilt for a week as the three television networks showed 24 hours a day assassination and funeral coverage. Walter Cronkite shed a tear on camera when he reported Kennedy was dead. No commentator would think about reacting in glee on the air as they do now at Biden presidential defeats.
And please, no congressional personality would ever show video of himself cutting the throat of a fellow member of congress. That throat slitter guy needs to be thrown out of congress or at least arrested for threatening Congresswoman Alexandria Castro Cortez.
Does this mean in today’s law, threatening the life of a member of congress is not a crime or at least a menacing charge???? Please.
Until the Trade Center Horror in 2001, this nation had not experienced anything on that national scale of reaction to an event.(With the exceptions of the Detroit riots in 1967 and anti-Viet Nam War protests.)
Were we a more sensitive nation then? More sensitive to what killing actually is? I wonder. In the fast-moving sensationalism of news ambulance and shootings chasers today, would the same sensitivity be there today? No. And it’s not!
Or, have we been hardened to violence, and do we now see violence as more of an acceptable solution to problems than to be avoided at all costs? Yes, we do. And we have an an ex-“president” who came out supporting a vigilante teen with an AK-47 who gunned down unarmed people in Kenosha Wiconsin as protecting himself. That takes my breath away. And whose Ak-47 was it? His? His parents? Very key question.
It seems so. With disgruntled, overly sensitive misfits just taking guns and shooting innocent people and they get acquitted on self-defense?
I remember how Americans sat mesmerized in front of their televisions as the Kennedy goodbye played out.
I remember, too how Kennedy’s death swiftly paved the way for the landmark Civil Rights act of 1965, legislated by Kennedy’s successor, Lyndon B. Johnson. That legislation, without Kennedy’s assassination would probably never have been passed. I believe it passed because of collective guilt over Kennedy’s demise.
For 58 years, politicians, when their charisma is measured, have always been compared to Mr. Kennedy.
However, charisma does not get things done any more and it has lost its lustre as being a good thing.
Charisma and popularity does not make for change by itself.
The last four years we have seen the downside of charisma without compassion and thought.
It is nice but it achieves nothing unless you have some good solid ideas, management skills, and are willing to work hard for it. And compromise for the greater good. There are not people in congress both houses, who do that today.
Even, then, as a recent Kennedyesque President, with a license to use charisma, Barack Obama found out, it may not happen.
However, the political rancor and hysterical hatred of our President Obama that was expressed in the Republican debates, on talk radio and by candidates who should know better back in 2016, created an atmosphere of disrespect for then President Obama and the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton exceeded even that aimed at George W. Bush.
The lack of respect for President Biden today and hatred of Democrats has created an atmosphere that is far more dangerous for the President and the country than we can ever tell.
Mr. Trump, the former “president” polarized the nation into two warring camps with unprecedented name-calling, purely nasty, hurtful policies towards minorities and immigrants, bragging about the right to molest women, and supporting womanizers in his administration, and planned takeaways of health care, and blatant giveaways to robber barons on poshly appointed carpatted crags in concrete canyons reminiscent of the cruel British aristocracies.
The toxicity against the Presidents, both Obama, President Trump (though much is of Mr. Trump’s own immaturity and inability to manage) and now the pathological vilification of President Biden has been inflamed
Mr. Trump’s whining about the election being rigged is reckless and immature. Poor Little Rich Boy’as whining. No presidential candidate has ever acted this way before. But people bought it. They stormed the capitol with Mr. Trump’s “Stop the Steal” campaign in the last 14 days of the worst American Presidency ever.
Mr. Trump is a winner again from above to stealing a solid grip on the title of “Worst American President” from Richard Nixon, Andrew Johnson, both George Bushes, and Bill Clinton.
The job of the nation is to make sure they do not bring Mr. Trump to finish wrecking the nation in 2024.
Al Gore when he lost the 2000 election did not, to my memory come out and call for revolution.
Mitt Romney’s petulance in 2012 at his defeat by President Obama started a tradition of losing ungracefully.
Voters saw right through this Mitt “Guy Smiley” of a candidate they in their guts knew the phony he was. Voters were not as astute in 2016.
Romney’s comments to his donors, were echoed by Michael Steele’s statement about Emperor Obama and his “reign of lawlessness” is exactly the sort of talk that paved the way for the Republican campaign of hatred in 2016. It was irresponsible of Romney and Steele.
A losing Presidential candidate has one job, unite behind the new leader. Romney is the only President in my memory ever to have not — until the Little Rich Boy with the forked tongue.
The Republicans’ inability to compromise has stalled the nation on recovery, immigration, health care…you name the issue, the Republican Party has stalled progress in their frantic effort to roll back the clock to the turn of the 20th century. (1899-1900) when white and rich were right. Robber barons, oil tycoons, industrialists, bankers, ruled the roost.–until the great Teddy Roosevelt broke up Standard oil, forced the banks to support the economy and supported the union movement.
Now we have a misguided America think that the rich will help them thanks to the self-rights movement.
We should always remember The Republicans’ whining. Bullies always whine. Fixers always are sore losers.
Ideas and rhetoric are one thing, but to vilify President Obama on the scale of what we heard in 2016 was irresponsible. Because it was listened to by persons across the country who suddenly got the “OK” from Republican candidates and “leaders” that it was ok to hate, to blame America’s problems on immigrants, and trade policies, and ignore science.
When educated leaders in congress endorse the policies of hate and punishment people can be OK with that? Leaders are giving people license to hate and hurt, discriminate, exploit, kill and build up themselves at the expense of others.
5 years ago the American people elected a President who did just that. Just that.
So when you sit down to turkey Thursday give a thought to be thankful for a nation that once did not rise up in arms whenever a leader is elected that a portion of the populace does not like. (Yet and yet, many did on January 6 this year, at the urging of that “president.”)
Be thankful that the American people once spoke and felt as one, and hopefully will learn to do so again even though we disagree.
I hope so.
They must.