John Fitzgerald Kennedy idézet

oldal 15

„A kínaiak két ecsetvonással írják a „válság” szót. Ez első ecsetvonás veszélyt jelent; a másik lehetőséget. Válsághelyzetben vegye figyelembe a veszélyt - de ismerje fel a lehetőséget.”

„Ha egy ember jogai gyengülnek, akkor mindenki jogai veszélyeztetve vannak.”

„Minél nagyobb a tudásunk, annál nagyobb a tudatlanságunk.”

„Akkor kell tetőt javítani, amikor süt a nap.”

„Akik mernek elbukni, azok képesek sokat elérni.”

„Miközben kifejezzük hálánkat, soha nem szabad elfelejtenünk, hogy a legnagyobb elismerés nem az, amikor szavakban fejezzük ki azt, hanem amikor úgy is élünk.”

„Az élet nem igazságos: vannak, akik betegek, míg mások egészségesek.”

„Olyan Amerikában hiszek, ahol az állam és az egyház elválasztása teljes, ahol a katolikus papok nem szabják meg az elnöknek, miként viselkedjen, és a protestáns lelkészek sem mondják meg híveiknek, kire szavazzanak; ahol semmilyen egyház vagy egyházi iskola sem kap támogatást közpénzből vagy politikai preferencia alapján. Olyan Amerikában hiszek, amely sem protestáns, sem katolikus, sem zsidó, ahol a köztisztviselők nem kérnek és fogadnak el politikai instrukciókat, jöjjenek azok a pápától vagy bármely más egyházi forrásból; ahol a vallási testületek nem kívánják közvetlenül vagy közvetetten érvényesíteni akaratukat a lakossággal szemben vagy tisztviselőik nyilvános szereplései révén.
1960 szeptemberében Houstonban mondta egy beszédében.”

„Ne azt kérdezd, hogy mit tett érted az ország, hanem azt, hogy te mit tettél az országért.”

„Berlini vagyok!”

„Úgy döntöttünk, hogy még ebben az évtizedben eljutunk a Holdra, és megteszünk más, ehhez hasonló dolgokat. Nem azért, mert könnyű, hanem azért, mert nehéz. Azért, mert ez a cél képességeink és erőnk legjavát igényli, azért, mert ez olyan kihívás, amit készek vagyunk elfogadni, olyan, amit nem akarunk halogatni és amit meg akarunk nyerni.”

„Amerikai polgártársaim, ne azt kérdezzétek, mit tehet az országotok értetek; azt kérdezzétek, mit tehettek ti az országotokért. Polgártársaim a világban, ne azt kérdezzétek, Amerika mit tesz értetek, hanem azt, hogy mit tehetünk közösen a szabadságért.”

„Amerikai polgártársaim, ne azt kérdezzétek, mit tehet az országotok értetek; azt kérdezzétek, mit tehettek ti az országotokért.”

„Tudja meg minden nemzet, kívánjon nekünk akár jót, akár rosszat, hogy bármilyen árat megfizetünk, bármilyen terhet elviselünk, bármilyen nehézséget felvállalunk, bármely barátot támogatunk, bármely ellenséggel szembeszállunk, azért, hogy a szabadság fennmaradását és sikerét biztosítsuk.”

„Azok, akik lehetetlenné teszik a békés forradalmat, elkerülhetetlenné teszik az erőszakos forradalmat.”

„Meg kell találnunk az időt, hogy megálljunk és megköszönjük azokat az embereket, akik változást hoznak az életünkben.”

„Nagyszerű jövő elé nézek Amerika számára - egy olyan jövő elé, amelyben országunk katonai ereje a mi erkölcsi visszafogottságunkkal, gazdagsága a mi bölcsességünkkel, hatalma a mi céljainkkal párosul.”

„Határozzuk el, hogy nem áldozatai, hanem urai leszünk történelmünknek, és irányítjuk saját sorsunkat anélkül, hogy engednénk a vak gyanakvásnak és az érzelmeknek.”

„Kínaiul írva a "válság" szó két karakterből áll. Az egyik a veszélyt, a másik a lehetőséget jelképezi.”

“It cannot be surprising that, as resistance within Cuba grows, refugees have been using whatever means are available to return and support their countrymen in the continuing struggle for freedom. Where people are denied the right of choice, recourse to such struggle is the only means of achieving their liberties.”

“When discussing the possibility of a complete military takeover in the country after reading the book Seven Days in May, President Kennedy said, "… if there were a third Bay of Pigs, it could happen." He paused and then said "But it won't happen on my watch."”

“A great new edifice is not built overnight. It was 11 years from the Declaration of Independence to the writing of the Constitution. The construction of workable federal institutions required still another generation. The greatest works of our Nation's founders lay not in documents and in declarations, but in creative, determined action. The building of the new house of Europe has followed the same practical, purposeful course. Building the Atlantic partnership now will not be easily or cheaply finished.”

“Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. ”

“All men can fly, but sadly, only in one direction.”

“I look forward to an America which will reward achievement in the arts as we reward achievement in business or statecraft. I look forward to an America which will steadily raise the standards of artistic accomplishment and which will steadily enlarge cultural opportunities for all of our citizens. And I look forward to an America which commands respect throughout the world not only for its strength but for its civilization as well. And I look forward to a world which will be safe not only for democracy and diversity but also for personal distinction.”

“The essence of Vanderbilt is still learning, the essence of its outlook is still liberty, and liberty and learning will be and must be the touchstones of Vanderbilt University and of any free university in this country or the world. I say two touchstones, yet they are almost inseparable, inseparable if not indistinguishable, for liberty without learning is always in peril, and learning without liberty is always in vain.”

“The final and best means of strengthening demand among consumers and business is to reduce the burden on private income and the deterrents to private initiative which are imposed by our present tax system.”

“Corporate tax rates must also be cut to increase incentives and the availability of investment capital. The Government has already taken major steps this year to reduce business tax liability and to stimulate the modernization, replacement, and expansion of our productive plant and equipment.”

“When consumers purchase more goods, plants use more of their capacity, men are hired instead of laid off, investment increases and profits are high.”

“Acting on our own, by ourselves, we cannot establish justice throughout the world; we cannot insure its domestic tranquility, or provide for its common defense, or promote its general welfare, or secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. But joined with other free nations, we can do all this and more. We can assist the developing nations to throw off the yoke of poverty. We can balance our worldwide trade and payments at the highest possible level of growth. We can mount a deterrent powerful enough to deter any aggression. And ultimately we can help to achieve a world of law and free choice, banishing the world of war and coercion.”

“The strength of the alliance on which our security depends is dependent in turn on our willingness to meet our commitments to them.”

“I hear it said that West Berlin is militarily untenable. And so was Bastogne. And so, in fact, was Stalingrad. Any dangerous spot is tenable if men--brave men--will make it so.”

“We are clear about what must be done--and we intend to do it. I want to talk frankly with you tonight about the first steps that we shall take. These actions will require sacrifice on the part of many of our citizens. More will be required in the future. They will require, from all of us, courage and perseverance in the years to come. But if we and our allies act out of strength and unity of purpose--with calm determination and steady nerves--using restraint in our words as well as our weapons--I am hopeful that both peace and freedom will be sustained.”

“In short, it is a paradoxical truth that tax rates are too high today and tax revenues are too low and the soundest way to raise the revenues in the long run is to cut the rates now.”

“It is not a pleasure for any President of the United States, as I am sure it was not a pleasure for my predecessors, to come before the Congress and ask for new appropriations which place burdens on our people. I came to this conclusion with some reluctance. But in my judgment, this is a most serious time in the life of our country and in the life of freedom around the globe, and it is the obligation, I believe, of the President of the United States to at least make his recommendations to the Members of the Congress, so that they can reach their own conclusions with that judgment before them. You must decide yourselves, as I have decided, and I am confident that whether you finally decide in the way that I have decided or not, that your judgment--as my judgment--is reached on what is in the best interests of our country.”

“Today we need a nation of minute men; citizens who are not only prepared to take up arms, but citizens who regard the preservation of freedom as a basic purpose of their daily life and who are willing to consciously work and sacrifice for that freedom.”

“The artist, however faithful to his personal vision of reality, becomes the last champion of the individual mind and sensibility against an intrusive society and an officious state. The great artist is thus a solitary figure. He has, as Frost said, a lover's quarrel with the world. In pursuing his perceptions of reality, he must often sail against the currents of his time. This is not a popular role. If Robert Frost was much honored in his lifetime, it was because a good many preferred to ignore his darker truths. Yet in retrospect, we see how the artist's fidelity has strengthened the fiber of our national life. If sometimes our great artist have been the most critical of our society, it is because their sensitivity and their concern for justice, which must motivate any true artist, makes him aware that our Nation falls short of its highest potential. I see little of more importance to the future of our country and our civilization than full recognition of the place of the artist.”

“Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free.”

“So that as I tried to say in my speech, we are not faced with the question of balancing our budget, or having a tax reduction. I believe we are faced with the fact that we are going to have a deficit mostly because of the sharp rise in the recent years in space and defense, and to increase our taxes sufficient to bring that budget into balance would be defeating, because of course it would provide a heavy deflationary effect on our economy, and move us into a recession at an accelerated rate.”

“Well, the purpose of reform really is directed to the encouraging of growth and employment. I quite agree that to launch into a full scale battle on general reform for academic reasons would be unwise. The central purpose behind the reform must therefore be to encourage those changes in our tax laws which will encourage economic growth for that purpose, and not merely because it might have some longer range interest or significance. The primary job will be to encourage the flow of capital into those areas which stimulate the national growth and not diminish it. But it is going to be a tough fight, because once you spell out, as I said before, reform, it's bound to affect adversely the interests of some, while favoring the interests of others. Therefore reform may be a longer task, and we are anxious that in the effort to get reform, that we do not lose the very important matter of tax reduction for the sake of the economy.”

“When I was a Congressman I never realized how important Congress was, but now I do.”

“I do not underestimate the obstacles which the Congress will face in enacting such legislation. No one will be satisfied. Everyone will have his own approach, his own bill, his own reduction. A high order of restraint and determination will be required if the possible is not to wait on the perfect. But a nation capable of marshaling these qualities in any dramatic threat to its security is surely capable, as a great free society, of meeting a slower and more complex threat to our economic vitality. This Nation can afford to reduce taxes, we can afford a temporary deficit, but we cannot afford to do nothing. For on the strength of our free economy rests the hope of all free nations. We shall not fail that hope, for free men and free nations must prosper and they must prevail.”

“I repeat: our practical choice is not between a tax-cut deficit and a budgetary surplus. It is between two kinds of deficits: a chronic deficit of inertia, as the unwanted result of inadequate revenues and a restricted economy; or a temporary deficit of transition, resulting from a tax cut designed to boost the economy, increase tax revenues, and achieve--and I believe this can be done--a budget surplus. The first type of deficit is a sign of waste and weakness; the second reflects an investment in the future.”

“Our true choice is not between tax reduction, on the one hand, and the avoidance of large Federal deficits on the other. It is increasingly clear that no matter what party is in power, so long as our national security needs keep rising, an economy hampered by restrictive tax rates will never produce enough revenue to balance our budget just as it will never produce enough jobs or enough profits. Surely the lesson of the last decade is that budget deficits are not caused by wild-eyed spenders but by slow economic growth and periodic recessions, and any new recession would break all deficit records. In short, it is a paradoxical truth that tax rates are too high today and tax revenues are too low and the soundest way to raise the revenues in the long run is to cut the rates now. The experience of a number of European countries and Japan have borne this out. This country's own experience with tax reduction in 1954 has borne this out. And the reason is that only full employment can balance the budget, and tax reduction can pave the way to that employment. The purpose of cutting taxes now is not to incur a budget deficit, but to achieve the more prosperous, expanding economy which can bring a budget surplus.”

“When I announced in April of 1961 that this kind of comprehensive tax reform would follow the bill enacted this year, I had hoped to present it in an atmosphere of a balanced budget. But it has been necessary to augment sharply our nuclear and conventional forces, to step up our efforts in space, to meet the increased cost of servicing the national debt and meeting our obligations, established by law, to veterans. These expenditure increases, let me stress, constitute practically all of the increases which have occurred under this administration, the remainder having gone to fight the recession we found in industry--mostly through the supplemental employment bill-and in agriculture. We shall, therefore, neither postpone our tax cut plans nor cut into essential national security programs. This administration is determined to protect America's security and survival and we are also determined to step up its economic growth. I think we must do both.”

“If the economy today were operating close to capacity levels with little unemployment, or if a sudden change in our military requirements should cause a scramble for men and resources, then I would oppose tax reductions as irresponsible and inflationary; and I would not hesitate to recommend a tax increase, if that were necessary. But our resources and manpower are not being fully utilized; the general level of prices has been remarkably stable; and increased competition, both at home and abroad, along with increased productivity will help keep both prices and wages within appropriate limits.”

“I am confident that the enactment of the right bill next year will in due course increase our gross national product by several times the amount of taxes actually cut. Profit margins will be improved and both the incentive to invest and the supply of internal funds for investment will be increased. There will be new interest in taking risks, in increasing productivity, in creating new jobs and new products for long-term economic growth. Other national problems, moreover, will be aided by full employment. It will encourage the location of new plants in areas of labor surplus and provide new jobs for workers that we are retraining and facilitate the adjustment which will be necessary under our new trade expansion bill and reduce a number of government expenditures.”

“The new tax bill should improve both the equity and the simplicity of our present tax system. This means the enactment of long-needed tax reforms, a broadening of the tax base and the elimination or modification of many special tax privileges. These steps are not only needed to recover lost revenue and thus make possible a larger cut in present rates; they are also tied directly to our goal of greater growth. For the present patchwork of special provisions and preferences lightens the tax load of some only at the cost of placing a heavier burden on others. It distorts economic judgments and channels an undue amount of energy into efforts to avoid tax liabilities. It makes certain types of less productive activity more profitable than other more valuable undertakings. All this inhibits our growth and efficiency, as well as considerably complicating the work of both the taxpayer and the Internal Revenue Service. These various exclusions and concessions have been justified in part as a means of overcoming oppressively high rates in the upper brackets--and a sharp reduction in those rates, accompanied by base-broadening, loophole-closing measures, would properly make the new rates not only lower but also more widely applicable. Surely this is more equitable on both counts.”