“Let no one doubt that this is a difficult and dangerous effort on which we have set out. No one can foresee precisely what course it will take or what costs or casualties will be incurred.

“The path we have chosen for the present is full of hazards, as all paths are — but it is the one most consistent with our character and courage as a nation and our commitments around the world.

“The cost of freedom is always high — but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose is the path of surrender or submission.

“Our goal is not the victory of might but the vindication of right  not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere and, we hope, around the world. God willing, that goal will be achieved.”

- President John F. Kennedy, Oct. 22, 1962

Only a few weeks ago, these words of President Kennedy from 39 years ago would have seemed bold yet quaint, a relic of Cold War rhetoric that had long since faded into the history books. Yet now — as at no time since 1962 — these words have a clear and relevant meaning for Americans.

The difference is that today’s world — and the challenge we now face — are so utterly different than what this nation was facing nearly four decades ago.

Kennedy was speaking to national radio and television audience as he announced a naval blockade of Cuba. Russians were apparently sending in missiles that had the capability of hurling nuclear warheads into the U.S. Kennedy stared Russian president Nikita Khrushchev down, and the missiles were never aimed toward this country.

Kennedy was fully prepared to use our military might, but he did not have to. Today, we are using our military, but we know full well that bombs and troops alone will never win the war on terrorism.

A good indication of how the world has changed since Kennedy’s day occured this past weekend.
President George Bush, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Jiang Zemin gathered together at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shanghai. Sure, the leaders challenged each other on some points. In many ways, though, the photos and speeches from that summit point clearly to a new world order. The chance of war between superpowers has been greatly reduced. In fact, that threat has been relegated to the back burner.

We all, however, face the same dangers from terrorists, especially in a world where copy cat attacks seem all too likely. The dangers that strike fear into the hearts of global citizens were unimaginable just a few years ago. Plans for biological terrorism may be breeding in laboratories in some small country right now. The recent anthrax cases, coming on the heels of the plane hijackings of Sept. 11, have brought us closer together with those we once deemd our enemy.

Military might won’t win this war. Kennedy’s hope was that “right” would triumph, and that is what we must hang our hopes on today. This new threat may bring nations closer together against a common enemy, and in the end make the world a safer place.

 

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The Smoky Mountain News