When Barack Obama gives his inauguration speech on Jan. 20, you can count on soaring rhetoric – leavened with the acknowledgment of unprecedented challenges.
He will quote from sources as eclectic as they are inspiring and cautionary. From Scripture to political icons. Here are two 20th century sources, especially applicable right now, who should make any short list:
· “The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, safety first instead of duty first, a love of soft living and the get-rich-quick theory of life. This country will not be a permanently good place for any of us to live unless it is a good place for all of us to live.” — Teddy Roosevelt.
· “We must face the fact that the United States is neither omnipotent nor omniscient…and that therefore there cannot be an American solution to every world problem.” — John F. Kennedy.