Ask not what your country can do for you!

I don't know exactly what is urging me to make this thread, but I feel a strange urge to post it.

Watch this. Please.



Now, seeing Obamas speeches, I see a contrast, more of, a type of thinking initiated into, Ask what your country can do for you.

Now, I know many Anarchists, anti-governments, or even satanists.

Will post, saying that we should ask for the gov't to do for us, we deserve it (why we deserve it I have no idea). That the gov't was made for us, and therefore owes us entirely.

But I find JFK to be second only to Andrew Jackson, (trail of tears whatever, we're not all perfect).

I find that, we should do more for our country, the more we do for our country, the better it will be, we've become babies sucking on the tit of mother america.

And bluntly put, that tit is running out of milk, and it's very very sour tasting now.

If we ask what we can do for our country, great things I believe will happen.

But think, we in a different term, NOT what the leaders want from us to do in the name of the country! But what we can do to better our country! For the country.

Donating to your local charities, buying locally, helping strangers, mimumly help your country. Trash talking the president, doesn't help the country, it divides it, and creates opposition because it is lacking a route for people to follow instead.

I think what can I do for my country, and I think of what I want my country to be like, and how I can help it be that country. I believe we all have very similar goals or negotiations we'd like.

If we start (what america seems to be doing now) asking what the country can do for us, then we can easily slip into a communist mentality.

Does anyone else feel this way?

That we have turned from the wise words of JFK?

I know i'm not mexican, but would it be too much to ask for you to do for my country as well?
since you're givin' away cash, i figured you could go to work for me while my ankle heals. time is money.
don't worry, i'll use my own medical system.

I guess my point is when you give to people, the expect to recieve, and when people who are in power expect to recieve, they lose sight of how much they're taking and who's giving.

they'll always take a little more, from the sounds of it. Not to mention the looks of it. And the practice of it too.
Ok they definately take a little more....
....be watchin' you guys.....good friggin' luck!!

I think we ought to think bigger. What can we do for our planet? What can we do for our universe?

And my answer is: Nothing can be done, just flow with it, enjoy the ride. We are the universe and we are perfect. The more you try to "fix" it, the more screwed up it will be.

[edit on 31-7-2009 by Geladinhu]

reply to post by heyo


Think of it like this, as a child, you thought, it'd be great to live off of candy, you'r parents said no no no! You can't.

No real answer may of been given, but you have all you're teeth and you're not obese, great, you're parents did a good thing.

Aha, think the gov't is your parent nope, there your kid. Pretty much affects your whole life.

Almost mutually.

Now, as a parent we should've stopped the bailout, we should've done what was best for the country, not the persuasive linguistic ways our child spoke to us, or that he'd runaway if we didn't give him all the cookies.

We must do whats best for the country for the country, this is not to be mistaken for bending over to the president, and speaker of the house.

It's called toughing it for the best of you're country.

Can anyone else say it better for me. Its tip of the tongue phenomena on what i'm trying to say.

reply to post by Republican08

Donating to your local charities, buying locally, helping strangers, mimumly help your country. Trash talking the president, doesn't help the country, it divides it, and creates opposition because it is lacking a route for people to follow instead.

Can charities be trusted anymore?

Trash talking the President doesn't divide people as much as government. Rich vs poor, middle class vs poor, people against corporations, dems vs reps vs ind, whites vs black, etc.

Just look at the division Obama made when he criticize the police.

I agree people should do what's best for the country to make it a better country. And I personally believe we the people should replace very current member of Congress to send a message that we expect Congress to do what is best for this country as well.

reply to post by Republican08


that's good stuff, i like that. It's difficult to imagine such a thing existing in strong enough numbers to assert itself in this day and age tho.

...taxpayers money just paid for my dad's girlfriend's teeth.
They've known each other for less than a year.

It's still dog eat do out there, but unfortunately, dogs aren't cats, they never stop eating.

reply to post by jam321


Personal opinion, F charities.

I consider charity as, when you have a friend, who you know has been trying hard to pay his rent working, but just can't do it this month, you go in and help. You donate to him. Although he may not like being called a charity case, it is what he is, semantically.

The USA was not ready for a black president. Sad to say but it wasn't. One of my professors even told me this, black professor. For Black credit on here. lol

reply to post by Republican08


I can only respond as the vantage point of what I was at that time. I was a 10 year old kid. And I was white. And I was from a poor family who had both parents working. And I was inspired from this speech. I went out and volunteered for things. I planted trees on a road. Sadly, the trees now have all been removed. Not like the vision I had way back then. The promise that my grandkids would see what I had done. Oh,well. It sounded good then.

Now we have lots more poor people and many people who used to believe they were middle class, realizing that all is not what they grew up with.

Now I have a house full of people, and they are poor. They dom't like it. But, together we can work it all out. This is not white America that JFK was talking to back in the early 60's. There was hope then. Speaking for my generation, the generation that was a kid when JFK gave his famous speech, not the older generation that had it good, and still has it good. And certainly not for the generations behind me. I can only say, the good times are gone. For the majority of people in the U.S.

Yeah, I know, we still have it better than the majority of the people of the world.
I told my sister about 10 years ago. I know you want everyone to have all that is possible and you want to vote for people who will bring this Nirvana to you, but you got to realize, you will lose some of what you have. I said, yes, Watch. It will happen and you will have less. And she has less now. She blames George Bush. lol. She doesn't see how it all works. She sees it as a Democrats vs. Republicans. Heh. She thinks the Viet Nam War was the result of Republicans because Nixon inherited the war. LOL she's blind, yet she was the one who woke me up.

Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country,"

I like this ideal, but I don't see the reward that Obama will give us. It's human nature. There must be a reward for individual sacrifice, like someone else, in my same situation will benefit, but, what Obama proposes, is give up all and benefit others and lose what you earned.

Anyway, I saw this coming from a long time ago. You give up some things and the others will gain, but you will be closer to the others. And the elite will still have all their goods and gold. Not what my sister imagined. She believed everyone would be raised and the mighty would be fallen. LOL.

Off topic it may be but could you at least leave the original so I can make that assessment myself at a later date? Oh, wait, of course not. Stalin 4 teh winz!



[edit on 31-7-2009 by Zenagain]

Ask not what you can do for your country, ask what your country did to you.

I'm a Patriot, but not in the conventional sense of the word as it is used in contemporary times. I am not a Nationalist in any sense of the word and find Nationalism to be an out-dated anachronism from an Imperialistic Era. However, I serve the fundamental ideals our Nation was founded on. I would live and die by those ideals, not for Flag, Country, President, and not even for my Countrymen, but for the ideals of Freedom itself.

I believe that Freedom is a Double-Edged Sword that demands Responsibility. It is something that cannot be granted, but must be earned, paid for daily with sacrifice. There are many ways in which one can take Responsibility to earn their Freedom, public service being but one of the many.

It is true though that we are nothing without one another. If we deny Freedom to another, then we cannot truly enjoy Freedom ourselves. If we do not stand together then surely we shall fall and the ideals upon which we stand will be at risk of being lost.

We can each serve Freedom in our own individual ways, and thereby benefit not only the whole but benefit ourselves. Not everyone's path follows the Status Quo of the whatever the current Political Administration may bring.

I personally feel that our government has lost its way and no longer serves either the Public Interest or the fundamental ideals that this Nation represents. I see little reason personally to do anything to perpetuate this. However, I am willing to admit that the only reason they have been able to do such is that we the people have allowed them to do so through our silent consent and complacency.

It is indeed time for action. There is no greater time of need for people to serve Freedom in whatever way they can best do so, according to each person's conscience.

In many ways, I see the United States and its people facing adulthood, needing to leave their petulantly obstinate and self-centered teenage year behind and embrace the responsibilities that are demanded of them.

I feel if you replace the words your country with the party... It seems communist i.e. "ask not what the party can do for you but what you can do for the party"...Seems like it came straight out of stalins mouth,no?

In my opinion this country doesn't exist anymore, so to put in into context with the times i believe it would go something lke this "Ask not what your corporation can do for you but what you can do for your corporation"......

Sad isn't it?

reply to post by Republican08


That is a great speech. JFK had it right on that one. People back in those days knew what he meant and the value of self-sufficiency and the importance of working together to contribute their very best to the good of the nation.

If people still lived like that nowadays we wouldnt have the people in government that we have now. Nowadays people vote for whatever politician will tell them "Dont ask what you can do for your country ask what your country can do for you." This is why dumbasses like Obama and Pelosi get elected, because we have a nation of people that want everything handed to them instead of earning it for themselves. Just look at the Zeitgeist people or all the people on the public dole for good examples.

Once we were a proud, self-reliant nation. Now we are declining into a nation of weak people who whine incessantly for the next thing the government can do for us. We are a nation where our children get pregnant so they can get their government benefits. Where the government now feeds over 50% of the children in this country, because their parents are too lazy, stupid, or drugged up to give a flying f'. We are nation full of lazy fat asses who cant fathom that we are getting our asses handed to us in the global marketplace because we have become too lazy, greedy or stupid to compete.

All I can say is that if we dont take ownership of the words of JFK and stand up and take care of ourselves and our country and decide what is right and wrong and expect people to do right we will no longer be a great country.