JFK’s Land a Man on the Moon Speech – 2

In our previous post we looked at John F Kennedy’s declaration that lead to man landing on the moon. Today, we want to explore the bigger context of this challenge… the deeper manifesto within the same speech. The underlying theme is freedom over tyranny.

“…These are extraordinary times. And we face an extraordinary challenge. Our strength as well as our convictions have imposed upon this nation the role of leader in freedom’s cause.
No role in history could be more difficult or more important. We stand for freedom.
That is our conviction for ourselves–that is our only commitment to others. No friend, no neutral and no adversary should think otherwise. We are not against any man–or any nation–or any system–except as it is hostile to freedom. Nor am I here to present a new military doctrine, bearing any one name or aimed at any one area. I am here to promote the freedom doctrine.”

John F Kennedy, US President.
Excerpt from speech delivered before a joint session of Congress, May 25, 1961

Kennedy then goes on to identify a number of significant programs that will boost the US economy, support democracy over communism, diminish the threat of nuclear weapons and land a man on the moon.

Sources

Source : http://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Ready-Reference/JFK-Speeches/Special-Message-to-the-Congress-on-Urgent-National-Needs-May-25-1961.aspx

Geoff’s Comment

The most powerful part of a manifesto is the context it defines. Usually, it goes something like this: ‘This is how it is, this is not okay, we’re going to have this happen instead.’ Defining your current context and then creating a new one is the key to breakthroughs in performance and results. It can change lives, create new possibilities and ultimately, alter the course of human history.

Questions

What’s your current context? If this context stays in place what will be the end result? What context would you prefer to create?