tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19298716.post7124427368863600448..comments2022-02-16T05:39:30.087-10:00Comments on Reflections of Beauty: Simple as Black and WhiteSteven Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133103376050989480noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19298716.post-65754742717147513682009-01-19T13:13:00.000-10:002009-01-19T13:13:00.000-10:00Hello Avantika,Yes, these are the leaders we need ...Hello Avantika,<BR/><BR/>Yes, these are the leaders we need -- the visionary, the principled, the inspirational. <BR/><BR/>But like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mohandas Gandhi, they need not be elected leaders. The will lead by their message. By the truth in it. By the justice in it. And by the wisdom in it.<BR/><BR/>May others arise and have their voices heard.Steven Crisphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12133103376050989480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19298716.post-75581726830632577862009-01-19T12:57:00.000-10:002009-01-19T12:57:00.000-10:00I saw his speech again too. I loved the part in wh...I saw his speech again too. I loved the part in which he says something like - 'The bank of justice cannot become bankrupt.' Reminds me of another speech by another person who has said this country cannot afford to have an empathy deficit.<BR/>All very powerful words.Avantikahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16473234272805797094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19298716.post-34238264079842561332009-01-19T10:01:00.000-10:002009-01-19T10:01:00.000-10:00I completely agree. HIs was a call to action, one...I completely agree. HIs was a call to action, one might say a call to arms, but they would have to use those arms to hug their oppressor.<BR/><BR/>And I too love his "I have a dream" speech. Just take a look at this excerpt to reinforce your point:<BR/><BR/><I>" ... But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone."</I><BR/><BR/>Can you imagine that power, that conviction, that *true* leadership applied to many of our ongoing conflicts? Can you imagine those words spoken in the Middle East, for example? It's not that hard. May some wise, brave, charismatic leader emerge with a vision, built on the foundation of non-violence.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the visit, Pat.Steven Crisphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12133103376050989480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19298716.post-69758001374575858142009-01-19T09:10:00.000-10:002009-01-19T09:10:00.000-10:00I listened to MLK's "I have a dream" speech again ...I listened to MLK's "I have a dream" speech again today, and am impressed again not only with his call to nonviolence, but also his call to insistence and soul strength. There is a world of difference between nonviolence and passivity, it seems.Pathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01034718619824441458noreply@blogger.com