The great battleground for the defense and expansion of freedom today is the whole southern half of the globe... the lands of the rising peoples. Their revolution is the greatest in human history. They seek an end to injustice, tyranny and exploitation. More than an end, they seek a beginning.
Perhaps scientists have been the most international of all professions in their outlook... Every time you scientists make a major invention, we politicians have to invent a new institution to cope with it-and almost invariably, these days, it must be an international institution.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the global nature of scientific progress and the corresponding need for international cooperation in governance.
John F. Kennedy's quote emphasizes the idea that scientific advancements often have far-reaching implications that transcend national borders, necessitating the creation of international institutions to manage these changes. It suggests that as scientists innovate and develop new technologies, politicians are compelled to respond with frameworks that address the global impact of these inventions, fostering collaboration across countries.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture about scientific ethics, one might quote Kennedy to illustrate the global responsibility of scientists.
More from John F. Kennedy
All quotes →I had always enjoyed the title of Commander-in-Chief until I was informed ... that the only forces that cannot be transferred from Washington without my express permission are the members of the Marine Corps Band. Those are the only forces I have. I want it announced that we propose to hold the White House against all odds at least for some time to come.
I am talking about genuine peace, the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living, the kind that enables men and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their children - not merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and women - not merely peace in our time but peace for all time.
I just received the following wire from my generous Daddy; Dear Jack, Don't buy a single vote more than is necessary. I'll be damned if I'm going to pay for a landslide.
Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one's own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.
Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.
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