On the Failure of Violence
So I really enjoyed the On Being this week which interviewed a composer named Mohammed Fairouz and his newest album is called Follow, Poet which is a line from an Auden poem, but the whole thing begins with Kennedy speaking to a college a year or so before his death saying: When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the area of man's concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses. In that characteristic Kennedy voice that is so recognizable even though I have never heard the speech before. In the interview they are discussing how Kennedy and Anwar Sadat are heros and guiding lights for Mohammed and he makes this point: These figures, who appear to the people of their generation as tragic figures, become guiding lights to the people of the next generations and the generations to come. And you know, Krista, it absolutely proves the violence that some peo...