Rick Raw: Visions of JFK– Barack Obama’s Oratory Inspires Confidence

By Rick Grant rickgrant01@comcast.net www.rickatnight.com

Just as JFK dazzled our nation with his oratory, Barack Obama’s speeches inspire confidence. He’s the one! It feels right.

Here’s why. When I was in the U.S. Air Force during the Cuban Missile Crisis, (1962) JFK was my Commander in Chief. His oratory inspired the country to take a hardline stand against the Soviet Union’s missile build up in Cuba. Rather than yield to the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s war mongering advice to bomb and invade Cuba, Kennedy blockaded the island. This nonviolent option forced the Soviets to back down and ship their missiles back to the homeland.
Indeed, the Cuban Missile Crisis came perilously close to igniting World War III which could have wiped out humanity. The principle of "shared mutual destruction" worked to defuse the threat, despite Kruschev’s ranting, "We’ll bury you."

In contrast, Kennedy’s Bay of Pigs fiasco was his greatest blunder as President. Still, Kennedy’s oratory uplifted all Americans with his confidence that he could lead us out of any dangerous situation. His famous speech that kicked off the space race made us proud to be Americans. Yes, we were behind the Soviets in rocket technology, but his words gave us hope that we could catch up and surpass the "evil empire." Dammit, we were going to the moon and in our hearts we knew we would beat the Soviets to that orbiting celestial body. JFK gave us hope.

As it turned out, our advances in electronic technology were far superior to the Soviets.
Although they had developed a dependable rocket that could carry astronauts into orbit, their only moon rocket failed in a spectacular explosion and conflagration. We believed Kennedy could inspire NASA to build the massive Saturn 5 moon rocket and accomplish our mission. With his gripping oratory, Kennedy convinced us it was our destiny and God was on our side. His "Ask not" speech, encouraged us to stop being so selfish and begin caring about our environment and country.

During my Air Force service, I didn’t know much about Kennedy, except that he was devilishly handsome and youthful. His persona behind the podium was majestic. He could deliver us from the threat of global thermonuclear war, and conquer space. JFK exuded high hopes. His belief in the principle of democratic freedom made us believe that it was a fundamental law of nature. I was proud to serve under him.

On the negative side, he, like his father, believed in having a supportive wife at home, but rationalized that it was okay to have affairs. His old man taught him that it was a rich Catholic man’s right–hell, it was his obligation to go forth and spread his seed, then confess it, and he was covered.

How could Kennedy help it? He looked like a movie star–a mesmerizing Adonis. Straight men were secretly attracted to him. Women threw themselves at his feet. But the press ignored his trysts, which there were many. Yes, there were the two White House secretaries nicknamed "Frick and Frack" with whom JFK swam naked in the house pool, playing kinky games. And Robert smuggled Marilyn Monroe in the back door of the White House. Both Robert and John had their way with Miss Monroe. At the time, even if I knew about JFK dalliances, I wouldn’t have cared. It was morally wrong and hurtful to Jackie, but with whom Kennedy had sex didn’t change his inspirational effect on the nation. A cool cat was in the White House, right out of Huge Hefner’s Playboy philosophy.

Indeed, like Kennedy, Barack Obama strikes an imposing presence on stage. His speeches sound logical and knowledgeable, like he’s talking directly to me or you. Although Obama is handsome, looks-wise, he’s not in Kennedy’s league. Yet, more importantly, he conjures up the Kennedy mystique but without John’s philandering ways. Again, like Kennedy, we trust Obama to do the right thing when he’s elected president. In the final analysis, how a man comes across as an orator is a major sign he deserves to be heard. Then if his message resounds with truth, he’s got the right stuff to accept the awesome responsibility of the Office of The President of The United States.

As if the dead Kennedys came down from heaven to sanction Obama, the sight of the Kennedy clan coming together to support him was an incredibly rare event. Ted was beaming and treated his support for Obama as the second coming of John. I’ve never seen Ted so animated and filled with righteous love for Obama. Caroline, who rarely seems excited about anything, was radiant with enthusiasm for Obama. Clearly, Caroline was smitten with Obama-momma-mania. It was a spontaneous lovefest that gave the Obama campaign a huge boost.

Seeing Obama lighting up the atmosphere with powerful oratory gives me hope that he can change the way Washington works. More significantly, his presence on the world stage conjured up visions of JFK rallying the youth of the country to fight for freedom against the Soviet threat. Obama has rallied the country as the man to fix the our broken government. He’s the one. It feels right!