Honoring the deepest sources of our national strength

The nation which disdains the mission of art invites the fate of Robert Frost's hired man, the fate of having nothing to look backward to with pride and nothing to look forward to with hope. ~John F. Kennedy

Hearing a president be articulate, knowledgeable, and thoughtful made me feel a bit weepy, but if you can stand the contrast with our current condition, check it out:

...it is hardly an accident that Robert Frost coupled poetry and power, for he saw poetry as the means of saving power from itself. When power leads men towards arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the areas of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses. For art establishes the basic human truth which must serve as the touchstone of our judgment.