we are told that president ken deese's body will arrive at andrews air force base in about two hours' time. reaction from overseas, the first point we are able to call in right now, our correspondent in rome, irving lavine. >> shock and grief are the reaction in italy where president kennedy was enormously popular. the italian president immediately sent an aid to the american embassy to express his sympathy. the president called president kennedy's loss a great loss to humanity. the pope is preparing a radiogram, which is expected to be ready within an hour.

italian radio and television made the announcement of the president's death and then went off the air to solemn music. cardinal spelman,&other american bishops in rome for the ecumenical council expressed shock. the cardinal said that he is saying rosary for president kennedy now. irving r. levine, nbc news, rome. >> there's the first overeast point we have called in to bring you reaction to the assassination of president kennedy, which took place in dallas, texas, this afternoon. frank mcgee is with robert mcneill. >> bob, let me interrupt you. >> traveling with the president at the time the assassination took place. >> i just wanted to interrupt to you tell thaw you are going on the air. you are, in fact, on the air now, so why don't you make the report direct, bob? go right ahead. >> we can have pictures in about 15 minutes. >> i see, bob.

>> the doctors who attended president kennedy have just eported his condition. i lost my notes here. >> the chief attending surgeon at the hospital, dr. malcolm terry, said the president was in critical conditions from wounds in the neck and the head when he was brought into the hospital. >> neck and head. >> neck and head. he said it is possible these were both caused by the same bullet. >> i see. i'll tell you what the doctor said. he said they immediately attempted resuscitation. the professor of new rowsurgery at the hospital, dr. clark, was called in and several other doctors. they arrived, but the president's condition at that time did not allow any sign of resuscitation. he was critically ill and moribund, that is near death.

they attempted russ operation. they gave him oxygen, anesthetic. they performed a tracheotomy, making an opening in the neck to assist breathing. also ave him blood, and tests in a tube to remove any possibility of air getting into the plural space. they attempted an cardiograph to monitor his heartbeat, but short after that, his heart failed, and they tried external massage to produce a heart movement again. this was without any success. they did achieve for a brief moment a faint pulse, but the president finally died at 1:00, about 25 minutes after he was rought in to the hospital. the wound in the president's head involved a great loss of

blood and a great loss of brain tissue. the wound -- the brain wound was in the bask his head ightly to the right, and frank would sit with the picture i gave you earlier of the president with his back to the assailant, this hypothesis that the assailant was in the building i described is true. but this conflicts with the fact that the wound was in the front of the neck just below the adam's apple. now, it could have been that there were two bullets. one struck him as he faced the assailant. the other turned the corner, or perhaps one bullet just struck him from the front in the neck nd then went up the brain. in this case, the president never regained consciousness. >> the president was unconscious from the moment he was struck until he died. >> unconscious and near death from that moment. >> i see, bob.

>> there was speculation it was being taken to the air field. are you able to confirm -- >> i believe that is true, that it was reported it has gone to fairfield to be flown back to washington. lyndon john son, the new president, is for the moment remaining here in dallas. >> do you know where he is at the moment? >> i do not know. >> but he is not on his way back to washington. >> no, he is not. >> not as president. >> bob, thank you very much and stand by. we'll be getting in touch one a moment later. that's it, bill. >> thank you, frank and bob. there's this news from dallas. the police department has arrested one man, but in connection with the slaying of a dallas policeman. it is not yet known whether this man who was under arrest has any connection with the assassination of president kennedy. further details now from the scene. we go to station wbap-tv in dallas-fort worth and newsman harles murphy.

>> film has just arrived in our newsroom from dallas. this unedited scene shows when news of the shooting was announced. also on the film is a prayer given then for president kennedy. >> may we all stand for a moment. i'm sure there's a desire in each of our hearts, the

presence of almighty god, when each in our own way would come to him. let us pray. o god, none of us can find words to express the deepest feelings of our hearts. we realize that this is the time of mourning, yet we would each come relying upon the faith that we possess. we would each come with perhaps the most earnest prayer that we behalf of our president, our governor, the

members of their families, so in this we even may reveal that conference that shall be pleasing to thee and in a e shall await word spirit of pride in thy holy ame, amen. >> there you have the scene at the trade center in dallas, where president kennedy was going to make an address, and the crowd assembled waiting to hear the president learning what had happened to him.

if we can, we will try to clear up this arrest, which has taken place in dallas. the police department has arrested a man, but in connection with the shooting of a dallas policeman, the fatal shooting of a dallas policeman. the man was arrested in a theater in the oak cliff section of dallas. he had a pistol, and the policeman he killed was killed by a pistol shot. there is nothing now to definitely link this man, who has been taken into custody, with the assassination of president kennedy, who was killed by a bullet from a high-powered rifle. from all we can tell from reports from robert macneil at the hospital, from doctors who treated the president and were able to give specific and clinical details of the wound indicating that it was a high-powered bullet and quite probably large-caliber bullet too.

we are now going to go to an nbc mobile unit which is outside the nbc building here in new york. for pictures and sounds of the reaction of citizens of this city to the loss of their president. we go to nbc reporter jeff pond. >> we're on the street outside the nbc studios in rockefeller center. sir, how did you hear of the president's assassination? >> gentleman came into an office in which i was transacting business and mentioned it to us. at the time i wasn't really able to believe it. i had to hear it for myself, and unfortunately i did very shortly afterwards. >> what is your feeling now? >> i'm terribly shocked and saddened by it, and i would add angered by t. >> why angered? >> i think it was a horrible, senseless thing, and i hope that the rest of the country feels the same way. >> do you think this somehow reflects a climate of opinion

in the country now? >> i hope it doesn't reflect a climate of opinion that is very prevalent in the country today. it obviously reflects an opinion that some people hold. i hope americans do not generally hold this feeling. >> you said some people. who do you mean by that? >> i don't feel expert enough to express an opinion, but the only evidence that i have as to who these people are are these ultraconservative groups that have been distributing literature and spreading hate in texas and who attacked ambassador stevenson, it was about a week ago. >> a little longer than that. of course, no one knows if these people are indeed responsible. >> no, certainly not. >> thank you, sir. ma'am, what was your reaction? >> i was very shocked and saddened by the president's death. i was getting some eye glasses fitted when i first heard about it, and then i was riding on a

bus when they finally told me he was dead. >> do you find it difficult to believe, even now? >> i really do. i really find it difficult to believe now. >> the president was in dallas, which is, of course, part of the south. do you think that somehow his racial policies are in any way connected with this? >> that's the first thing i thought of when i heard about it, yes. i thought that probably some segregationist crack pot or something just -- they had it all planned out, and i really believe that his blood will be on their hands forever, yes. >> thank you. how about you, sir? do you believe it even now? >> this is the first time in my life i can honestly say i'm not proud to be an american. right now i'm serving in the armed forces, and i'm just home on leave. it's an understatement to say it was a shock. at first i cannot believe it, and i have trouble believing it now. i just don't think it reflects the thinking of most people as was stated before -- i think

it's a small minority, and it's just an unfortunate age this can happen. it's something you read in history books, and you never want to believe that can happen. >> do you think this reflects on the security arrangements -- >> there are random samplings, what are called man in the street interviews, people here in new york city, their reactions to the loss of the president of the united states, john f. kennedy. he died approximately an hour and 45 minutes ago in parkland hospital in dallas, texas, after being fatally wounded by a sniper. developments in the nation's capital reported now by nbc's david brinkley in washington. >> bill, we are -- again, we have reported this before, but we'll report again the president's body is expected to arrive at andrews air force base a few miles -- a few miles outside of washington at about 5:30 washington time, which is about an hour and 40 minutes from now. the church bells all over town

are ringing. we are told that people are standing on street corners crying openly and freely. nbc's robert abernathy reports from andrews air force base that the base commander says the president's body will arrive at 5:30. he also says that senator edward kennedy and his sister, mrs. shriver, who was eunice kennedy, have just taken off by jet for otis air force base in massachusetts. we psalm then they are going to their home state to join their mother and father and other members of the kennedy family. we also are told that military officers who have the job of arranging state funerals are at the white house now and presumably making the plans. mrs. kennedy is the first president to die in office since the defense department was set up and these arrangements were made. and i think there is no --

there is no set standard ritual to be followed, so to some extent it will have to be made up, presumably the army will be in charge of the arrangements as it always has been, and it has, of course, casons and remonies at fort myer, virginia, which is nearby. that is about all we have here at the moment. richard of nbc news is at the white house, as is our mobile unit with live pictures, so we'll switch there and see what's happening. richard? >> the american flag atop the washington has been lowered to half-staff t. came down short after word there was confirmation of the president's death in dallas. in the white house itself, the president's two children are still there, caroline and john jr. we do not know yet if they have been performed of their father's death. we don't know either if there are any other cabinet members

here right now. the two ranking members of the presidential staff were ted sorenson and george bundy, two of the president's aides. the picture of the flag flying at half-mast as seen through the trees stripped of their leaves captures the mood and grimness here at the white house. outside in front of the white house, crowds have begun to gather, waiting for -- they probably don't know quite what, perhaps looking for some visual confirmation of what they and everybody else find so hard to believe, that the president is indeed dead, the victim of an assassin's bull net dallas. police have roped off one side of pennsylvania avenue. they are allowing pedestrians to walk in front of the white house, but not to congregate there. extra police details have been sent and have to contain the crowds outside the white house and surround the white house on all sides. traffic is moving normally, and

there are no other changes. we are also told that an assistant to vice president lyndon johnson has also arrived at the white house, mr. george reedy. there is not a great deal of hard information coming from the white house press office. the first word that was received there was from a reporter who was asking for permission to enter. the mood in there too is one of just utter shock, utter disbelief. the press house, the white house press office is jammed with reporters waiting for some bits of information, waiting for any kind of word on what is going to happen next. to repeat, most of the news from here is being received from dallas. there is no late information on what the next developments will e.

the crowds are still gathering outside the front of the white house, across pennsylvania venue. the weather in washington is gray, rather unseasonably warm, slight chill in the air. people here must be all over the country walking around with looks of stunned disbelief on their faces. >> here in washington, senator goldwater of arizona, barry goldwater, who is the man regarded or was the man regarded as most likely to have opposed president kennedy in an effort to take the presidency away from him in the election next year, has issued a statement in which he says that it is most shocking and

dreadful that a thing like this could happen in a free country. the president's death, senator goldwater said, is a profound loss to the nation and to the free world. he and i were personal friends. it is also a great loss to me. mrs. goldwater and i offer our heart-felt sympathy to mrs. kennedy and to the president's family. he has cancelled a political appearance he was going to make last night in grand rapids -- going to make tomorrow night in grand rapids. he reflects really the feeling that is prevalent here on both sides of the aisle in congress, the feeling of great personal bereavement, feeling of loss, feeling of shock. i think back to the night of 1960 when ion in vice president lyndon johnson accepted the nomination. governor john connally was then the floor manager for lyndon johnson, the man who was his closest assistant in all his

campaigns, that is governor connally of texas, who now lies wounded in a hospital in dallas. about 2:00 in the morning, when there was much talk that lyndon johnson would be offered the vice-presidential nomination, john connally told me that he was positive he would never accept it. i talked earlier to the late speaker, to sam raburn, and he told me to lyndon johnson would never live up the job of senate majority leader to take it. and i bet john connally then $50 that lyndon johnson would take the vice-presidential nomination. at 2:00 that morning, john connally made that bet with me, really positive that his very close friend, lyndon johnson, would not accept it. this, i suppose, is the way that history is made. had lyndon johnson not accepted it, he, of course, would not be president of the united states today. no one could ever have believed or dreamed that a president so

young would not conclude his term of office, that death would interrupt. there's very little else to report here in washington, just the general reactions from -- oh, a bulletin has just come in from dallas. a sniper armed with a high-powered rifle murdered president kennedy today, according to the associated press dispatch. bare two hours after kennedy's death, lyndon johnson has taken the office of office as the 37th president of the united states. so it is president lyndon baines johnson, 55 years old, the new president of the united states. now back to new york. >> here are the details of the swearing-in of lyndon b. johnson. the oath was administered in dallas at 1:38 central standard time. it was by a federal district judge, sarah t. hughes.

president johnson took the oath aboard the presidential plane at love field in dallas as he prepared to fly to washington to take over the presidency. this is the oath that was administered to mr. johnson. i do solemnly swear that i will faithfully execute the office of president of the united states and will do the best of my abilities to preserve, protect, and defend the constitution of the united states. that is all we know about the swearing-in of lyndon johnson as the 36th president of the united states. mr. kennedy's predecessor, general eisenhower, has issue this had statement here in new york on the assassination of the president, "i share the sense of shock and dismay that all americans feel at the despicable act that resulted in the death of our nation's president. mrs. eisenhower and i also join with all other citizens in expressing our personal grief and prayerful concern to mrs. kennedy and all other members of the family." the statement issued on behalf of general eisenhower here in

new york this afternoon. frank? >> moscow radio is playing funeral music after announcing the president -- after announcing the death of president kennedy, they're described as aghast. the united states ambassador to russia was told of the news, and his response was to say it's terrible, terrible. moscow radio saying that extreme right-wing elements were believed responsible for the assassination of the news of the president's death by a bullet to the head was immediately passed on to the top soviet figures, according to russian sources. no reaction directly from the kremlin was expected until tomorrow. the russian television broke into its late-night programming to announce the assassination, and the soviet news agency reported from new york here that "an attempt was made on his life by persons believed to be among extreme right-wing elements." of course, later they were informed that the president was dead.

it's' thought to think of the two young children in the white house, the son and the daughter, and we can only assume, of course, that they have been informed of their father's death. regardless of what they may have thought about the political institution in the united states, they were regarded by all as being terribly vie vishese and vital people who were quite alive. the situation at the moment is that the president john f. kennedy is dead. his body is believed to be on route back to washington. it's expected to arrive from dallas at andrews air force base about 5:30 eastern standard time today,. the new president of the united states, lyndon b. johnson, has been sworn in by a federal judge in dallas and is remaining in dallas. the president's brother, the senator ted kennedy, and a sister, wife of sargent shriver, are on their way to otis air force base in massachusetts. the family comes from boston. it is assumed that they are going there to be with the parents of the president.

the last word on mrs. kennedy is she was at the hospital where the president died. she probably is not at the hospital now, but we do not know where she is. her privacy is being respected, as well it should be under these circumstances. mrs. johnson is no doubt with the new president johnson. >> several officials paid their respects at the gravesite of john f. kennedy at arling noncemetery on the 50th anniversary of his assassination. among them was attorney general eric holder.

>> a ceremony was held yesterday in dallas to mark 50 years isn't assassination of former president john f. kennedy. this is the first official ceremony by the city held in dealey plaza, where j.f.k. was shot, with remarks by dallas mayor mike rawlings and historian david mccullough. this is 45 minutes. ♪

>> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage the united states naval academy men's glee club under the direction of dr. aaron smith.

>> please welcome our distinguished guests to the stage, led by the chairman of the 50th commemorative committee for the city of dallas, mrs. ruth collins. the most reverend bishop, kevin j. fair roll, of the catholic mayor of dasms the mayor of dallas, the honorable mike rawlings. david mccullough. and pastor emeritus of the st. luke's united methodist church, zan w. holmes jr. thank you.

♪ and now we ask to you please rise for the presentation of colors by the dallas police department honor guard.

please remain standing for the national anthem, performed by onica. >> ♪ o say can you see by the twilight's last gleaming whose broad stripes and bright stars rough the perilous fight

o'er the ramparts we watched ere so gallantly streaming and the rockets' red glare he bombs bursting in air gave proof through the night hat our flag was still there say does that star spangled anner yet wave 'er the land of the free ♪d the home of the brave

>> please be seated. today's invocation is presented by the most reverend beneficiary opened j.f. fair roll of the catholic diocese of allas. >> almighty and ever faithful god, today we lift up our minds and hearts to you because you, lord, have lifted us up from the horrible tragedy enacted in this place, from the cruel suffering that was born on this hill, from the shock and horror that grepped our nation, and from the years when we as citizens of this city suffered and were implicated by the gunshot by one man that killed a president in who many of us had set our hopes and dreams

for a better america. it was your abiding inspiration and an act of presence among us, lord, that moved us ever forward despite the temptation only to lament and to be paralyzed by our grief. you turned our sorrow into a firm commitment to move forward. you turned our grief into a resolve to refashion our city to a place where life flourishes and true love abounds. you turned our devastation to a commitment to rebuild here the city of god, a city where all are welcomed, nurtured, and cared for. we replace with gratitude in all that you have caused to happen here in a place which was disgraced, scorned, and

ruthlessly judged by ourselves and others. may you, hevpble father, continue to sustain us as we celebrate that the phoenix has hisen from the ashes of iolence. that hatred can be turned to army, that prejudice can lead to openness. make us inspiration of your peace that always tempers instinct with mercy, that tchanges what appears to be defeat to the reality fed by providence that all will be well. lord, may you walk always with us. y you inspire us as you once inspired president john fitzgerald kennedy to dream of world that never was.

why not? may god bless the united states f america. and now please welcome the mayor of dallas, the honorable mike rawlings. >> a new era dawned and another waned a half a century ago when hope and hatred collided right here in dallas. we watched the nightmarish reality that in our front yard, our president had been taken from us. taken from its family, taken from the world, john fitzgerald kennedy's presidency, his life,

and yes, his death seemed to myth owe logically usher in the next 50 years. what ensued was five decades filled with other tragedies, turmoil, and great triumphs. we were all very young. our lives, dreams in front of us. dallas was very young as well. barely a century old. and given the nature of youth, we all felt invincible. it seemed we all grew up that day, city and citizens, and suddenly we had to step up to try to live up to the challenges of the words and visions of a beloved president. our collective hearts were broken, like so many of us who were too young to fully

comprehend, i remember being called into the school gymnasium, hearing the terrible ews and told to go home. stunned people at the luncheon awaited a president who will never arrive. crowds prayed outside parkman hospital. traffic stopped in cities across the country as news spread from car to car. and the world grieved with us. newspapers have reported that flags were lowered to half-staff around the globe. germans on both sides of the berlin wall placed lit candle nsist their windows. an 8-year-old nigerian girl recited the entire inaugural address from memory as her father wept just like the skies today. the past is never in the past.

this was a lifetime ago. now today, we the people of dallas honor the life, legacy, and leadership of the man who called us to think not of our own interest, but of our countries. we give thanks for his life and his service. we offer condolences to his family,especially his daughter caroline on this difficult day. we pay tribute to an idealist without illusion who helped build a more just and equal world. we praise a writer who pro filed true courage and modeled it himself. we applaud a visionary who created a core of young americans to promote peace around the globe.

we stand in awe of a dreamer who challenged us to literally reach for the moon, though he himself would not live to see us achieve that goal. other goals were even tougher, , and aken longer to reach we the united states still struggle toward some even as we speak, as do we here in dallas. but we're fortified by the knowledge that we have always had big goals and big aspirations in this city, set our founding fathers like john bryan and george dealey, he namesake of this plaza. re-energized by mayor johnson, the mayor who led dallas in the post-assassination years. these five decades have seen us turn civic heartbreak into hard work. they've seen us go from

youthful invincibility to existential vulnerability to greater maturity as a city and a community. on the one-year anniversary of the assassination of the late rabbi levi olin of temple emanuel, one of our city's greatest spiritual leaders gave voice to dallas' communal pain unleashed on that day. the ran eye said, contrary to the impassed judgment of that horrible moment, the city is not guilty of the crime, but in those days following the assassination, the most powerful search light man possesses was focused on this city, every flaw, every raw spot, every wrinkle and every uncleanless was put under a microscope and shown to the world.

tall towers of commerce were set amidst slums. as a powerful light shown upon it, the city, it was learned, had been inhospitable to onorable debate. he stated the defects and failings that were laid bare before the entire world, but most important, he called for dallas to use this tragedy to eek a true transformation. look around today. i believe we have heeded that call. the people of this city have been filled with a sense of industry borne of tragedy, droiven improve the substance of dallas, not just the image of it. today, because of the hard work

of many people, dallas is a different city. i believe the new prison deer did not end that day on our texas frontier, and i hope that president kennedy would be pleased with our humble efforts towards fulfilling our country's highest calling. that of providing the opportunity for all citizens to exercise those inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the purr suit happiness. the city of dallas will continue on that course. the man we remember today gave us a gift that will not be squandered. he and our city will forever be linked. in tragedy, yes, but out of that tragedy, an opportunity was granted to us, the chance to learn how to face the future when it's the darkest and the ost uncertain.

even when the flame fleckers and threatens to go out. as the people of dallas did then, each of us will meet our ongoing challenges head on with courage honoring, but not iving in the past. we will meet the future with the same vigor, optimism, and unfailing sense of duty that ur young president embodied. president kennedy brought us that message. in his pocket, down that street n november 22, 1963. that message was to be delivered a few miles away following his parade.

it was a speech he never got to make, but those unspoken words resonate far beyond the life of the man to commemorate that day and those words, we are unveiling a memorial right here in this historic plaza. it is inscribed with the last lines of his undelivered speech and will serve as a reminder and a permanent monument to resident kennedy's memory. leave you with those rezznant words. we in this country, in this eneration are by destiny rather than choice the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. we ask therefore that we may be worthy of our power and our

responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint. and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of peace on . rth, goodwill toward men that must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. r as was written long ago, accept the lord, keep the city, the watchmen waken, but in vain. ladies and gentlemen, would you join me in a moment of silence in honor of the life of john fits gerald kennedy -- john fitzgerald kennedy.

[bells tolling] ♪ america, america god shed his grace on thee o beautiful for spacious skies for amber waves of grain

for purple mountain majesties bove the fruited plain america! america! god shed his grace on thee and crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea! o beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife who more than self their country loved nd mercy more than life!

america! america! may god thy gold refine till all success be nobleness nd every gain divine! >> ladies and gentlemen, mr. david mccullough.

>> he spoke to us in that now distinct time past with a vitality and sense of purpose such as we had never heard before. he was young to be president, but it didn't seem so if you were younger still. he was ambitious to make it a better world, and so were we. let the world go forth, he said, that the torch has passed to a new generation of americans. it was an exciting time. he talked of all that needed to be done, of so much that mattered, equal opportunity, unity of purpose, education, the life of the mind and the pirit, art, poetry, service to

one's country, and the courage o move forward into the future , the cause of peace on earth. his was the inspiring summons to serve, hard work and worthy accomplishment, a summons we longed for. he was an optimist, and he said so. but there was nothing no side-stepping reality in what he said, no resorting to sail old platitudes. he spoke to the point and with confidence. he knew words matter. his words changed lives. his words changed history. rarely has a commander in chief addressed the nation with such command of language.

much applies now no less than half a century ago and will continue, let us hope, to be taken to heart far into the future. gone but not forgotten is the old expression for departed heroes. but if not forgotten, they are not gone. on this day especially, and in this place, let us listen again to some of what john f. kennedy said. the new frontier of which i speak is not a set of promises, it is a set of challenges. it comes not what i intend to offer the american people, but what i intend to ask them. this nation was founded by men of many nations and

backgrounds. it was founded on the principle at all men are created equal and the receipts of every man are diminished where the rights of one man are threatened. the heart of the question is whether we are going to treat our fellow americans as we want to be treated. we must educate our children as our most valuable resource. we must have training people, many trained people, their finest talents brought to the edge. we must have not only scientists, mathematicians, technicians, we must have people skilled in the humanities. i look forward to an america which will reward achievement in the arts as we reward achievement in business or state craft. i look forward to an america which commands respect

throughout the world not only for its strengths, but for its civilization. this country cannot afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor. rt is the great unifying and humanizing experience. the life of the arts far from being an interruption, a distraction in the life of a nation is very close to the center of a nation's purpose, and it is the test of the quality of a nation's civilization. i am certain that after the dust of centuries has passed over our cities, we too will be remembered not for our victories or defeats in battle or in politics, but for our contradiction to the human pirit.

if more poets knew politics, i am convinced the world would be a little better place to live. when power leads toward arrogance, poetry reminds man 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. together, let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the

depths. those who came before us made certain that this country, that the role of this country rode the first waves of the industrial revolution, the first waves of modern invention , the first waves of nuclear power, and this generation does not intend to founder in the back wash of the coming age of space. we mean to be part of it. we set i'll this new sea because there is to be a new knowledge to gain and new rights to be won, and they must be won and used for the rogress of all people. but why some say. why choose this as our goal.

let's do the other things not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, nd one which we intend to win. the goal of a peaceful world is our guide for the present and our vision to the future. the quest is the greatest adventure of our century. we sometimes chafe at the burden of our obligations. the complexity of our decisions, the agony of our choices. but there is no comfort or security innovation, no solution, no relief in

irresponsibility. the problems of the world cannot be possibly solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. we need men who can dream of things that never were and ask why not. those things that we talk about today would seem unreal, where so many doubt that they can be done. the fact of the matter is it has been true all through our history. they will be done. again and again john kennedy's words are fired with his love of life. his love of his country and its history. he read history, he wrote history, and he understood that history was not just about

times past, but also about those who populate the present. each new generation as he likes say and that we too will be judged by history. and that we owe it to those who went before, those who will yes, to measure up, and even surpass the achievements of the past with what we accomplished and with the values we hold dear. he also knew from his reading and experience that very little of consequence is ever accomplished alone, but by joint effort, america has been a joint effort all down the years and we must continue in that spirit. as he himself said, for i can

assure you that we love our country not for what it was, though it has always been great, not for what it is, though this -- of this we are deeply proud, but what is someday can and through the efforts of us all someday will be. as his campaign song said, he ad high hopes, and so do we. and on we go.