A Window on Westmount Ville Marie

Once again, thank you for a marvelous evening. And David, I accept your challenge, mostly because I am actually committed to what I was trying to say.

Clinton’s state of the union address accomplished what is traditionally expected.
It was appropriate, thorough, and strategically uplifting. In summary, this is what I heard the president say:

“My fellow Americas. Here’s what I did, and it’s great.
I have not forgotten ___(you)__ or __(you)___ or __(you)____ …
(insert trendy, current, politically correct target groups)
Look how great America is!
And notice how under my leadership, its gotten even better!
Let’s be proud because we are the best!
And I am the best!
And I will continue to make sure we stay the best!”

My Fellow Americans:

Since my state of the union address last week,
I have had the time to reflect
and I now feel compelled to share my thoughts with you.

What I have to say may not please you.
But it is my duty, as your president,
to bring certain facts to light.

The America I described to you last week
is a powerful nation indeed.
We continue to make progress,
and to work to assure
that this progress is shared by all.
>From the policies I outlined to you,
you can see that the needs of many
sectors of society are being addressed.
Steps are being taken so that each citizen,
regardless of gender, or race, or income,
can benefit from the same opportunities.

However, as we approach the millennium,
we face a challenge -
a challenge of proportions unknown till now .
But take heart, because we are not alone.
This challenge is shared by each and every
human being on this planet.

As the great democratic statesman,
John F. Kennedy, once said,
“think not of what your country can do for you,
but of what you can do for your country”.
This call to awaken your conscience,
to ask you to consider
your moral obligations to America,
inspired and unified the nation.
But what I want you to consider is this …
can the United States of America
still afford to see itself as separate
from the rest of the world?

We are no longer moving towards globalization.
Look around - we are already there.
Whatever action we take,
the reaction is not far behind.
And the reaction will reach us - eventually.
No nation is an island, for beneath the waters,
the same common ground extends and links all our lands.

America has always been the land of opportunity.
But consider this - in a global context,
can we continue to blindly seek opportunity?
To expect progress and demand the furthering of our
 interests?
To assume continued betterment in our quality of life
regardless of the expense?
Or must we call into question this fundamental
sense of entitlement to unlimited and escalating
wealth, health and happiness?

Let me draw an analogy.
Image that the United States of America
is a ship. A ship stronger, larger,
and of better quality
than any other ship afloat today.
Indeed, a ship not unlike what the Titanic appeared to be
when it began its fateful journey across the Atlantic.
But we have all been reminded recently with the
renewed media focus on this tragedy, of the fate of
 that vessel.






This comparison is disturbing but it is real.
As we set sail towards the future, the iceberg
which lies hidden and awaits
is not the creation of any one nation.
It is the product of our collective behavior on this planet.
It is useless to single out groups or individuals to blame
because each and every one of us harbors the same
expectations.
The threat looming beneath the waters is a product
of our innate, human sense of entitlement …
entitlement to individual fulfillment and satisfaction.

No more can we brush aside the fact
that progress bears a cost -
a cost we can no longer afford.
Progress at the expense of the environment
can no longer be a consideration.
Spending on space exploration,
despite the technological victory it represents,
is almost an admission of failure,
an admission that we would consider
giving up on this planet
and are looking for new frontiers to conquer.
Progress for some, at the expense of others,
is also something we truly cannot afford.
In the long run,
such inequalities inevitably lead to conflict,
and as we know all too well,
conflicts are at the cost of
precious lives and resources.

The final frontier my friends is no longer out there,
across the seas as it once was,
or across the skies as it is today.
It is inside, deep within each and every one of us.
The frontier before us, the challenge,
if we have the guts and foresight to accept it,
is to temper our own greed.

The United States of America,
as a leader in the world economy,
a leader in the transmission of values and culture,
has a duty.

It is our duty,
since we can afford it,
to begin to think in terms of
what we can do for the world,
and not what the world can do for us.

Our ship will not come aground
in some as yet uncharted paradise.
It will come aground on
the beaches polluted by our excess,
overshadowed by skies dark with emissions
from comfort producing industries.

As you look back at the state of the union
that was presented to you last week,
look beyond your own comforts,
look beyond how our policies are
of particular use and benefit to you.
Look to the future.

Carefully consider the legacy of humankind as it is today,
because it will face the children of this planet tomorrow.

And look more to the failures than the successes,
for perhaps it is the size of the gap between these two
which is the true measure of the fruits of our actions.

Look to how we, as Americans,
can begin to clean the beaches we are approaching,
to take responsibility and initiative
in clearing away the debris
and uncovering the paradise which was given,
but which we have so shamefully neglected
and selfishly misused.

In closing, I have this to say to you.
As once said by the visionary Martin Luther King:
”I have a dream!”
A dream that global consciousness is close at hand
and we, as Americans, have the power to help it
 emerge.

Let a global consciousness enlighten our business
 decisions,
our relationships with one another,
our choices, our actions, and most of all, our plans.

Do not expect the best for yourself and your neighbor.
Expect the worse:
Then work to make the best happen.

And then, perhaps in the not too distant future,
when we speak of the state of the union,
we will be proud because it will be clear that
we consider all of humanity to be part of that union.