Sunday, May 14, 2006

My favorite words, by RFK

"'It (the GNP) does not allow for the health of our families,
the quality of their education or the joy of their play.
It is indifferent to the decency of our factories
and the safety of our streets alike.

It does not include the beauty of our poetry
or the strength of our marriages,
the intelligence of our public debate
or the integrity of our public officials.

It allows neither for the justice in our courts,
nor the justness of our dealings with each other.

The gross national product measures
neither our wit nor our courage,
neither our wisdom nor our learning,
neither our compassion nor devotion to country.

It measures everything, in short,
except that which makes life worthwhile;
and it can tell us everything about America
--except whether we are proud to be Americans.

Robert Kennedy, Detroit, May 5, 1967"

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