The great political speeches thread
 

If you found a speech that is great, a video, sound recording or just plain text put them here so that we remember the great person who made them and their even greater ideals.

And in the process to hope we can be inspired.

JFK on climate and energy revolution
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8dLH...re=grec_browse

maybe not just political speeches. Maybe some short texts could be included too.

I am always moved by Neville Chamberlain's declaration of war.

The man is much -and over- maligned these days, especially by Americans who like to use his bad example to stifle debate about whatever piece of idiocy they are thinking of next.

The text itself is a masterpiece of brevity and emotion (of the kind that was expressed by British people of the time)

It reveals a man who was deeply scarred by the First World War, and desperate to avoid a repeat catastrophe, was willing to go a great distance in giving concessions to Germany and allow it to resume more-or-less its status pre ww1.

And it reveals a man, who with great sadness and a firm understanding of the enormous suffering that will certainly ensue from this decision, nonetheless knows that his previous efforts have been defeated and now Britain must declare war.

I think it is instructive to listen to this speech, and also to ponder what people in your own country were saying on that day.

Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2qlZ...eature=related

"We are not just going to shoot the bastards. we are going to cut out their living guts, and use them to grease the tracks of our tanks!"-Patton

Manliest quote ever, worthy of Conan the barbarian

The whole Patton speech from the beginning of the film is fantastic

Great speech, great performance, great movie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh9S1Hk975U

It was clear to many that hitler wanted more that pre ww1 status.
I agree that he was scared an coward and went to great effort to avoid confrontaion with Germany not facing reality.
Hitler was supraised that Britan declared war after inviding Poland
Chamberlain' it seems send this kind of massege by his weak dyplomacy.
He is a true example that certain idologies must be faced with big stick as well.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”


Teddy Roosevelt

Thats because Britain was in no position to aid Poland at all, just as it had been in no position to aid the Czechs.

Its a bit of a problem when you broke your stick 20 years ago and havn't been able to buy a new one as you are still trying to pay for the one you broke.
He is a true example of what faces countries when they go off playing silly buggers and then get faced later with a real serious threat.

a) Hindsight is what we have, not what they had
b)I said "scarred", not "scared", and yes it is obviously the case that his strategy was not successful. In the end obvious to him too.
c) in the end, however, it was Chamberlain who declared war on Germany. Not the Soviets, not the Americans. Nor was it Churchill. It was Britain, under Chamberlain, and France.

The thing that makes the speech great is the gravity and emotion that comes with knowing the horrors ahead, and seeing the failure of your attempts to avoid it, going ahead and declaring the war that will bring the horrors you fear. It is filled with humanity and dignity (neither of which are present in the Patton speech, but that is great for a different reason)

"These are dangerous times. When we are afraid, we want to be protected, and since we can not protect ourselves against such horrors as mass murder by bombers, we are tempted to run to the government… a government that is always willing to trade the promise of protection for our freedom.

This leaves, as always, the question: How much freedom are we willing to relinquish for such a bald promise?" -- Gerry Spence

Churchill was always a great one for speeches, he knew how to keep the British morale from wavering.

An excerpt from his speech to the House of Commons on August 20 1940.

Always liked this: