John ******* Kennedy -
1. Stood toe to toe with Nikita Khrushchev and didn't back down. From the Berlin airlift to the Cuban missile crisis Kennedy was faced with the only other superpower the world has ever known. These showdowns and his wiliness to "walk the walk" kept the Russian bear at bay.
2. Launched the space race to the moon. May not seem like much but the technological advances that we achieved during the 10 years of the 60's spread across all aspects of American society.
3. Negotiated the nuclear test ban treaty for above surface tests. Before this treaty nuclear explosions were conducted above ground releasing radioactive fallout all over the United States. I still remember the radio warnings about staying inside and not eating the snow (of course you never eat yellow snow!!) back in the late 50's and 60's. Many babies were affected by this fallout during that time. This treaty stopped it.
4. Peace Corps - this encouraged young people to become involved and still is active today building good American men and women.
Had he not been assassinated Â… we will never know how great a president he could have become. The 60Â’s were a turbulent time; civil rights, womenÂ’s movement, Cold War, Vietnam War, drugs, and other influences that pervaded the society.
But I have to put him up there with some of the icons of America, G. Washington, Lincoln, and Reagan.
