Dr King's 1964 Nobel Prize Speech...

Had to throw this on here...

"  Modern man has brought this whole world to an awe-inspiring threshold of the future. He has reached new and astonishing peaks of scientific success. He has produced machines that think and instruments that peer into the unfathomable ranges of interstellar space. He has built gigantic bridges to span the seas and gargantuan buildings to kiss the skies. His airplanes and spaceships have dwarfed distance, placed time in chains, and carvMartin Luther King, Jr.ed highways through the stratosphere. This is a dazzling picture of modern man's scientific and technological progress.

Yet, in spite of these spectacular strides in science and technology, and still unlimited ones to come, something basic is missing. There is a sort of poverty of the spirit which stands in glaring contrast to our scientific and technological abundance. The richer we have become materially, the poorer we have become morally and spiritually. We have learned to fly the air like birds and swim the sea like fish, but we have not learned the simple art of living together as brothers.

Every man lives in two realms, the internal and the external. The internal is that realm of spiritual ends expressed in art, literature, morals, and religion. The external is that complex of devices, techniques, mechanisms, and instrumentalities by means of which we live. Our problem today is that we have allowed the internal to become lost in the external. We have allowed the means by which we live to outdistance the ends for which we live. So much of modern life can be summarized in that arresting dictum of the poet Thoreau: "Improved means to an unimproved end." This is the serious predicament, the deep and haunting problem confronting modern man. If we are to survive today, our moral and spiritual "lag" must be eliminated. Enlarged material powers spell enlarged peril if there is not proportionate growth of the soul. When the "without" of man's nature subjugates the "within," dark storm clouds begin to form in the world.  "

That was in 1964.

1964.

44 years ago.

"  The richer we have become materially, the poorer we have become morally and spiritually. We have learned to fly the air like birds and swim the sea like fish, but we have not learned the simple art of living together as brothers.  "

Photo from Getty Images, link to Speech from Truehoop, of all places.

Blogged with Flock

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dealing with it...

It’s raining today. Sometimes heavily, sometimes just drizzle, but quite constant. I came home this afternoon to more work; our monthly services account was due… and we’ve only been here for 2 days… The gas no longer works… after 1 day… The washing machine… what a nightmare… an hour to fix the tap… The internet service they are offering is awful… and very very expensive. So I asked the building manager, who doesn’t speak English, to refund our deposit and not bother… he then informs me that the 6000 taka we gave has been divided between him and the “house agent”, so he can’t refund it all until the agent gets back to town after Eid… To top it all off, I’m going to have to pull an all-nighter because of all the work I have to do in a very short period of time… And yet, I’m still happy to be here. So far. Update, 9pm. It’s torrential now. The streets here flood after only 5 minutes of rain; the effect of these last 2 hours of rain is starting to worry us… We’ll see what the morning bri...
Read more

Speech to Campbell High Year 10 Graduation...

I've re-written this speech 100 times this week... I struggled with what to tell you, what to impart... let's start with what I won't tell you. I won’t tell you what to do with your life.   While the specifics are always interesting, there is never just one right path or option. I won’t tell you what your profession should be.   What you choose to do in life is never a matter for anyone else to judge or dictate. I won’t tell you what your opinions should be.   Where you end up philosophically is a matter for you and no one else.   I won’t tell you what you should do, what you should think, what you should feel, how you should speak. I won’t tell you to have the next few years of your life figured out.   I certainly didn’t at your age. I won’t tell you to go to university or not, to become a doctor or a mechanic, a teacher or a musician.   I won’t tell you to travel the world or never leave this town. I won’t talk to you about ob...
Read more

Wii...

Almost forgot.  I had dinner at my neighbour's house last night.  He's a great guy named Duane, runs a few fantastic programs around the country, including schools and orphanages.  He's on my softball team, the might Grace Royals, and I teach his kids basketball on Saturdays. He also conveniently lives on the floor above me. Last night he invited me over for chicken parmegiana and apple cobbler, the Bangladeshi version, as well as some NINTENDO WII... Nothing like video games with kids to really brighten your day... Another surreal moment in Dhaka. Blogged with Flock
Read more