What was Americas finest hour?
America’s finest hour was when President JF Kennedy committed the country to get a man on the moon within the decade, and did so. Sure it was about prestige and showcasing American know-how. Sure it was about beating the Russians. But most of all it was about Hope. About realising how small a lifeboat Planet Earth is, and how we should stop squabbling and get our act together before Greed and Progress rip our planet apart. THAT was America’s “finest hour” (and that makes Apollo 13, even more than Apollo 11, the finest tribute to US know-how and sheer guts).
I’d say it was the hour the first Black President was elected–giving him the opportunity to command from a white house built by black slaves. The other hour, which I feel is very high up there in our history, is when President Lincoln abolished slavery. These two shining moments balance out the darker hours of America’s past.
