50 years ago on November 22, President John F. Kennedy was
assassinated. It was a historic moment
in the story of the United States. Most
adults who were alive in November of 1963 can tell you where they were when
they heard the President had been shot.
John Kennedy changed America and changed the presidency in
just the few short years he held the office.
He was the youngest president ever elected, the only Catholic, and a war
hero. His family was as close to
American royalty as one can get. He was
the second born son to Joseph and Rose Kennedy.
For most of his life, he accepted his position as second eldest. The high family expectations were placed on
his older brother, Joseph. Joe was to be
the politician and the face of the family.
Unfortunately, Joe was killed during World War II.
For his service during World War II, John Kennedy received
the Naval and Marine Corps Medal and qualified for the Purple Heart. The story of his heroics followed him into
politics and provided a strong foundation of his leadership qualities.
During his presidency he faced all kinds of obstacles,
foreign and domestic. This is the height
of the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the dawn of live television
coverage. For the first time in history
live news feeds captured events while they were happening and these images were
delivered to Americans across the country.
His youthful and energetic appearance played well on television. He had frequent issues with the communist
Soviet Union. He was at the helm as the
country came about as close to nuclear war as we would like during the Cuban
Missile Crisis. He set the agenda for
our journey into space and landing on the moon.
The 1960’s were a chaotic and exciting time in the United States and
John F. Kennedy was in the middle of it all.
Given the polarizing events of the 1960’s, Kennedy was not
loved by all. When tough decisions are
required, often groups feel alienated and rejected. To many John Kennedy was dangerous. This may be why Lee Harvey Oswald felt
compelled to assassinate him.
On a trip to Dallas, Texas, as the President, First Lady and
the Governor of Texas were driving through the city; John Kennedy was fatally
shot from a high powered rifle by a man in the Book Depository.
As a result of the brutal assassination as well as his
commitment to America, John Kennedy has gone down in history as an iconic president. The country and the news have been honoring
his memory as we are approaching the 50 anniversary of his death. Although the news specials have focused on
the events leading up to his death, it is the life he led that sets him apart.
This is a link to a site honoring JFK: http://www.jfk50.org/
What qualities do you think make a good president? Why?
Who is your favorite president and why?
If you do not have one, ask your parents or some other trusted
adult. If they don’t know, do some
research.
I think that a good president should care more about his country than his reputation. He/she gets elected into that office to help his/her country, not hinder it. I don't really have a favorite president, but I think that if I did, JFK would be one of the candidates. He seems like, by his quote, that he cared more about his country than anything else. By reading about him, it seems like he is a really interesting guy. For a Democrat, he seemed pretty cool.
ReplyDeleteI think that some of the major qualities that a good president should have are leadership, bravery, and wisdom. I think the leadership comes in a big part because in order to be a good president then you have to be able to lead people strongly and stay true to your choices. Bravery is also a huge part in this because there are going to be many tough decisions that scare a lot of people during your time as president. Wisdom, I think, is the most important one because you have to be wise in order to know what is right according to your country's values. I think that my favorite president is Thomas Jefferson. This is because he was a big aspect in making the country what it is today. He sure did have some bad things about him, but his good things overshadow his bad aspects. I would also say Abe Lincoln. He was a persistent, wise, and courteous leader. He knew that the slaves were not being treated very well, so he put an end to it, no matter what it would take. He stood true to his desire, no matter how many times it took him, or how many people stood in his way.
ReplyDeleteI think that a president should be a good leader, and that he should care more about his country than himself. My favorite president would have to be Abraham Lincoln. He fought for the freedom of slaves and was important in the north winning the Civil War. He gave the Gettysburg address which is up there as one of the best speeches of all time, with Martin Luther's "I Have a Dream" speech. He inspired the North to fight with a purpose.
ReplyDeleteI think the qualities a president should have are kindness, responsibility, leadership, and understanding. A president has to be kind to show that he/she cares. Without kindness, wouldn't we all be a bunch of war lords trying to dominate the Earth? They have to be responsible. If a president screw up, they need to own up to it. They can't just back off and let other people fix their mistakes. They have to have leadership because, lets face it, they're leading a whole country and is for 4 years. They need to be ready to take what's thrown at them and lead a country. A president should also understand. How can we have a president that has no idea what the common man or woman does? How hard they work? How much help they really need? If a president doesn't understand, he/she would have a whole lot of problems thrown at them. My favorite president was George Washington. Not only did he lead our country as the 1st president, he fought in two wars, lived at Vally Forge with his troops, AND refused to be called king. If someone walked up to a random person and asked if they wanted to be king of America, I'm pretty sure that their answer would be yes. But to deny that and lead a brand new country with no idea how, that's pretty cool in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteI think a good president has to have all of the qualities of a good person to start: loyalty, courage, kindness, sympathy, etc. A good president also has to have the qualities of a good leader: patience, intelligence, honor, honesty, good communication skills, responsibility, the ability to act upon what you say, confidence, commitment, etc. Of course you also have to be a diligent worker and have the ability to learn from your mistakes. My mom's favorite president is Abraham Lincoln. Even though he came from nothing and kept failing, he persevered and worked hard. And he has great quotes. That's another quality good presidents should have: perseverance.
ReplyDeleteI think that a good president should be able to act well in tough situations and be able to make the best decisions. These are important because without these traits, our presidents would not be good leaders. Even though I don't know all the presidents, my favorite president is John F. Kennedy because of the things I have heard he did.
ReplyDeleteA presidant should be willing to do anything for his country. one of the major qualties a president needs to have leadership. leadership is one of the most important qualities when it comes to a major job like being a president, C.E.O, etc. They also need to have the ability to know what to do in certain occasions. My favorite presidant would have to be Abe Lincoln. He is my favorite presidant because he kept failing and failing he still did not give up and became the 16th presidant.(perseverance) He also did many very good things to help african americans. Even though he started the Civil War he still brought the country back togather. (closer than before)
ReplyDeleteA president must have qualities like honesty, responsibility, and trustworthiness. Honesty is very important because you can not like to your citizens, you need to tell them what is happening and why, no shortcuts. Responsibility is very important obviously. A leader must be able to take on the roles that he is supposed to do and execute, not just attempt or nothing will get done. Trustworthiness is very important because we need to know that he isn't an un-loyal traitor that turns his back on us in the face of trouble, he must be courageous. There are many more qualities that a good leader must have but these are the main that stand out to me. My favorite president would have to be Abe Lincoln. To me he had all of the qualities to be a good leader and used them. I also like how he always found time for family and put an end to slavery.
ReplyDeleteA good and respectable President must be an honest person who keeps his/her promises. A President should not just run the country, but change it to be a better place. The President needs to be able to make smart decisions when needed. A President shouldn't do what pleases the public, but what is right. I know every one of the Presidents of the United States, and in my opinion, the most respectable and honorable of all of the is ironically, John F. Kennedy. During the Cold War, he made the right decisions at the right time. He didn't do what every other average president would do either. Some people applaud presidents for making simple decisions that make a big impact. However, it is not that admirable if every other president would have done the same. JFK had a lasting impact on the country with his quotes, decisions, and death.
ReplyDelete"Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names"
-John F. Kennedy
A President must be a honest person who has the strength, and the stability to hold a Nation. JFK had all of this and more. They have to be like this because with great power comes great responsibility. The presidents job is make our nation stronger, faithful, powerful, and just a nation that has a can do attitude. Personally I admire Ronald Reagan. I watched his documentary a few times. To go to a actor, to the nations leader, is one of the most inspiring things I have ever heard of. I really think that a president is always a great person. The people pick them for a reason, and I think that is a good enough reason to trust them.
ReplyDeleteI think that a good president is someone who loves America, and not just in a superficial, media-accented way. A good president treats America like a father. He loves it, but would make the hard decisions that need to be made in order for it to grow up correctly. To be honest, I don't have a favorite president. Maybe John Adams. He wasn't popular, but he did what was right for this country.
ReplyDeleteThe thing I want to see in our president is love for our great country. I also want an honest president. How can you have a president whom you don't trust. I want love for our country because we are great nation. My favorite president is Teddy Roosevelt. He was a great president. He was a war hero and our nations hero. He is also my dad's favorite president. Most of all the Teddy Bear is named after him.
ReplyDeleteWhat I believe makes a president is great leadership, courage and honesty. I believe strongly that leadership far more important than other qualities because it is important that we have a president that is able to make the best decisions for their country. My favorite president happens to be John F. Kennedy because he truly did care for the U.S.A, also I've been able to do research on him for technology and have been able to learn more about what really stood out in him.
ReplyDeleteThe best qualities in a president would be honesty and an ability to take action. We don't want a president who lies to us about the world, his background, what he's doing, etc. Also, a good president would have to be able to take action in hard situations; things like 9/11 or wars. We'd want a president that we would be able to trust and who would lead us in hard times or bad without blaming others for his failures. I personally don't have a favorite president, but my mom said that she liked Ronald Reagan because he believed in a limited government and a free market. He understood politics and was a great leader altogether.
ReplyDeleteI think a good president must have a great amount of leadership because that's basically what there job is, to lead our country and make good decisions to lead our country into a good direction. I also think that a good president must be brave, courage, and honesty. A good president can be brave by choosing the right decision to make our country better. I think our country can have courage by showing the leader he or she is and also from the respect towards others. The president can be honest by telling our country what they actually want to do rather then telling them something that will effect us and also him or her. My favorite president would be George Washington. George was my founding father and I learned a lot about him and his purpose towards our country and other people struggling without independence. George lead the continental army over the British, he was great leader and had all the great qualities in a president.
ReplyDeleteI think that a president must be loyal, have leadership, honesty, responsibility, humility and good judgement. If our president didn't have these traits, then who knows what the United States would be like. The president needs to also be able to know what to do in tough situations and be able to see what is best for the country. I would have to say Abraham Lincoln is my favorite president because he kept trying and trying until he met success. He really inspires me to keep trying like he did even if it means failing because you will learn from your mistakes.
ReplyDeleteA president must be willing to accept ideas from his/her own party as well as cater and serve to those ideas that derive from the opposing party. Without having an open mind towards others ideas, a president lacks the ability to cater to all of his people and make decisions in the best interest. I would have to say that my favorite president would be Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was a man who managed to pull America forward in a time of great struggle. The people thought he was great as well, he is the only president to have served 3 terms. Roosevelt was accepting of other ideas; a trait that many of today's politicians lack.
ReplyDeleteI think that a president has to be intelligent. They must be able to make the unpopular decision, if it is the best choice for their people.They can't be stubborn and or unwilling to change their ideas. When circumstances change, the correct and best decision may also change. A good president must be able to get his people to follow them. A good leader doesn't see himself as above the people he serves. They must know that they were elected to serve the people, not he other way around. My favorite president is George Washington. Washington was the first elected president, and was elected unanimously. He was the archetype of a good president. He served his people in the hardest times. He didn't want all the glory associated with the job. He also played a huge impact on the Americas fight for independence.
ReplyDeleteA good president is one who doesn’t base his (or her) decisions on political standpoints. This is a very hard quality to these days because other countries could judge the country in a bad fashion due to what the president might say. These are people who do the right thing no matter what others say of them. They must be honest, trustworthy, and be able to persevere through any problem that comes their way. My favorite president would be John Adams or George Washington. John Adams wasn't afraid to say what he was thinking (sometimes not good) and he was able to get things done instead of only playing politics. George Washington was very humble, and I respect him greatly for this quality. He could have become the king of America at its starting, but he refused this offer and instead he became president.
ReplyDeleteThe quality I think that make a good president is they have to meet the needs of the people. They need to know what they are doing and where the people are in the country. They need to help fix our country and make it better. Please do not call me rude, but I believe that we should help out the poor in our country before we move on to the others. In a country as plentiful as ours, it is disbelieving to think we would have poverty here. So to be a good president, they must help their country and educate people on how to help as well. This reminds me of my favorite president, Abraham Lincoln. He came from a poor family and grew up in a one roomed cabin. He went a long way to get to the white house. He saw what the country needed and helped it improve. He led us through the Civil War and outlawed slavery. He worked hard to get where he was and that is why he is my favorite president and a role model.
ReplyDeleteI think that the most important quality in our president is kindness and he has to be able to make the hard decisions. There are a lot of good presidents, but I think that the one best president was Abraham Lincoln. Why? Because he was not just a great man in general but he also stopped slavery. When he did this noble act this angered many and that’s why he was assassinated. I feel that President Lincoln was a true American, and real gentlemen. We could all learn from this great leader.
ReplyDeleteThere are many qualities that a president must have to make his country a better place. The one major quality that a president needs would be honesty and loyalty to his/her country. If a president makes a statement they better stick to it. I think some of the best presidents are those who can make tough decisions even though others are going against them. If the president knows it will benefit not only him, but also others than he should make the better decision. I look up to the presidents in history who were humble and always put others before themselves. If a president doesn't have those qualities then I believe he/she won't make the best decisions for the country. My favorite president would be George Washington, because even though he was quite and didn't speak out loud much he proved himself by his actions. Actions can always be louder than words. He also didn't think he was the right man for the job when asked to be president, but he took it as a time to show how he could make our country stronger, and more unified. Those are just some of the reasons why I think George was an amazing president.
ReplyDeleteI think that there are certain qualities that make a good president. He has to do something to improve the country. He/she can't just not do anything or make the country worse. But there are different opinions of what makes For example, Obamacare. some people like it, and some people absolutely hate it. But the thing is that the President did try to do something to make our country better. Anyway, our President has to be honest, cooperative, responsible, and all of those basic thingies. my favorite President is actually Kennedy, not only did I do a presentation on him, but he was a president that was like the people, he was a WWII veteran, he was a great guy. He also wanted to pull troops out of Vietnam and put black students in school.
ReplyDeleteTo be a good president, well first of all you have to know how to take charge and to lead. You can't just sit there and wait for something to happen. They also have to have a passion for the country they are leading. These are my opinions on being a good presidents because if you don't truly love something your not going to try your best to make sure it successes. Or if you have someone who doesn't take charge or authority than who knows what could happen. It's the exact same if you have someone who just waits for something to happen, because if they are just waiting for something to come along nothing will ever get done or be accomplished. I don't really have a favorite president. I think all of them have done as much as they can for the success of our country. But if I had to choose one JFK would definitely be one of the leading presidents. Just by reading about his life and looking at what he had done for us really inspires me to always be the best I can be.
ReplyDeleteI think a president should be intelligent, levelheaded, have a good sense of justice, and know what is right from what is wrong. I think that they should have these qualities because I think that they will help the president make the right decisions for out country. I think President Obama is my favorite president, not because he is Democratic, but because he was president when I started to fully understand what the president does and how the elections work. I also think that he is a good person that is not afraid to show who he really is while at the same time being serious enough to help run our country.
ReplyDeleteMy theory of what makes a "good" president is simply helping benefit our nation in any way possible. To elaborate I mean to say that whoever the president would be, they would have to be able to want to help our nation and support it. It would mean putting the country first before them and that would make me consider them a "good" president. In my opinion a person who indeed shows this would be the first president George Washington. He always put his country first and was quite humble when he was elected. This showed that he took great pride in this and shows me he was like a role model to the presidents then after.
ReplyDeleteI think what makes a productive president is one that knows how to lead other. I do not like presidents that only lead for themselves. I also think that presidents should be willing to take risks for the good of the nation. I also admire the different presidents throughout the years. There are humble ones, outgoing ones, and ones that are definitely unique. For now, my favorite president is Abraham Lincoln. He wasn't the perfect president, because none of our presidents are or ever will be perfect. But it is probably his dedication to Americans that I like most. I also think that it is time I find a new president, because I barely know about any of them. After this blog I will do more research on the presidents.
ReplyDeleteI think the qualities of a good president are the ability to play the villain if it will benefit the country. He needs to know that the unpopular tactic may be the best. I think my favorite president is Abraham Lincoln. He violated habeus corpus for the good of the country. Without him who knows where we could be.
ReplyDeleteI think that the qualities of a good president are that they must have leadership and not be the person who looks at others for leading but have others look to them for leading. Presidents must also be respectful because leaders are supposed to be a role model of world peace so they must respect other leaders and the ways they lead their countries. Another good quality would be that wether it makes the president popular or unpopular he should always try his hardest to do what is best for the country and its people. I don't have one particular favorite president because I think that they all did great things to make our country the way it is today and it wouldn't be the same if they had not been president. our presidents have given us freedom and that is the best thing that they have done for us.
ReplyDeleteI think the qualities of a good president include he/she having good leadership abilities, be able to find the silver linings in hard times, and being able to make hard decisions for the country even if this makes him/her unpopular with the people. I think George Washington was my favorite president since I studied so much about him for our debates. He was a great man with wonderful virtues. Without him, we today might still be part of Britain. He also had to deal with a lot of stress with being the first president, which he dealt with well. Washington set this country's government up to be great. I am thankful for what he did for America.
ReplyDeleteI think that some good qualities of a good president are loyalty compassion and leadership. I also think that should have some common sense as well as some logical thinking. I don't have a favorite president but if i had to pick one out of all of them it would probably have to be Abraham Lincoln because he had some great leadership skills and showed some great strengths and weaknesses. Although he had made some mistakes on his life time he learned from them and came back from them.
ReplyDeleteI think if they know how to lead a country and how to fix the problems if something isn't going right they know how to fix it and what things they have to do to make that country better. I would say john f Kennedy he was such a great man and everyone loved him I say the show about him and it was amazing and sad how fast he left the world he was a dearly loved president and will never be forgotten ever.
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