A few thoughts about JFK

   Fifty years ago, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Texas.
   I was 16 months old when JFK was shot. Mom told me I was sleeping when she heard the news on the radio.
   I really don't know "much" about him, but what I do "know" makes me wish all Presidents could be like this.
   Let's start.
   First, he was a badass in his own right. He served on a PT (patrol torpedo) boat. Basically, take a small fast boat, put a couple of machine guns and two torpedoes on it, paint it gray and send it out to fight bigger ships. In the early days of the war, the Imperial Japanese Navy was a highly trained, well-disciplined, "professional" navy that was exceptionally-skilled in night-fighting. It takes BALLS to get in a little boat and patrol in waters pretty much owned by the IJN. Nobody can deny that took courage. Courage is something ALL Presidents need.
   Fast forward to his Presidency.
   He stood up to the Soviet Union. He essentially told them "Get your fucking missiles out of Cuba OR ELSE." There was a trade (US missiles out of Turkey), but he stood up FOR AMERICA and did what he was elected and paid to do.
  America was having some serious financial issues. He words to the effect of, "It's not going to be easy, but we CAN fix the economy!" And he did. His first step was LOWERING TAXES. Lower taxes to him meant more people would spend/invest money in the economy and therefore the economy would grow. It worked.
   He wasn't without his policy flaws. Bay of Pigs could have gone so much better than it did, but he was reluctant to give air support to Cuban rebels (armed and trained by the US) and help them overthrow Castro. While the Bay of Pigs failed, it sent a message that he wasn't taking any crap.
   JFK loved America AND the Constitution. 

   Gotta love a President that owned AUTOMATIC weapons and didn't try to ban, restrict them, etc. JFK understood the Constitution and what it meant!

   JFK was a dreamer who believed in American exceptionalism.

   He made a speech to Congress asking to fund NASA and a manned flight to the Moon. Previous Presidents had gotten us into orbit, but it was JFK who decided it was time America took the lead. His vision ultimately shown the world AMERICA could do whatever it set its mind to do. He got the funding and America went to work and achieved the goal of putting men on the Moon before 1970. He didn't say "the world" or "a coalition" or "The UN" like politicians today would do. He said "AMERICA" and he meant it!

   JFK made lots of quotes, but his best one (to me) is prophetic because he believed in free speech, justice, etc.

   All in all, most people feel "positive" about JFK because he epitomized what was GOOD about America. Tough, caring AND obeying the Constitution.

   Future Presidents should use JFK as a role model on how to LEAD America. They could do a lot worse.