- #1
Mattius_
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Here is a speech I composed for this years Veterans of Foreign Wars voice of democracy contest. The theme is "My commitment to America's future."
Ofcourse it is a little soft, as speech's to middle-late age patriots should be made, but I feel that all of my points are valid.
Anyways, give me opinions, suggestions, and criticism because i worked relatively hard on it and would like to hear what you all think.
"What has happened in the past is very small in comparison to what will happen in the future", is a powerful quote given by digital media pioneer Nathan Mryvold on the explosion of mass-media in the information age. When I first heard this quote, I learned that many nations will be tested in the next 50-100 years. I wondered which nations would survive this explosion of information. Would it be the dictatorships, which could attempt to shield this new information from their people? Or would it be the democracies, which could buckle under all the new waves of enlightenment? What about America; would America survive this pandemonium of clashing sensationalist ideology?
When I received the theme of this year’s oratory contest, my commitment to America’s future. I thought about what America’s future would hold. You see, I believe society is at a critical point, possibly the most critical point it has ever encountered. This amplitude of information, which is unprecedented in history, is saturating every realm of our populace and it is awakening every mind which notices it.
I spend a lot of time surfing the Internet. I browse forums where millions of minds around the world gather their thoughts and ideas for prosperity. I often times see young minds that are corrupted by misinformation. What a tragedy it is to see an impressionable mind exploited at the whim of another. I sometimes wonder if all of this freedom is good for our nation. I fear that all of the monumental progress accomplished by our forefathers be washed down the drain by a minority of manipulated ignorant victims. I wonder if there is such a thing as too much freedom? I question how we can allow our sons and daughters to be victimized by a revolution of false hope.
I was stuck; I wasn’t sure what commitment I should make to America. Should I encourage control in the media? No, that would be limiting free speech and defying the constitution. Should I let our young minds be exposed to this information, and hope that they exercise rationality and reasonability? No, I couldn’t take that chance. There had to be an answer.
A few days later during my mass-media class, we were reading an article on the history of the media in America and that’s where I came across the most beautiful quote I had ever read; it was my answer. It was written by the English poet and scholar John Milton, he said; “Though all the winds of doctrine were let loose to play upon the earth, so truth be in the field, we do injuriously by licensing and prohibiting to misdoubt her strength. Let her and falsehood grapple; who ever knew truth put to the worse, in a free and open encounter.” What Milton was saying was that although there are infinitely many untruths floating around in society, truth will always be there to identify and correct them. What a powerful mechanism of democracy; you see, we need not worry about this information revolution hurting our beloved children. We can always rely on truth, both steadfast and loyal, to light our path on this unsure frontier of freedom.
My commitment to America’s future is true and unwavering because I have found truth; rather, truth has found me; and I will help guide all of those failing to see it with consciousness and benevolence. I will defend America’s Ideal whether it is in the voting booth on Election Day, or while waiting for the bus on 42nd and Dodge St.. My commitment to America’s future is only to make sure that truth is allowed to wield her mighty axe, and correspondingly to let justice and prosperity follow.
Ofcourse it is a little soft, as speech's to middle-late age patriots should be made, but I feel that all of my points are valid.
Anyways, give me opinions, suggestions, and criticism because i worked relatively hard on it and would like to hear what you all think.
"What has happened in the past is very small in comparison to what will happen in the future", is a powerful quote given by digital media pioneer Nathan Mryvold on the explosion of mass-media in the information age. When I first heard this quote, I learned that many nations will be tested in the next 50-100 years. I wondered which nations would survive this explosion of information. Would it be the dictatorships, which could attempt to shield this new information from their people? Or would it be the democracies, which could buckle under all the new waves of enlightenment? What about America; would America survive this pandemonium of clashing sensationalist ideology?
When I received the theme of this year’s oratory contest, my commitment to America’s future. I thought about what America’s future would hold. You see, I believe society is at a critical point, possibly the most critical point it has ever encountered. This amplitude of information, which is unprecedented in history, is saturating every realm of our populace and it is awakening every mind which notices it.
I spend a lot of time surfing the Internet. I browse forums where millions of minds around the world gather their thoughts and ideas for prosperity. I often times see young minds that are corrupted by misinformation. What a tragedy it is to see an impressionable mind exploited at the whim of another. I sometimes wonder if all of this freedom is good for our nation. I fear that all of the monumental progress accomplished by our forefathers be washed down the drain by a minority of manipulated ignorant victims. I wonder if there is such a thing as too much freedom? I question how we can allow our sons and daughters to be victimized by a revolution of false hope.
I was stuck; I wasn’t sure what commitment I should make to America. Should I encourage control in the media? No, that would be limiting free speech and defying the constitution. Should I let our young minds be exposed to this information, and hope that they exercise rationality and reasonability? No, I couldn’t take that chance. There had to be an answer.
A few days later during my mass-media class, we were reading an article on the history of the media in America and that’s where I came across the most beautiful quote I had ever read; it was my answer. It was written by the English poet and scholar John Milton, he said; “Though all the winds of doctrine were let loose to play upon the earth, so truth be in the field, we do injuriously by licensing and prohibiting to misdoubt her strength. Let her and falsehood grapple; who ever knew truth put to the worse, in a free and open encounter.” What Milton was saying was that although there are infinitely many untruths floating around in society, truth will always be there to identify and correct them. What a powerful mechanism of democracy; you see, we need not worry about this information revolution hurting our beloved children. We can always rely on truth, both steadfast and loyal, to light our path on this unsure frontier of freedom.
My commitment to America’s future is true and unwavering because I have found truth; rather, truth has found me; and I will help guide all of those failing to see it with consciousness and benevolence. I will defend America’s Ideal whether it is in the voting booth on Election Day, or while waiting for the bus on 42nd and Dodge St.. My commitment to America’s future is only to make sure that truth is allowed to wield her mighty axe, and correspondingly to let justice and prosperity follow.