When I was younger I was fascinated with JFK, RFK and MLK. I was 2 and a half when MLK and RFK were killed. I read a lot of books about the assassinations and their public lives. No doubt these 3 men had personal flaws - who doesn't? But the 3 of them wanted a brighter America. (Not sure you can say that about any of the people in Congress or running for President in 2016.)

On this Martin Luthor King Jr. Day, I'm just going to reflect on the fact that in really diificult circumstances, he was able to stand up and lead. Not for office, not for money, but because he had a dream of a better nation. It cost him his life. And we haven't had that many selfless leaders since 1968. I often wonder why.

"Now that's a strange statement to make because the world is all messed up. The nation is sick, trouble is in the land, confusion all around. That's a strange statement. But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. (All right, Yes) And I see God working in this period of the twentieth century in a way that men in some strange way are responding. Something is happening in our world." [Youtube video of MLK's last speech]

And pretty poignant even today:

"And another reason I'm happy to live in this period is that we have been forced to a point where we are going to have to grapple with the problems that men have been trying to grapple with through history, but the demands didn't force them to do it. Survival demands that we grapple with them. (Yes) Men for years now have been talking about war and peace. But now no longer can they just talk about it. It is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence in this world; it's nonviolence or nonexistence. That is where we are today." [text of MLK's last speech]