Here is a portion of a John Edwards’ speech from earlier this year.
I believe that we did a good job of reworking it. We removed some glaring framing errors, and inserted some more values.
We will be addressing the rest of the speech in the near future.
You can check out the work in progress over at Demspeak.
Critiques and comments would be appreciated.
The speech:
You know all these political experts out there question what you and I and the Democratic Party believe in. They say that we don’t believe in anything. That we don’t stand for anything. Well, tonight I want to talk about what we believe.
We believe in hope over despair, possibilities over problems, optimism over cynicism. We believe in doing what is right even when others say it can’t be done. And we believe in fighting desperately for people who don’t have a voice. That’s what the Democratic Party has always believed in and that’s what we will always believe in. That’s what you and I believe in.
We know the difference between right and wrong. And it’s right to talk about the two different Americas we still live in. We’ve got one for those who have been blessed and have lived the American Dream. And another for those who are struggling to get by. It’s time to build the one America we all believe in.
Do we believe that any child in our country should go without health care just because their parents can’t afford to go to the doctor? That’s not we believe in. We have to strengthen our health care system. Do we believe one child should go to a school with computers while another goes to a school without enough books? That’s not what we believe in. We have to strengthen our schools. We can start by expanding early childhood education and treating our teachers and those who work in our schools with the dignity and the respect that they deserve.
Do we believe in an America that is satisfied with two economies–one for wealthy insiders and one for the rest of us? That’s not what we believe in. I’ll tell you what’s right. It’s right to want to build one economy that honors work, not just wealth.
You know all of my life I have seen the power and dignity that comes from hard work. In the mills, the post office, and in our schools. I grew up believing that there are two important things we can give to each other–our love and our labor. I believe there is dignity in work. It goes beyond the numbers on any paycheck. The men and women in my hometown–and yours–feel stronger and better when they know their hard work always–always–can provide for their families. You’ve all heard my story–you know how my father had to borrow $50 to get home from the hospital, how he worked in a mill, and how I worked in the mill as a young man. The truth is, I have lived in the bright light of America. But today, that light is flickering. People are struggling more and more. They’re falling deeper and deeper in to debt. And they don’t know if it’s even possible for their kids to have a better life.
This is not an accident. It is by design. Our Republican leaders value one thing: wealth. We see it in everything they do. Tax “reforms” that shift more of the burden onto the wages of working people. Health savings accounts that serve as tax shelters for millionaires. And now, Social Security–they want to borrow trillions of dollars, add even more to the deficit, and cut benefits for millions of seniors.
And now they admit that private accounts will do nothing to solve the long-term problem. They want to stand with their friends on Wall Street. We want to stand with people who’ve worked hard all of their lives. And we believe that people should have the freedom to grow old with dignity without having to depend on their children. That’s what we believe in. George Bush likes to talk about an “Ownership Society.” We already have one: CEO’s with jets; Power companies that get their way even if the health of children and pregnant women suffer. Oil companies who write our energy policy. George Bush’s so-called “Ownership Society” is a secret society that rewards the wealthiest and shuts out those who work hard every day. What we know and understand in our soul is that hard work built America. Men and women who worked with their hands and their heads–who still do–and just want America to be the land of opportunity again.
What we want is an Opportunity Society where everyone who works hard and does right has the chance to get ahead. And you create an Opportunity Society by honoring work.
We want work to pay. We want work to matter. We want a trade policy that gives our workers a fair chance–with environmental and labor standards. And no American company should ever be allowed to leave this country, go overseas, and hire children to do their work. When people do right by America, America ought to do right by them. And it’s wrong that millions give every day to this country and still live in poverty. This is one of the great moral issues of our time.
You know, this president flies over America and goes to events and stands with his friends. Well, we ought to stand up for people nobody else will. Last week, I went to Little Washington, North Carolina and met privately with a group of men and women who were struggling.
One woman had been living in a shelter. She told us how she wanted to work. If she walked into this room tonight, you wouldn’t think anything of it. But when she walked into the local Laundromat to get warm, she said she was told to: “Get out of here. Anybody living in the shelter’s got to be trash.” There but for the grace of God go I. And then I met Loretta. You know I can still feel her hand shake–determined and strong like a truck driver. She spent 14 years working at a wash house–working for the minimum wage–earning a little more that $200 a week. She would always try to do better but no one would give her a chance.
Well, she kept pushing and pushing. She got her GED and a loan. And now she owns her own pizza franchise. We asked her how many people worked there. She said that there are “eight of us.” Not seven people work for me. There were “eight of us.” She was asked about the cost of her employees and she said that it was an honor to be able to give them their paychecks. You could hear in her voice the respect she has for other people.
There was hope in that room. America was in that room. It was a million miles from that mill in Robbins, but sitting with Loretta and the others–it was a very familiar place. That natural respect for other people. That belief in effort. And that hope that if you just keep going, try some more, things will get better–isn’t this what America’s all about? So we’re going to let the Republicans stand with their friends on Wall Street and the big oil, big insurance companies and the HMO’s. And who are we going to stand with? We’re going to stand with the teachers, nurses, factory workers, tech workers, and small business owners. We’re going to stand with Loretta.
The Rewrite: 1st Draft
by mike101 & Ron Watson
Over the past several years, political experts have questioned what you and I believe in. Tonight I would like to answer that question and talk about what we believe.
We believe in hope over despair, possibilities over problems, optimism over cynicism. We believe in doing what’s right even when cynics say it can’t be done. And we believe in fighting for people who can’t speak loud enough to be heard. That’s what the Democratic party has and always will, believe in. Americans believe in hope, possibility optimism and fairness; those are beliefs that we share with America.
We know the difference between right and wrong, and it is right to talk about the two different America’s we live in. We’ve got one for those who have been blessed by the prosperity of the American Dream, and another for those who struggle to get by. We believe it is time to change that and build one America we can all believe in.
No child in this country should go without health care just because their parents cannot afford a visit to the doctor. That’s what we believe in. We must open our health care system to all children. Do we believe that one child should go to a school with computers while another goes to a school without enough books? No. We believe that all children should have the resources required to succeed regardless of where they live. We must strengthen our schools. We can start by expanding early childhood education and treating our teachers with the dignity and respect that they deserve.
Today, America has to economies, one for wealthy insiders and one for the rest of us. That is wrong. It is right to build one economy that rewards both work and wealth.
You know all of my life I have seen the power and dignity that comes from hard work. In the mills, the post office, and in our schools. I grew up believing that there are a few important things we can give to each other: our love, our labor, and our respect. I believe there is dignity in work. It goes beyond the numbers on any paycheck. The men and women in my hometown and yours feel stronger and better when they know their hard work can always provide for their families. You’ve all heard my story, you know how my father had to borrow $50 to get home from the hospital, how he worked in a mill, and how I worked in the mill as a young man. The truth is, I have lived in the bright light of America. But today, that light is flickering. People are working longer hours and falling deeper in to debt. Many don’t know if it’s even possible for their kids to have a better life.
This is not an accident. It is by design. Our Republican leaders value only one thing: wealth. We see that value in everything they do. Tax “reforms” that shift the tax burden onto the backs of working people. Health savings accounts that serve as tax shelters for the rich. And now, with Social Security they want to borrow trillions of dollars, adding even more to our deficit, at the same time cutting benefits for millions of seniors.
George Bush talks of an ‘Ownership Society’. He wants people to believe it is about American homes and small business. It is not. It is about CEOs with private jets; power companies that get more benefits as they harm the health of pregnant women and children; the privatization of our water supply; opening Yellowstone and other national treasures to oil and timber companies; private schools and universities; the society that George Bush wants is a Private Society, and most Americans do not have the wealth needed to join the club.
We believe that the hard work of generations past, and the shared responsibility of Americans helping other Americans is what built this country. Americans working shoulder to shoulder built the railroads, brought electricity to the countryside, and worked the wells and the mines that fueled our growth.
America belongs to the men and women, our families, that worked with their hands and their heads to create the opportunity we have today.
The Private Society that the Republicans champion threatens to take that claim that we have on America, that sense of belonging to something great and replace it with empty promises and misleading words. It has already started. They have admitted that private accounts will do nothing to help ensure the health of Social Security. They want to stand with their friends on Wall Street, and we want to stand with you, the people who’ve worked hard all of thier lives. People should have the freedom to grow old with dignity without having to depend on their children.
We have worked too hard to be shut out of our own country. We want work to pay. We want work to matter. We want a trade policy, with environmental and labor standards, that gives our workers a fair chance. And no American company should be allowed to abandon their community, go overseas, and employ children to do their work. When people do right by America, America ought to do right by them. It is wrong that millions work every day in this country only to find themselves in poverty. This is one of the great moral issues of our time.
You know, this president flies all over America and goes to events and sells policies that address the needs of his friends. Well, we stand up for the rest of the country. Last week, I went to Little Washington, North Carolina and met privately with a group of men and women who were struggling.
One woman used to live in a shelter. She told us how she wanted to work. If she walked into this room tonight, you wouldn’t think anything of it. One time though when she walked into the local Laundromat to get warm, she said she was told to: “Get out of here. Anybody living in the shelter’s got to be trash.” There but for the grace of God go I. And then I met her, Loretta. You know I can still feel her firm handshake–determined and strong like a truck driver. She spent 14 years working at a wash house–working for the minimum wage–earning a little more that $200 a week. She would always try to do better but no one would give her a chance.
Well, she kept pushing and pushing. She got her GED and a business loan. And now she owns her own pizza franchise. We asked her how many people worked there. She said that there are “eight of us.” Not seven people work for me. There were “eight of us.” She was asked about the cost of her employees and she said that it was an honor to be able to give them their paychecks. You could hear in her voice the respect she has for other people.
There was hope in that room. America belonged to us in that room. It was a million miles from that mill in Robbins, but sitting with Loretta and the others–it was a very familiar place. The natural respect for other people. The belief in effort. And that hope that if you just keep going, try some more, things will get better–isn’t that what America’s all about? We’re going to let the Republicans stand with their friends on Wall Street, the big oil companies, big insurance companies and the HMO’s. Who are we standing with? We’re standing with the teachers, nurses, technicians, factory workers, and small business owners. We’re standing with America.
The user formerly known as k9disc
