The most presidential lorem ipsum in history.
That is the true genius of America - a faith in simple dreams,, an insistence on small miracles. They know we can do better. Not just with words, but with deeds - by investing in our schools and our communities; by enforcing our civil rights laws and ensuring fairness in our criminal justice system; by providing this generation with ladders of opportunity that were unavailable for previous generations. In Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia, we have seen Muslim-majority countries elect a woman to lead.
That won't keep America safe. This last point is important because there are some who advocate for democracy only when they are out of power; once in power, they are ruthless in suppressing the rights of others.
And John Kerry believes that in a dangerous world war must be an option sometimes, but it should never be the first option. I am grateful to finish this journey with one of the finest statesmen of our time, a man at ease with everyone from world leaders to the conductors on the Amtrak train he still takes home every night. The Internet and television can bring knowledge and information, but also offensive sexuality and mindless violence. It is easier to start wars than to end them. The people of the world can live together in peace.
My parents shared not only an improbable love, they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation. That's why I've been fighting to expand the Earned Income Tax Credit and the minimum wage. That anger is not always productive; indeed, all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems; it keeps us from squarely facing our own complicity in our condition, and prevents the African-American community from forging the alliances it needs to bring about real change. And when one of his chief advisors - the man who wrote his economic plan - was talking about the anxiety Americans are feeling, he said that we were just suffering from a "mental recession," and that we've become, and I quote, "a nation of whiners." That's the promise of America - the idea that we are responsible for ourselves, but that we also rise or fall as one nation; the fundamental belief that I am my brother's keeper; I am my sister's keeper.
While studying here, my father met my mother. I've been speaking to a lot of churches recently, so it's nice to be speaking to one that's so familiar. My mother, whose parents were non-practicing Baptists and Methodists, was one of the most spiritual souls I ever knew. And finally they come to this elderly black man who's been sitting there quietly the entire time. No health care? The market will fix it.
Thank you, and God bless America.