Ask not what your country can do for you

Kahlil Gibran
Approximately 1915

Ask not what your country can do for you,
But ask what you can do for your country

This phrase is imbedded in an article titled the “New Deal” or “The New Frontier”, depending on your translation from Arabic to English. The article was directed to the people of the Middle East. In summary Gibran in is poetic-prose style draws a distinction between the “old ideas” giving way through “an awakening that defies slumber” Gibran uses numerous roles in society to describe the character of the “old” in contrast with the character of the “new”. Dryly put, the old is a corrupt character capable of deceit for self serving ends. The new is a person who recognizes himself as while a complete individual he is an integral part of society.

I must say in having read Gibran’s collection, I am putting a lot of stock in his one word “integrity” to assume he means a complete individual capable of self reliance. It may be an over assumption on my part, as I always look for the good in man and that good to include a tendency to look out for himself first. Nested in this article and unlike much of his other work he actually uses the word profit (not prophet) in the context of wealth entitled to a hard working individual.

I can also raise this question, in reflecting on this article and then back upon the words written by Sir T. Lawrence in his book Lawrence of Arabia; 700 pages of description of a sun baked land and a people of primitive social awareness; I contrast this with the paradigm I have held for a long time about the great Ottoman Empire and all its great contributions to civilization. I ask my self did this civilization; recorded in history, leave out its people?

And finally is J.F. Kennedy simply well read?