July 16, ll~OO. SPEECH BY GOVERNOR TOM McCALL. It is good to be with you here in Coos Bay and to bring

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1 c.,l, DOCUMENT [COLLECTION j G#l~ CQ/IJ ~ "pw AMERICAN LEGION Marshfield High School, Coos Bay July 16, ll~OO a.m. SPEECH BY GOVERNOR TOM McCALL It is good to be with you here in Coos Bay and to bring you the hopes from all Oregonians that your meeting will be a profitable and helpful one. We can meet today on a high note of optimism. You are a group that was formed for a purpose. This is a natj.on that was formed for a purpose, Joined, you are faced with the excitement and the hope of your greatest challenge, There is a tendency today to turn always toward the darkness rather than to the light. It is too easy to dismiss America as a country of stricken governme:jt, broken ideals, divisive uncertainty, and hell-bent decline. This attitude can do nothing but harm; can do nothing but add further woes to our list of real concerns. Let us look to the light; reminding and teaching and exulting that the American dream is alive and well and living In the hearts of millions.

2 Your major joy, it seems to me, is that you are in a position to discourage hand-wringing and to encourage positive steps toward curing our ills. President Nixon, speaking recently to the National Jaycees Convention, said:... never in human history have more people shared more wealth and had more opportunity with better jobs than in the United States of America. We should be proud of that.... but let us look at it another way: because America is the richest country in the world; because America has such enormous productive capacity; we can do things about our problems that no other country in the world can do." Think of the power you have to do good in this country. Think of the effective influence you can have over the mood and morale of the country. This is a time for re-discovery: of our national purpose, of our national priorities, and of our national selves. Bind up the wounds. Bring peace and love back to the American family. End the divergence. Assuage the suspicion. Redress the grievances. We are in a battle for the minds of man: among our own people and throughout the world. You do not win the mind of man by clubbing his head. -2-

3 going on. The straining contest has slipped from left to right to left. The force of the pull from both right and left has been ragingly strong. In the middle, where most of the players are, it has been a schizophrenic 24 years of trying to live with the push and the pull of both extremes. This battle is continuing. If we can maintain our intelligent balance, we can win this fight--a far more difficult kind of victory to achieve than it may seem. What happens on the campus must concern us; but we must be flexible enough and mature enough to maintain our poise--even in the face of outrage. How we react will be the key to this entire cause. We need not fear dissent. We need not fear peaceful demonstration. We need not fear the free exchange of ideas. If we do fear these things, then we must admit this awesome fact: to fear the open forum is to fear our own Constitution and its Bill of Rights. Bombs, fire brands, rocks, bloodshed: that's another matter. The Constitution deals with them, too. They are acts of violence that threaten the lives and properties of others. And such acts of -3- You win the mind of man by exhibiting superior dignity, superior effectiveness, and superior human behavior. Lasting love and friendship come from acts of decency and intelligence, committed in an atmosphere of human trust. Since World War II there has been a gigantic tug-of-war

4 But every the feathers ruffle and the electricity bristles the r, we must not unleash the Nat~onal Guard. p to bre our and se is the plan of those few who s Arne ca. want us to lose our Icool; to b clubs and bayonets; to strike down a student so can cry ag n that we live by force alone. In 1776 s was 1n its bi pains. It was small and weak and far from united. a small percentage had participated in the on. re was opposi on to the extent di 1 libe si by our founding philosophers. But, even then, as the ttle coun trembled on the edge of destiny, Thomas Jefferson--in rming the words that would declare our to free, s d: "We act not just for ourselves alone, but for all Renew your ic tenets. about the longer run and the broader span of man's af rs. And that the recent wars of this nation have in the name of saving, expanding, and protecting 1 1 -not name of ending it. We must be sensitive and sensible. We must not e le, nor insult them with blanket and ste j ts. We must use our heads--because it takes a full-time application of a b to make democracy work. -4- vandalism and violence are clearly against the law and cleal1y cannot be tolerated. 11 not be rated in Oregon-- this I pledge.

5 -5- If I may quote again a portion of President Nixon's speech: ". Let us tell young Americans, all Americans, that we should love America. But let us love her not because she is rich, not because she is strong, but because America is a good country and we are going to make her better.. John Brown, riding through the rgi a countryside with his own coffin at his side, headed for his own execution, sayinq: I This is a beautiful country.~ II.Today, when America has all its blessings and admittedly has many problems, let us never forget that if John Brown could say that just before the tragic war between the States, with his own death imminent, then we, too, can say: This is a beautiful country and we are privileged to be the generation that has the responsibility to make it even more beautiful for the generations ahead." Ladies and Gentlemen, our work is cut out for us. Our assignments are not easy. But let's get on with the job--sure in our mind and sound in our heart--and certain that this nation is built on solid human foundatio~s that will support the continuing construction of the great American Dream. ###