Sir, – I really enjoyed Alison Healy's Irishwoman's Diary on speeches that were never delivered but for which text was prepared (February 10th).
One such speech, not mentioned by Ms Healy, was John F Kennedy’s intended speech at a lunchtime event in Dallas, Texas, to which he was en route when he was assassinated. The final paragraph of that speech is inscribed on a memorial tablet in Dealey Plaza, the site of the assassination. Its words are most poignant in view of the utterly depraved leadership in and by the United States today. They are as follows: “We, in this country, in this generation, are – by destiny rather than by choice – the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of ‘peace on earth, good will toward men’. That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago: ‘except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen waketh but in vain’.” – Yours, etc,
FELIX M LARKIN,
Cabinteely,
Dublin 18.