Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.

In JFK's inaugural address, he posed the following dilemma to the american people: Are you willing to forgo comforts and personal vendetta's in order to promote and spread liberty and equality across the globe. His effective question caused the average citizen to introspect whether they had the courage to sacrifice some of themselves for the greater good, regardless to whom he or she would be benefiting- friend or foe, creed, sex, nationality or race. In todays society the idea of sacrificing for the greater good has pretty much gone the way of the dodo. I shamefully cannot count the times I have seen people on the street asking for money as I turn a blind eye. Even though I know that a dollar will mean more to them then it does to me. We make decisions based off of instant gratification and personal interest. In an effort to narrow this discussion to a more personal level, I would like to address this subject with regards to the Jewish orthodox community. With the recent election of President Obama, I have felt a resounding unappreciation towards him from the Jewish orthodox community. Now I am not promoting Obama nor am I relegating him. its a simple matter of perspective. As Joe Pesci put it in the film "With Honors", "He's [the president] a servant of the people". Meaning the Presidents job is not to elevate your status, politically or financially, it is to do what is right for the country. So when people call the President, evil, incompetent or stupid, I understand that it is generally due to the fact that he doesn't prioritize issues one may feel is personally significant or because he takes an opposing stance on such an issue (ex. his stance on Israel, healthcare or sympathy towards the Muslims). However if we reconsider for a minute and approach his actions from the perspective of the average american I think you would agree that such a response is irrational. John Doe don't really care what Obama thinks about Israel as long as their family will have health coverage, employment and equal oppertunities. So in fact Obama is prioritizing what he believes is beneficial for the greatest number of Americans and this is true regardless of how you feel about him on other issues. Because his interest at heart is to be a servant of the American people (as it should be) and it's only conceivable that people have different priorities and not everyone can be happy. But now institute the point JFK was trying to make, are you man enough to forgo your personal comforts and agenda's to benefit the greater good? Because if you are then surely you will see the President Obama is not the type of person the orthodox community portrays him to be. Once again I am not taking a stance on the issue of whether I like him as a president, whether I voted for him, or if I like his policies, but I do genuinely think he has his heart in the right place.

My brother forwarded me this video which I think is a harsh depiction of the point previously, but nevertheless pertinent and powerful in relaying the idea http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnnTwyByui0&feature=fvst.