Vice President Joe Biden, in speaking to an audience of 6,500 at UB Alumni Arena, said he hopes recent events will wake everyone up to the realization that we have to put this country back together again.
Biden emphasized that “words matter” as he recited a portion of the poem Second Coming by W.B. Yeats.
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Biden recalls the days when our nation’s representatives didn’t see one another as opponents and were respectful of one another.
“When you get to know another person, even if your opinions differ — when you learn about their struggles, you feel compassion for them,” said Biden.
Biden talked about the tragedies in his own life and the appreciation he has for those who were there to check in on him at the time to make sure he was okay. He reminded us about the values upon which our country was founded — and the importance of remembering who we are and what we stand for. He loudly and firmly proclaimed, “America is not a place where immigrants are referred to as animals, where the press is not the enemy of the people, and that race and religion can never define who we are.”
Biden urged people to have respectful conversations with those with whom they disagree — to see the value in understanding another’s perspective. He said it is important to refrain from questioning a person’s motivation or to judge another person.
He said, “We cannot remain silent because we must remember that we are led by the power of our example. We are now living through the battle for the soul of our nation. Our children are listening, and our silence is our complicity. Now, more than ever, we must reweave the values we cherish into the fabric of our nation, and hold ourselves and others accountable to live that example.”
It was wonderful to hear Biden speak with compassion, kindness, and resolve about serving selflessly, and restoring faith to the struggling middle class. It was great hearing him speak about the importance of health care and programs like Medicare and Medicaid. And it was inspiring to listen to him speak with conviction about remembering who we are and what we stand for in this incredibly unique nation that began as an experiment.
When a person from the audience asked Biden to identify the three characteristics he hopes to see in our next president, he immediately replied:
1. Someone who has a good temperament;
2. Someone who exudes authenticity, and not self-interest;
3. Someone who is willing to be surrounded by people who are smart, and who has enough confidence in his or her own intellectual ability so as not to fear asking for their advice.
Biden’s presentation was an inspiration to all who were present, reinforcing the strength of our great nation, and the importance of understanding that words matter in our discourse with one another.
