TUCSON, Ariz.. - This is the text of Obama's long speech in memory of the five victims of the republic senator Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson, Arizona during his rally ended in a massacre by a deranged individual.
I tried to translate (as can be my faithful translation) the text, but I stopped when I came to less than half the speech! Too long ... but nice! Clicking on the title you can see the video from youtube.
"To the Families of Those we've lost; Who Called Them to all friends, to the students of this university, the public servants Gathered tonight, and the people of Tucson and Arizona: as I have here tonight as an American who , like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today, and tomorrow will stand by you.
the families of those we lost, to all those he had friends, students of this university, all the officials gathered here tonight, and the citizens of Tucson and Arizona: I came here tonight as an American who, Like all Americans, we kneel to pray with you today, and be with you tomorrow.
There is nothing I can say That will fill the sudden hole torn in your hearts. But know this: the Hopes of a nation are here tonight. We mourn with you for the fallen. We join you in your grief. And we add yours to Our Faith That Representative Gabrielle Giffords and the other living victims of this tragedy pull through. There
nothing to say who will fill the sudden hole dug in your hearts. But know this: the hopes of the nation are here tonight. We mourn with you for the fallen. We join you in your grief. And add our faith that your Representative Gabrielle Giffords and other victims and survivors of this tragedy can make it.
As Scripture tells us: There Is a River
Whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy
Place where the Most High Dwells.
God Is Within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
The Bible tells us
There is a river whose course makes glad the city of God,
a sacred place where the Most High dwells.
God is within you, you will not fall;
God will help at the dawn of day.
[...]
Our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 Americans who SURVIVED the shooting, the congresswoman Including many of Them Went to see on Saturday. I have just as from the University Medical Center, just a mile from here, where, Our friend Gabby courageously fights to recover even as we speak. And I can tell you this - she knows we're here and she knows we love her and she knows That we will be rooting for her throughout what will be a Difficult Journey.
Our hearts are full of hope and thanks to the 13 Americans who survived the shooting including the parliament, many of them had gone to see it Saturday. I just
rtornato the University of Medical Center, a few miles from here, where our amca Gabby fight bravely, even when as we speak. I can tell you this-you know we're here and you know that we love and she knows that tiferemo for her through what will be a difficult journey.
And Our Hearts are full of Gratitude for Those Who saved others. We are grateful for Daniel Hernandez, a volunteer in Gabby's office who ran through the chaos to minister to His boss, Wounds tending to her to keep her alive. We are grateful for the men who tackled the gunman as he stopped to reload [...].
Our hearts are full of gratitude to those who saved others. We are grateful to Daniel Fernandez, a volunteer of the Cabinet of Gabby who rushed to help their boss by taking care of the wounds to keep it alive. We are grateful to the men who stopped the killer in the omentum that he stopped to reload. These men and women
remind us That heroism is found not only on the fields of battle. They remind us That heroism does not require special training or physical strength. Heroism is here, all around us, in the hearts of so many of Our Fellow Citizens, just waiting to be Summoned - as It Was on Saturday morning.
Their actions, Their selflessness, Also put a challenge to Each of Us. It raises the question of what, beyond the prayers and expressions of concern, is required of us going forward. How can we honor the fallen? How can we be true to their memory?
You see, when a tragedy like this strikes, it is part of our nature to demand explanations - to try to impose some order on the chaos, and make sense out of that which seems senseless. Already we've seen a national conversation commence, not only about the motivations behind these killings, but about everything from the merits of gun safety laws to the adequacy of our mental health systems. Much of this process, of debating what might be done to prevent such tragedies in the future, is an essential ingredient in our exercise of self-government.
But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized - at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who think differently than we do - it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we are talking with each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds.
Scripture tells us that there is evil in the world, and that terrible things happen for reasons that defy human understanding. In the words of Job, "when I looked for light, then came darkness." Bad things happen, and we must guard against simple explanations in the aftermath.
For the truth is that none of us can know exactly what triggered this vicious attack. None of us can know with any certainty what might have stopped those shots from being fired, or what thoughts lurked in the inner recesses of a violent man's mind.
So yes, we must examine all the facts behind this tragedy. We cannot and will not be passive in the face of such violence. We should be willing to challenge old assumptions in order to lessen the prospects of violence in the future.
But what we can't do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on one another. As we discuss these issues, let each of us do so with a good dose of humility. Rather than pointing fingers or assigning blame, let us use this occasion to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy, and remind ourselves of all the ways our hopes and dreams are bound together.
After all, that's what most of us do when we lose someone in our family - especially if the loss is unexpected. We're shaken from our routines, and forced to look inward. We reflect on the past. Did we spend enough time with an aging parent, we wonder. Did we express our gratitude for all the sacrifices they made for us? Did we tell a spouse just how desperately we loved them, not just once in awhile but every single day?
So sudden loss causes us to look backward - but it also forces us to look forward, to reflect on the present and the future, on the manner in which we live our lives and nurture our relationships with those who are still with us. We may ask ourselves if we've shown enough kindness and generosity and compassion to the people in our lives. Perhaps we question whether we are doing right by our children, or our community, and whether our priorities are in order. We recognize our own mortality, and are reminded that in the fleeting time we have on this earth, what matters is not wealth, or status, or power, or fame - but rather, how well we have loved, and what small part we have played in bettering the lives of others.
That process of reflection, of making sure we align our values with our actions - that, I believe, is what a tragedy like this requires. For those who were harmed, those who were killed - they are part of our family, an American family 300 million strong. We may not have known them personally, but we surely see ourselves in them. In George and Dot, in Dorwan and Mavy, we sense the abiding love we have for our own husbands, our own wives, our own life partners. Phyllis - she's our mom or grandma; Gabe our brother or son. In Judge Roll, we recognize not only a man who prized his family and doing his job well, but also a man who embodied America's fidelity to the law. In Gabby, we see a reflection of our public spiritedness, that desire to participate in that sometimes frustrating, sometimes contentious, but always necessary and never-ending process to form a more perfect union.
And in Christina...in Christina we see all of our children. So curious, so trusting, so energetic and full of magic.
So deserving of our love.
And so deserving of our good example. If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate, as it should, let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost. Let's make sure it's not on the usual plane of politics and point scoring and pettiness that drifts away with the next news cycle.
The loss of these wonderful people should make every one of us strive to be better in our private lives - to be better friends and neighbors, co-workers and parents. And if, as has been discussed in recent days, their deaths help usher in more civility in our public discourse, let's remember that it is not because a simple lack of civility caused this tragedy, but rather because only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to our challenges as a nation, in a way that would make them proud. It should be because we want to live up to the example of public servants like John Roll and Gabby Giffords, who knew first and foremost that we are all Americans, and that we can question each other's ideas without questioning each other's love of country, and that our task, working together, is to constantly widen the circle of our concern so that we bequeath the American dream to future generations.
I believe we can be better. Those who died here, those who saved lives here - they help me believe. We may not be able to stop all evil in the world, but I know that how we treat one another is entirely up to us. I believe that for all our imperfections, we are full of decency and goodness, and that the forces that divide us are not as strong as those that unite us.
That's what I believe, in part because that's what a child like Christina Taylor Green believed. Imagine: here was a young girl who was just becoming aware of our democracy; just beginning to understand the obligations of citizenship; just starting to glimpse the fact that someday she too might play a part in shaping her nation's future. She had been elected to her student council; she saw public service as something exciting, something hopeful. She was off to meet her congresswoman, someone she was sure was good and important and might be a role model. She saw all this through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol that we adults all too often just take for granted.
I want us to live up to her expectations. I want our democracy to be as good as she imagined it. All of us - we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children's expectations.
Christina was given to us on September 11th, 2001, one of 50 babies born that day to be pictured in a book called "Faces of Hope." On either side of her photo in that book were simple wishes for a child's life. "I hope you help those in need," read one. "I hope you know all of the words to the National Anthem and sing it with your hand over your heart. I hope you jump in rain puddles."
If there are rain puddles in heaven, Christina is jumping in them today. And here on Earth, we place our hands over our hearts, and commit ourselves as Americans to forging a country that is forever worthy of her gentle, happy spirit.
May God bless and keep those we've lost in restful and eternal peace. May He love and watch over the survivors. And May He bless the United States of America. "
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