作者 John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 1917-1963， 美国第35任总统，著名政治家。他最为熟知的一句名言就是：“不要问你的国家能为你做什么，而要问你能为你的国家做什么。”
The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment ; but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy. A man does what he must – in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures – and that is the basis of all human morality. To be courageous… requires no exceptional qualifications, no magic formula, no special combination of time, place and circumstance. It is an opportunity that sooner of later is presented to us all. Politics merely furnishes one arena which imposes special tests of courage. In whatever arena of life one may meet the challenge of courage, whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience – the loss of his friends, his fortune, his contentment, even the esteem of his fellow men – each man must decide for himself the course he will follow. The stories of past courage can define that ingredient – they can teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage it-self. For this each man must look into his own soul.