Thursday Thoughts...

“Books can not be killed by fire. People die, but books never die. No man and no force can abolish memory... In this war, we know, books are weapons. And it is a part of your dedication always to make them weapons for man's freedom.” 

 Franklin D. Roosevelt

Well, there is a lot to say about this, who said it, why they said it and how different things are in some places today. Perhaps not burning books per se, but banning them.

But back to the sentiments I think the then President was reflecting upon. He clearly knew the power of books and of the written word. Of how impactful they can be; and how they can become embedded in memory and in oral traditions and oral histories even if they are destroyed.

Books are powerful, and yes they can be weapons because they can ignite imagination and courage. And yes, they should be used in pursuit of man's (people's) freedom, not as weapons of division and hatred.

Simply put, I agree with pretty much everything he is saying here.

 

Timbers burning, not books.