Here, from the ancient archives, is a snippet of the 1980s, from the June 12, 1983 “World News Tonight.” In a typical, time-honored package of clips from commencement addresses, ABC featured this clip from Ronald Reagan:
“Don’t get discouraged with the situation of the world. Things are getting better and believe it, we need you. We need your youth, we need your idealism, we need your strength out there in what we’re trying to accomplish today. So may I add my congratulations to all of you, good fortune to all of you, and God bless you.”
And this came seconds after this clip:
TED KENNEDY: “There is no morality in the mushroom cloud. The black rain will fall equally on the just and the unjust, and the world that is left in the ashes of Armageddon will little know nor long remember which was the Evil Empire.”
Happy Birthday, Mr. President. We needed your youthfulness, your strength, and your idealism. Thank you for giving them in such abundance.