I am proud to come to this city as the guest of your distinguished Mayor, who has symbolized throughout the world the fighting spirit of West Berlin. And I am proud to visit the Federal Republic with your distinguished Chancellor who for so many years has committed Germany to democracy and freedom and progress, and to come here in the company of my fellow American, General Clay, who has been in this city during its great moments of crisis and will come again if ever needed.
Two thousand years ago the proudest boast was "civis Romanus sum." Today, in the world of freedom, the proudest boast is "Ich bin ein Berliner." I appreciate my interpreter translating my German! There are many people in the world who really don't understand, or say they don't, what is the great issue between the free world and the Communist world. Let them come to Berlin. There are some who say that communism is the wave of the future. Let them come to Berlin. And there are some who say in Europe and elsewhere we can work with the Communists. Let them come to Berlin. And there are even a few who say that it is true that communism is an evil system, but it permits us to make economic progress. Lass' sie nach Berlin kommen. Let them come to Berlin. Freedom has many difficulties and democracy is not perfect, but we have never had to put a wall up to keep our people in, to prevent them from leaving us. I want to say, on behalf of my countrymen, who live many miles away on the other side of the Atlantic, who are far distant from you, that they take the greatest pride that they have been able to share with you, even from a distance, the story of the last 18 years. I know of no town, no city, that has been besieged for 18 years that still lives with the vitality and the force, and the hope and the determination of the city of West Berlin. While the wall is the most obvious and vivid demonstration of the failures of the Communist system, for all the world to see, we take no satisfaction in it, for it is, as your Mayor has said, an offense not only against history but an offense against humanity, separating families, dividing husbands and wives and brothers and sisters, and dividing a people who wish to be joined together. What is true of this city is true of Germany--real, lasting peace in Europe can never be assured as long as one German out of four is denied the elementary right of free men, and that is to make a free choice. In 18 years of peace and good faith, this generation of Germans has earned the right to be free, including the right to unite their families and their nation in lasting peace, with good will to all people. You live in a defended island of freedom, but your life is part of the main. So let me ask you as I close, to lift your eyes beyond the dangers of today, to the hopes of tomorrow, beyond the freedom merely of this city of Berlin, or your country of Germany, to the advance of freedom everywhere, beyond the wall to the day of peace with justice, beyond yourselves and ourselves to all mankind. Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free. When all are free, then we can look forward to that day when this city will be joined as one and this country and this great Continent of Europe in a peaceful and hopeful globe. When that day finally comes, as it will, the people of West Berlin can take sober satisfaction in the fact that they were in the front lines for almost two decades. All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words "Ich bin ein Berliner." Hear this .wav 198K President John F. Kennedy - June 26, 1963 ----- Original Message ----- From: Supriyadi To: [email protected] Sent: Thursday, May 24, 2007 10:59 PM Subject: [mediacare] Ich Trinke Nicht Mehr ICH TRINKE NICHT MEHR Menjadi kebiasaan di negeri peminum bir terbesar, Jerman, terutama para prianya, untuk mampir ke rumah minum usai jam kerja sebelum pulang ke rumah. Biasanya setiap kelompok setiap hari menempati meja yang sama di rumah minum yang sama. Meja ini disebut Stamtisch. Tersebutlah Herr Gerd Nagel dan Herr Peter Groeber, selanjutnya kita sebut Gerd dan Peter, sebagi pasangan minum yang setia. Begitu akrabnya mereka hingga layaknya bersaudara. Bahkan selama bertahun-tahun selalu minum berdua saja, di meja yang sama di rumah minum yang sama. Namun begitu, setiap hari kongkow, mereka hanya minum masing-masing satu gelas besar bir saja. Suatu hari Gerd masuk ke rumah minum langganannya hanya sendiri saja. Herr Moeler, bar tender yang sudah sangat mengenalnya dan selalu melayaninya terheran-heran dan bertanya : "Guten Abend Herr Nagel. Kommen Sie nur alein. Wo ist Herr Groeber?" Selamat sore tuan Nagel Anda hanya datang sendiri. Mana tuan Groeber. Gerd yang nampak murung menjawab: "Abend. Ya ich bin alein. Er ist tot gestern. Aber geben Sie mich zwei Bier bitte". Sore.Ya saya sendiri saja. Dia telah meninggal kemarin. Tapi tolong beri saya dua gelas bir. Herr Moeler lebih heran lagi. Mengapa datang sendiri tetapi pesan dua gelas. Biasanya masing-masing hanya minum satu gelas. Kemudian dia bertanya lagi: " Warum moechten Sie zwei bier?" Kenapa Anda memesan dua gelas. "Ein fuer mich und ein fuer Peter" Jawab Gerd. Satu untuk saya dan satu untuk Peter. Setelah disajikan dua gelas, Gerd meminum keduanya. "Ach so" Herr Moeler mulai memahami penjelasan Gerd bahwa gelas kedua dimaksudkan untuk mewakili sahabat karibnya yang baru saja meninggal. Sebegitulah dalamnya persahabatan Gerd dan Peter. Kebiasan Gerd memesan dua gelas bir dan meminum keduanya berlangsung terus beberapa tahun. Hingga pada suatu hari dia hanya memesan satu gelas bir saja. " Ein Bier bitte" serunya pada Herr Moeler. Tolong satu gelas bir. Sambil menyajikan pesanan Gerd dengan mimik keheranan, Herr Moeler bertanya : "Nur ein. Trinken Sie nicht fuer Herr Groeber?" Hanya satu. Tidakkah Anda minum untuk tuan Groeber "Nein, ich trinke nicht mehr. Das ist fuer Peter der ich vertrete" Tidak, saya sudah berhenti minum. Yang saya minum ini hanya untuk mewakili Peter saja. Jawab Gerd sambil menenggak ludes segelas bir itu.
<<berliner.gif>>
