Jimmy Carter, the late 1980s, is still alive: What America’s greatest ex-president, Lyndon Johnson, could have done
There isn’t any prediction of history’s verdict. Jimmy Carter was judged to be a middle-of-the-pack president due to his one term in office, which is remembered for the seizure of 52 American hostages in Iran. Yet he is also considered one of America’s greatest ex-presidents, for using the residual star power of his office to help his successors and his country as a peacemaker, backstage diplomat, human rights champion, monitor of free elections and advocate for the homeless while finding time to write poetry and, by his own example, providing the best possible case for traditional religious values.
In 2002, having been nominated many times for the Nobel Peace Prize, Mr. Carter finally won it for his “vital contribution” to the Camp David agreement, which set the stage for peace between Israel and Egypt, as well as for his commitment to human rights, his work fighting tropical diseases and for furthering democracy everywhere.
Mr. Carter came to the presidency owing little to anyone, including his own party. Assembling a formidable coalition of small-town and rural voters, white blue-collar voters and African Americans, he surprised everyone in America — except perhaps himself and his wife, Rosalynn — when he beat Gerald Ford in the 1976 election.
In retrospect he could not have run at a better time. The previous decade was difficult for the United States. The president, Lyndon Johnson, didn’t seek another term because of public anger over the Vietnam war. Another, Richard Nixon, resigned to avoid impeachment. assassinations claimed the lives of Bobby and Martin Luther King Jr. The war ended in failure.
The Jimmy Carter legacy. And, rules for regifting unwanted presents. The South Korean plane crash happened in March 2012 and killed 191
Fishermen known as Madagascar’s “sea nomads” use their exceptional diving skills to preserve both sea life and their livelihood. The group is from the Vezo tribe, who work to survey the health of the coral reef in the Barren Isles, identifying sediments and plants on the sea floor, and noting marine species encountered. Their daily dives are part of a conservation effort to protect the Barren Isles. Over the past two decades, Vezo people have migrated there from parts of Madagascar, after overfishing and climate change started to threaten their traditional way of life. The decline in fish numbers in the Barren Islands is worrying the Vezo.
It is the season of giving… and returning. The National Retail Federation reports that returns will total $890 billion this year. During the holiday season, returns tick up and happen year-round. Etiquette experts say there is a delicate art to returning or even regifting unwanted presents. Before you head to the store, it is a good idea to think about a few things.
South Korea has begun a week-long period of mourning after one of the worst aviation disasters for a Korean airline. A plane’s landing gear failed to deploy, resulting in it skidding off a runway and crashing into a wall. There were 181 people on the plane.
Wake Up First – The Upbeat Report on the Difficulty of a High-Ranking Syrian Official’s Day in Damascus
A high-ranking Syrian official told NPR he wants his country to have cordial ties with Israel and wants the U.S. to help facilitate them. This is not common from a government made up of rebels who used to have links to al- Qaeda. The statement made by the newly appointed governor of Damascus, Maher Marwan, sent shockwaves throughout the region.
Good start to the day. You’re reading the Up First newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day.