Ken Burns

And it's shame on a jaded journalist.

Journalists have an obligation to free themselves not only from cynicism as they are means testing everything.

And that cynicism grows from, you know, understanding the flaws of human beings.

But if you translate that into cynicism, it's just as bad as the sneering, snobby people of the ultra rich.

So that, you know, I remember reading an article recently in which there was attached to me the idea that I was an optimist.

And what was interesting and infuriating about it is that clearly in the context of this reporting, that optimism was a naive and pejorative condition to which I say, F you.

It is the only thing that you can have in the face of these inevitabilities.

None of us get out of there alive.

And the fact that you say, if you do not exercise these ideas, if you do not believe in them, if you're so jaded, well, they didn't mean me.

They didn't mean my people, my color, skin, my sex, my sexual preference, my age, my location, whatever the thing is.

And of course it didn't.

But it did say all men are created equal and that all it just is like blaring down the walls of Jericho.

I mean, it's gonna take four score and nine years before slavery ends, but it's gonna end.

It takes an inexcusable 144 years before women get the vote.

But that's end.

And so, you know, you got to participate in the fact that we're a process country.

You know, we're in pursuit of happiness.

Happiness is, you know, we can argue about it.

They meant lifelong learning.

People think it's about acquiring wealth.