In celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day we are honored to unveil: Martin Luther King Jr. - In His Own Words

The mosaic was built by our talented friends at Picture Mosaics who were able to use hundreds of words from Martin Luther King's speeches in order to create an image of the man.

If you click on any of the words, you will be taken to the speech that it came from. While the I Have a Dream speech is of course his most well know...
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As the 2012 Presidential campaign heats up, a Washington Post story (video below) has emphasized Republican's disdain for Barack Obama's use of a teleprompter when giving the majority of his speeches. The logic goes that anyone who needs a teleprompter - especially in a room of just a few children - can't be sincere or intelligent, and is perhaps just a pawn for those crafting the messages. The running joke has spawned similar mocking in the blogosphere, including a site dedicated to the topic - TOTUS
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It's hard to believe that it has already been 10 years since 9/11. What follows is a look back at some of the key defining moments and famous speeches from 9/11 and the 'War on Terror.'

In many ways, these speeches allow us to trace the mindset of a nation, and relive history in moments - slices in time. Upon the 10th anniversary of 9/11 the events of that date and the 'War on Terror' that followed seem to be book-ended well by two speeches - George W. Bush's bullhorn speech on the rubble of the World Trade Center surrounded by debris and recovery workers, and Barack Obama's late Sunday announcement some 10 years later announcing the completion of a mission to kill Osama Bin Laden. Surely much history remains to be wri...
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With the passing of Steve Jobs this week, millions of people have discovered or re-visited his famous Stanford Commencement Speech.

Why do we find this speech so inspiring - even more so than most commencement speeches, of which there are many inspiring ones to choose from? Here are a few ideas as to the source of the power behind this well-known speech:

Brevity - Steve Jobs' entire speech is structured around three very well-curated stories that hold the key themes and lessons that he would like to share. In a less well-...
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Travel back in time and take a front seat to some of the most important moments in United States history.

From the reactions to the burning of our capital by the British, to the relocation of Indians during the 'trail of tears' to the establishment and protection of our national parks, every world war struggle by struggle, the establishment of the peace corps, mourning over assasinations, civil rights triumphs, political scandals, 9/11 and the Arab Spring. It's all here and one things clear: we've come a long way.

You can browse speeches by President below, or as always use the search function top right to zero in on specific topics, then sort by date to find exactly what you're looking for.

Happy explor...
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Most people in the 21st Century seem to refer to God as simply 'God.' When reading the speeches of past Presidents however, it's interesting to see the many names used to invoke the deity.

You can click any of the words below to be taken to that speech to read the greater context. It seems our use of language may have been more creative in the earliest days of our country's history.

Here are a sampling of references to a higher power in historical speeches:

~ DJ Sweet Speeches

the Great Spirit

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Upon the unveiling of the new Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C. there was some controversy around one of the quotes used on the memorial. Inscribed on the side of the memorial, the quote reads 'I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness.'

I don't believe anyone would doubt that Martin Luther King Jr. was in fact just that, and if you listen to the full Drum Major Instinct speech from which the quote was derived you will see that MLK does - in slightly different words - say that this is how he would like to be remembered. So in a way it is a fitting quot...
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