    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1991, Book I)]
    [May 4, 1991]
    [Pages 469-472]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at the University of Michigan Commencement Ceremony in Ann Arbor
    May 4, 1991

        President Duderstadt, thank you all very much. Thank you for that
    warm welcome. I want to salute the president, salute Governor and Mrs.
    John Engler, Representatives of the Congress--Pursell, Upton, and Vander
    Jagt, and distinguished Regents, and especially I want to pay my
    respects to our fellow honorary degree recipients. Barbara and I are
    very grateful for this high honor. Before this, there wasn't one lawyer
    in the family, and now we have two.
        The last time I was in Ann Arbor, we commemorated John Kennedy's
    unveiling of the Peace Corps. And as your commencement program
    indicates, Lyndon Johnson introduced the Great Society in a University
    of Michigan commencement address.
        Today, I want to talk to you about this historic moment. Your
    commencement--your journey into the ``real world''--coincides with this
    nation's commencement into a world freed from cold war conflict and
    thrust into an era of cooperation and economic competition.
        The United States plays a defining role in the world. Our economic
    strength, our military power, and most of all, our national character
    brought us to this special moment. When our policies unleashed the
    economic expansion of the 1980's, we exposed forever the failures of
    socialism and reaffirmed our status as the world's greatest economic
    power. When we sent troops to the Gulf, we showed that we take
    principles seriously enough to risk dying for them.
        But there's another message. There's another message. We also take
    them seriously enough to help others in need. Today, men and women of
    Operation Provide Comfort toil on behalf of suffering Kurds. And today,
    our thoughts and prayers also go to the hundreds of thousands of people
    victimized by a vicious cyclone in Bangladesh. Our Government has sent
    aid to that stricken land. Dozens of private agencies have sprung into
    action as well, sending food, water, supplies, and donations. The
    humanitarian instinct runs deep in our people, always has. It is an
    essential element of our American character.
        Our successes have banished the Vietnam-era phantoms of doubt and
    distrust. In my recent travels around the country I have felt an
    idealism that we Americans supposedly had lost. People have faith in the
    future. And they ask: What next? And they ask: How can I help?
        We have rediscovered the power of the idea that toppled the Berlin
    Wall and led a world to strike back at Saddam Hussein. Like generations
    before us, we have begun to define for ourselves the promise of freedom.
        I'd like to talk today about the nature of freedom and how its
    demands will shape

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    our future as a nation.
        Let me start with the freedom to create. From its inception, the
    United States has been a laboratory for creation, invention, and
    exploration. Here, merit conquers circumstance. Here, people of vision--
    Abraham Lincoln, Henry Ford, Martin Luther King, Jr.--outgrow rough
    origins and transform a world. These achievements testify to the
    greatness of our free enterprise system. In past ages, and in other
    economic orders, people could acquire wealth only seizing goods from
    others. Free enterprise liberates us from this Hobbesian quagmire. It
    lets one person's fortune become everyone's gain.
        This system, built upon the foundation of private property,
    harnesses our powerful instincts for creativity. It gives everyone an
    interest in shared prosperity, in freedom, and in respect. No system of
    development ever has nurtured virtue as completely and rigorously as
    ours. We've become the most egalitarian system in history--and one of
    the most harmonious--because we let people work freely toward their
    destinies.
        When governments try to improve on freedom--say, by picking winners
    and losers in the economic market--they fail. No conclave of experts, no
    matter how brilliant, can match the sheer ingenuity of a market that
    collects and distributes the wisdoms of millions of people, all pursuing
    their destinies in different ways.
        Our administration appreciates the power of free enterprise, and our
    economic and domestic programs try to apply the genius of the market to
    the needs of the Nation. For example, we want to eliminate rules and
    redtape that bind the hands and the minds of entrepreneurs and
    innovators.
        Our America 2000 educational strategy challenges the Nation to
    reinvent the American school, to compete in the race to unleash our
    national genius.
        We've incorporated market incentives into our legislative proposals,
    so taxpayers will get a fair return on their dollars. Just look at last
    year's child-care legislation and the Clean Air Act, or this year's
    transportation bill.
        We've proposed a comprehensive banking reform package that
    strengthens the financial system upon which economic growth depends. We
    repeatedly have tried to slash the capital gains, so people with dreams
    have a chance of achieving them.
        And we want to extend this dignity of home ownership to people who
    live now in government-owned apartments. Home ownership gives people
    dignity.
        And although we have tried to transfer power into the hands of the
    people, we haven't done enough. In a world transformed by freedom, we
    must look for other ways to help people build good lives for themselves
    and their families. The average worker in the United States now spends
    more than 4 months of each year working just to pay the tax man, and
    increasing numbers of citizens see that burden as a barrier to achieving
    their dreams. We've tried to put on a lid on the spending that drives
    taxes and to concentrate government efforts on truly national purposes.
    It's only common sense. And if we want to build faith in government, we
    must demand public services that serve the people. We must insist upon
    compassion that works.
        But the power to create also rests on other freedoms, especially the
    freedom--and I think about that right now--to think and speak one's
    mind. [Applause] You see--thank you. The freedom--I had this written
    into the speech, and I didn't even know these guys were going to be
    here.
        No, but seriously, the freedom to speak one's mind--that may be the
    most fundamental and deeply revered of all our liberties. Americans, to
    debate, to say what we think--because, you see, it separates good ideas
    from bad. It defines and cultivates the diversity upon which our
    national greatness rests. It tears off the blinders of ignorance and
    prejudice and lets us move on to greater things.
        Ironically, on the 200th anniversary of our Bill of Rights, we find
    free speech under assault throughout the United States, including on
    some college campuses. The notion of political correctness has ignited
    controversy across the land. And although the movement arises from the
    laudable desire to sweep away the debris of racism and sexism and
    hatred, it replaces old prejudice with new ones. It declares certain
    topics off-limits, certain expression off-

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    limits, even certain gestures off-limits.
        What began as a crusade for civility has soured into a cause of
    conflict and even censorship. Disputants treat sheer force--getting
    their foes punished or expelled, for instance--as a substitute for the
    power of ideas.
        Throughout history, attempts to micromanage casual conversation have
    only incited distrust. They have invited people to look for an insult in
    every word, gesture, action. And in their own Orwellian way, crusades
    that demand correct behavior crush diversity in the name of diversity.
        We all should be alarmed at the rise of intolerance in our land and
    by the growing tendency to use intimidation rather than reason in
    settling disputes. Neighbors who disagree no longer settle matters over
    a cup of coffee. They hire lawyers, and they go to court. And political
    extremists roam the land, abusing the privilege of free speech, setting
    citizens against one another on the basis of their class or race.
        But, you see, such bullying is outrageous. It's not worthy of a
    great nation grounded in the values of tolerance and respect. So, let us
    fight back against the boring politics of division and derision. Let's
    trust our friends and colleagues to respond to reason. As Americans we
    must use our persuasive powers to conquer bigotry once and for all. And
    I remind myself a lot of this: We must conquer the temptation to assign
    bad motives to people who disagree with us.
        If we hope to make full use of the optimism I discussed earlier, men
    and women must feel free to speak their hearts and minds. We must build
    a society in which people can join in common cause without having to
    surrender their identities.
        You can lead the way. Share your thoughts and your experiences and
    your hopes and your frustrations. Defend others' rights to speak. And if
    harmony be our goal, let's pursue harmony, not inquisition.
        The virtue of free speech leads naturally to another equally
    important dimension of freedom, and that is the freedom of spirit. In
    recent times, often with noble intentions, we as a nation have
    discouraged good works. Nowadays, many respond to misfortune by asking:
    ``Whom can I sue?'' Even worse, many would-be Samaritans wonder: ``Will
    someone sue me?'' Talented, concerned men and women avoid such noble
    professions as medicine for fear that unreasonable and undefined
    liability claims will force them to spend more time in court than in the
    office or in the hospital.
        And at the same time, government programs have tried to assume roles
    once reserved for families and schools and churches. This is
    understandable, but dangerous. When government tries to serve as a
    parent or a teacher or a moral guide, individuals may be tempted to
    discard their own sense of responsibility, to argue that only government
    must help people in need.
        If we've learned anything in the past quarter century, it is that we
    cannot federalize virtue. Indeed, as we pile law upon law, program upon
    program, rule upon rule, we actually can weaken people's moral
    sensitivity. The rule of law gives way to the rule of the loophole, the
    notion that whatever is not illegal must be acceptable. In this way,
    great goals go unmet.
        When Lyndon Johnson--President Johnson--spoke here in 1964, he
    addressed issues that remain with us. He proposed revitalizing cities,
    rejuvenating schools, trampling down the hoary harvest of racism, and
    protecting our environment--back in 1964. He applied the wisdom of his
    time to these challenges. He believed that cadres of experts really
    could care for the millions. And they would calculate ideal tax rates,
    ideal rates of expenditures on social programs, ideal distributions of
    wealth and privilege. And in many ways, theirs was an America by the
    numbers: If the numbers were right, America was right.
        And gradually, we got to the point of equating dollars with
    commitment. And when programs failed to produce progress, we demanded
    more money. And in time, this crusade backfired. Programs designed to
    ensure racial harmony generated animosity. Programs intended to help
    people out of poverty invited dependency.
        We should have learned that while the ideals behind the Great
    Society were noble--and indeed they were--the programs weren't always up
    to the task. We need to rethink our approach. Let's tell our people: We
    don't want an America by the

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    numbers. We don't want a land of loopholes. We want a community of
    commitment and trust.
        When I talked of a kinder, gentler nation, I wasn't trying to just
    create a slogan. I was issuing a challenge. An effective government must
    know its limitations and respect its people's capabilities. In return,
    people must assume the final burden of freedom, and that's
    responsibility.
        An introductory course in political philosophy teaches that freedom
    entails responsibility. Most of our greatest responsibilities confront
    us not in the government hearing rooms but around dinner tables, on the
    streets, at the office. If you teach your children and others how to
    hate, they will learn. And if you encourage them not to trust others,
    they'll follow your lead. And if you talk about compassion but refuse to
    help those in need, your children will learn to look the other way.
        Once your commencement ends, you'll have to rely on the sternest
    stuff of all: yourself. And in the end, government will not make you
    good or evil. The quality of your life--and of our nation's future--
    depends as much on how you treat your fellow women and men as it does on
    the way in which we in Washington conduct our affairs of state. After
    all, the opposite of greed is not taxation. It is service.
        My vision for America depends heavily on you. You must protect the
    freedoms of enterprise, speech, and spirit. You must strengthen the
    family. You must build a peaceful and prosperous future. We don't need
    another Great Society with huge and ambitious programs administered by
    the incumbent few. We need a Good Society built upon the deeds of the
    many, a society that promotes service, selflessness, action.
        The Good Society poses a challenge: It dares you to explore the full
    promise of citizenship, to join in partnership with family, friends,
    government to make our world better. The Good Society does not demand
    agonizing sacrifice. It requires something within everyone's reach:
    common decency--common decency and commitment. Know your neighbors.
    Build bonds of trust at home, at work, wherever you go. Don't just talk
    about principles--live them.
        Let me leave you today with an exhortation: Make the most of your
    abilities. Question authority, but examine yourself. Demand good
    government, but strive to do what is good. Take risks. Muster the
    courage to be what I call a Point of Light. Also, define your missions
    positively. Don't seek out villains. Don't fall prey to obsessions about
    ``freedom from'' various ills. Focus on freedom's promise, on your
    promise.
        When John Kennedy talked of sending a man to the Moon, he didn't
    say, we want to avoid getting stranded on this planet. He said, we'll
    send a man to the Moon. We must be equally determined to achieve our
    common goals.
        We live in the most exciting period of my lifetime, quite possibly
    of yours. The old way of doing things have run their course. Find new
    ones. Dare to serve others, and future generations will never forget the
    example you set.
        This is your day. Barbara and I are very proud to share it with you.
    Congratulations to each and every one of you. And thank you for the
    honor.
        And God bless the United States of America.

                        Note: President Bush spoke at 11:22 a.m. in Michigan
                            Stadium, after he and Mrs. Bush received
                            honorary law degrees from the university. In his
                            remarks, he referred to James J. Duderstadt,
                            president of the university; Gov. John Engler of
                            Michigan and his wife, Michelle; Representatives
                            Carl D. Pursell, Frederick S. Upton, and Guy
                            Vander Jagt; and President Saddam Hussein of
                            Iraq. Following his remarks, President Bush
                            traveled to Camp David, MD.