The Jimmy Carter Presidential Library

I know a lot of people say Jimmy Carter wasn't a good president. He wasn't perfect, but he was an honest man and I think the country needed that after Watergate and Richard Nixon's resignation. He was a smart man and his heart was in the right place, despite long gasoline lines and the Iran hostage crisis that took place during his presidency. I had never visited a Presidential library before today, and looked forward to learning more about President Carter today.

The presidential library was well laid out. It presented a timeline of President Carter's life, from childhood, through his naval career, his public service as governor and president, and his humanitarian work afterwards.

I learned a lot about him. There were only two white families in Plains, Georgia, when he was growing up, so the children he played with were all black. His father was a strict segregationist. His mother, on the other hand, was a nurse and treated everyone equally, regardless of race. So he had that dichotomy in his growing years.

In his public service, Jimmy Carter was a proponent of equal rights and equal opportunity. In his inaugration speech for governor of Georgia, he said, "I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over." He also said, "No poor, rural, weak, or black person should ever have to bear the additional burden of being deprived of the opportunity of an education, a job or simple justice".

Prior to entering politics, Jimmy served in the navy. He attended the naval academy in Annapolis. He had a promising career and was chosen to command one of the first nuclear powered submarines. When his father died, Jimmy listened to what people had to say about his father at the funeral. Besides running the farm, his father had also been involved in local politics. Jimmy realized how much good his father had done at home and in his community, and decided his life would have more impact for good if he resigned his naval career and returned to the farm. So that is what he did. He was service minded and wanted to live a meaningful life. Here is a list of some of his accomplishments as President.

He worked out the Camp David accords between Egypt and Israel -- facilitating negotiations between President Anwar Sadat and Prime Minister Menachen Begin.

He thought the welfare rolls were bloated, and that those who could work should work. We should offer them training and help them find a job, and if they are able bodied but aren't willing to work we should stop giving them welfare. Welfare should be for those who really need it. That's a good goal.

Here are a few of President Carter.'s notable quotes. He had some foresight, given today's widening gap between the rich and poor.

The library has a replica of the oval office. An audiovisual presentation of a day in the life of the president was informative, and there was a lot of other information available to read on the walls.

After his presidency, President Carter and his wife were heavily involved in free election monitoring in other countries, as well as other huanitarian efforts. He got the Nobel Peace Prize for some of this work, and his wife got the Dorthea Dix Award for her advocacy work for the mentally ill.

Visiting the library was a worthwhile experience and I'm glad I went! I continue to have a high opinion of the Carters. They were good people.

Instead of driving directly to Savannah, I want to visit Congaree National Park along the way. It is a hardwood swamp, with cypress trees, etc. Actually, it is somewhat out of the way (it's in South Carolina), but I'm on vacation, so I'll do it anyway. There's a Walmart in Augusta, Georgia, which is about an hour and a half from the swamp, so I'll spend the night there tonight and continue to Congaree tomorrow.