Jimmy Carter celebrates his 100th birthday today. He is in the hospice program. He said he wants to live long enough to vote for Kamala Harris. He was diagnosed with brain cancer nine years ago.
I decided to post this short blog, to counter all the absurd and negative stories being circulated around in the last few days.
What will live on, long after his passing, will be the Carter Center, with their simple message: Waging peace, fighting disease, building hope. This is what they do. I mean this is what they do everyday.
Link: https://www.cartercenter.org/ (also celebrating Jimmy Carter’s birthday)
I’ll give a couple of examples of recent activities.
The Carter Center sends election monitors to many countries, to help validate their election or to condemn unfair election practices. So, in July 2024, the Carter Center issued this statement regarding Venezuelan elections:
Venezuela’s 2024 presidential election did not meet international standards of electoral integrity and cannot be considered democratic. The Carter Center cannot verify or corroborate the results of the election declared by the National Electoral Council (CNE), and the electoral authority’s failure to announce disaggregated results by polling station constitutes a serious breach of electoral principles.
See link: https://www.cartercenter.org/news/pr/2024/venezuela-073024.html
The Carter Center partnered with other organizations to eradicate Guinea worm, which was identified in 21 African countries in 1986 afflicting 3.5 million people. It is a parasitic worm spread by both humans and dogs. The fight against this disease meant collaborating with many organizations including the Ministries of Health in many countries, the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It has been a great triumph as the active cases in 2023 were just 14 cases. Those afflicted with Guinea worm would often soak their wounds, which would further spread the disease. So, to eliminate the spread, required an enormous effort to reach the rural communities and teach them how to stop the worm from spreading.
See link: https://www.cartercenter.org/health/guinea_worm/index.html
I was inspired by an interview with Jimmy Carter. He was recalled the failed rescue attempt of the American hostages in Iran, and its affect on losing his re-election bid. There was really no bitterness, as he concluded that if he had won re-election, it would have delayed for four years the start of the Carter Center. Jimmy Carter is pretty amazing.
There are many non-profit organizations doing exceptional work promoting peace, fighting disease and improving people’s lives by giving them opportunities.
Ex Presidents have made excellent contributions. One excellent example, which I believe is “firing on all cylinders” (race car slang) is the George W. Bush Institute. See link below:
It is a team effort, with George and Laura Bush pushing for the rights of women and children, with added awareness to Afghanistan.
Promoting advocacy, collaboration, and policy solutions in support of Afghan women and children.
I really love this page with Laura Bush with children (from Laura Bush Foundation for American Libraries):
https://www.bushcenter.org/topics/education/laura-bush-foundation-for-americas-libraries
“Once a child learns to use a library, the doors to learning are always open.”
– Mrs. Laura Bush
These organizations are apolitical.
So, happy birthday Jimmy Carter for all you have done for our country and the world in “retirement.”
Stay tuned,
Dave
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