I've seen A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, the new Tom Hanks movie about Mister Rogers, as you might do over the Thanksgiving weekend. I like it a great deal.
But the Fred Rogers that Hanks plays almost comes off as a savant of kindness. And while the movie takes pains to say Fred wasn't a saint, it doesn't quite show what a stone cold assassin he was, in defense of what he believed.
I've shown this clip dozens of times around the world, and I still marvel at the iron in Rogers' eyes as he makes the case that his program should be funded in order to compete with commercial children's TV—what he contemptuously calls "animated bombardment."
I still choke up watching it with every new audience of speechwriters, as we all contemplate together what real moral commitment to an idea really looks like. And the power it has. And the rarity with which we see it.
Very touching. Thanks for posting.