<--PREV Doc #1594  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1596 Document #1595; July 29, 1960 To Mamie Eisenhower Moore Series: EM, AWF, DDE Diaries Series The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, Volume XX - The Presidency: Keeping the Peace Part IX: Shattered Dreams; March 1960 to July 1960 Chapter 22: Disaster in Paris   Dearest Mamie: Whenever I am assured of the affection and approval of anyone close to me and who knows me well I experience a glow that cannot be conveyed by compliments from strangers.1 Our families and our real friends know our faults of disposition, mannerism and conduct as well as they know whatever virtues we may possess. We are fortunate when intimate associates find our virtues to outweigh our obvious defects. So your letter is gratifying not only as an expression of affection but also of your confidence that I have tried to do whatever has seemed to me to be the best for America and the free world. I am deeply interested in your comments about what some of us older ones say about your generation. In my own case I plead "not guilty." In the first place, I have never heard the accusations of "wild language", "insecure generation" and "I don’t care" as applied to Americans of your years. As for "beatnik" I am not even sure what the word is supposed to mean.2 So I cannot speak intelligently on these allegations. I know we have far too much juvenile delinquency, and that we must combat it ceaselessly and effectively. But I have met across the nation large numbers of our younger people, and I am convinced that the vast majority comprises fine, decent and attractive Americans. I think we should hear more about, and from, these.3 At least I can assure you on one point--deeply embedded in my dedication and devotion to America is a great faith in and affection for America’s youth. They are our nation’s hope--so far as I am concerned they are my pride. And among them all you are one of my favorites; I love you very much.4 Affectionately 1 Moore, the President’s niece and goddaughter, would turn eighteen on August 5. She had written on July 27 (AWF/D) to thank her uncle for his efforts to bring about world peace, to balance the budget, and to keep "a foothold behind the Iron Curtain." She added that although she was not very good as a history student, she knew that even before his presidency, he had "stopped a war that had already begun." 2 Moore had said that the older generation’s perceptions of youth were wrong, and that young people understood more and cared more than people thought. She had also written that her generation had been called "beatniks," a derisive term used to characterize members of the so-called "Beat Generation," a social and literary, bohemian movement that had started in the 1950s. The avant-garde style of the movement had entered popular consciousness in part as a result of a beatnik character who appeared in "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis," a weekly television program that appealed to young people (Alex McNeil, Total Television: The Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present, 4">3 On the President’s efforts to combat juvenile delinquency see nos. 1172 and 1654. On his efforts to reach out to young people see, for example, no. 1290, and his remarks to the graduates of the University of Notre Dame on June 5 (Public Papers of the Presidents, Eisenhower: 1960 - 61, pp. 461 - 67). 4 It was difficult to express her deep opinions with family and friends, Ms. Moore wrote, but she wanted Eisenhower to know that she thought he was "the greatest man today. . . . You are the heart of the American people." For developments see no. 1663. Bibliographic reference to this document: Eisenhower, Dwight D. To Mamie Eisenhower Moore, 29 July 1960. In The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, ed. L. Galambos and D. van Ee, doc. 1595. World Wide Web facsimile by The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission of the print edition; Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, http://www.eisenhowermemorial.org/presidential-papers/second-term/documents/1595.cfm <--PREV Doc #1594  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1596

Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission 1629 K Street, NW Suite 801 Washington DC 20006 Phone: 202.296.0004    Fax: 202.296.6464