50 years later, Dr. Ben Carson reflects on MLK's dream

While President Obama insists that civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. would be a fan of Obamacare, potential GOP presidential contender Ben Carson has a different take on MLK's legacy 50 years after his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.

In an op-ed for the Washington Times, Carson notes that while MLK would be pleased with the accomplishments of African-Americans over the last five decades (including Obama's own ascendancy to the White House), he would be shocked at the degradation of family values within the black community:

There was a time when blacks were justifiably angry that the larger community discounted their value, but now, ironically, many members of the black community themselves place little or no value on these precious lives that are snuffed out without thought. I think King would be waging a crusade against the marginalization of black lives in America.

Another area of great concern would be the fact that 73 percent of black babies are born out of wedlock. When this occurs, in most cases the educational pursuits of the mothers are terminated and the babies are condemned to a life of poverty and deprivation, which makes them more likely to end up in the penal system or the welfare system. This is a burden not only for the black community but for the nation at large.

Although I believe King would be very concerned for all parties in these tragedies, his energies would be primarily channeled into an attempt to give these young women the kind of self-esteem that would preclude their yielding to the charms of individuals who really don’t care about them and are only interested in their selfish pleasures. ...

Perhaps the biggest disappointment for King would be the wholesale adoption of a victim mentality that makes people feel that they are entitled to being cared for by others rather than working tirelessly to create wealth and opportunities for their progeny.

"Certainly, we have come a long way, but there is no room for complacency," Carson concludes.