I'm not sure any of you were aware, but today Barack Obama was sworn in as President of the United States.
What a great day! [I was watching this momentous occasion in the customer lounge at Torrance Toyota while the Prius was being worked on.] My first strong reaction was when Joe Biden took his Oath of Office, I thought to myself, "No more Cheney! Hooray!" (Although I did feel sorry for the former VP that he had to attend in a wheelchair. That's no way to go out. I mean, I really dislike the guy, but I do have a heart.) The other moment that was most poignant to me was when the Obamas walked the Bushes to the helicopter. The new President had just delivered a speech in which he basically said his predecessor had led the country in the wrong direction, and yet there they were walking together, talking affably, even sharing a laugh. What a powerful image of peaceable transfer of power to send around the world.
As for Obama's speech, I thought it was sober and powerful. As with most of his rhetoric, he spoke to the American public like they were adults facing difficult times. Hopefully this will help the young generation mature, and those who are already adults act like it. His admonishments to Congress about getting beyond petty party politics was well-deserved, but might not win him friends on Capitol Hill. I also liked his message to other countries. Looks like we're on the track back to international cooperation and openness instead of dominance and hegemony.
On a side note, while I am very happy and excited that he was elected, I have to say that I don't understand the media's focus on how this is a victory for the black community. I see this as a victory for all Americans - we are now a country where race won't prevent a black man from becoming President, but racism is far from over. I think we're on the right track, and I think his election is something to be celebrated as special, but this also ties into something else that was well described on (of all places) an episode of South Park. It's the 'n-word' episode, where Stan says to Token (the token black character) "I don't get it" about how blacks use the n-word with each other, but get angry when whites use it. The upshot of the episode is "I don't get it." Whites can't understand how the black community feels because they haven't had the experience of being black. And I think that's the reason that I don't understand the exuberance over his blackness. I'm just happy that the candidate with the right ideas and ideals (IMHO) was elected.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Inauguration. Write a comment!
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2 comments:
We did not see the inauguration as we were out most of the day. However, we were able to see a re-run of it when we got home - thank goodness for C-Span! It was a powerful moment and one that was full of hope. You could feel it in the words spoken and see it in the faces of the people there. I look on Obama not as an African American, but as a very intelligent, capable and inspirational American who hopefully will lead this nation back to where we can work together to start resolving the mess that we are in right now. And he has already started by freezing salaries of the White House Staff and forbidding anyone who leaves from becoming a lobbyist while Obama is President. Way to go!
Bill - Like you we felt like it was a wonderful day. We watched all the Inauguration and admit we had tears in our eyes at times during the festivities. It truly is a wonderful day for our country. It is great to have a really bright man as President. I also think people just like Obama. I agree with your comments about the Media and also think it's a wonderful day for the US to have such a man leading us. Life has to get better under his watch. Wish we were closer so we could talk about this -- the real Democrats in our families are few and far between but Uncle Jima and I are two of them. Love, Aunt Bev Huckaba
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