The day of Change has come. Not with a whisper but with the roar of thousands and thousands of loyal Americans who braved the DC cold this morning to witness history being made. Not the kind of the Giant-won-the-Super Bowl history, but the kind of history that will actually be written down in books and remembered by people other than those that call Long Island, “Strong” Island. Barack Hussein (yeah, I said it) Obama is the 44th President of the United States of America. Let freedom ring. But more importantly, let us rejoice in the fact that intelligence, humility, and wealth of other morally-based virtues (Bush always reminded me of Commodus in Gladiator: “But I have other virtues father!”) have returned to the White House. Spoiler alert, Commodus thought killing people was a virtue.
This is an important day for the world. It is an important day for democracy and it is an important day for humanity. Despite Obama’s stuttering attempt at an oath this Tuesday morn, it was clear from his speech that his election cries and platform of hope and change won’t be translating into warm milk before bed and mid-day naps after small cut hot dogs. In so many words, I believe the President evoked the words of JFK from the legendary 1961 Inaugural Event: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” Change can only happen in the hands of the people, folks, which means YOU! and YOU! and YOU!
It’s true that there is a mountain of problems sitting on the White House front lawn. It’s also true that the mess of things from the last administration will only act to delay anyone from getting to the base of that mountain of problems, most importantly the economy. But let’s take a moment and consider all the positive things on this day of all days. Because Barack Obama is President, an African-American is President… [pause, re-read, let it sink in]. Because Barack Obama is Preisdent, someone with the intelligence, spirit, and (we hope) ability to lead this nation out of one of it’s darkest times is President. Because Barack Obama is President, it’s possible that the rest of the world may actually be interested in lending us a hand. These are not facts that should be cast aside so readily in the face of great struggle and pain.
A moment came for me, while watching our new President be sworn in, that I don’t think I’ll ever forget. As his words washed over me and I felt the kind of emotional stirring in the pit of my stomach (usually only incurred as a result of watching Forrest Gump), I realized that while Change has become a buzz word in the last year, a very real and important change has happened. For the first time in America, being racist makes you un-American. And while I’ve believed that to be true for a long time, now it will be written in history books around the world.
Tags: Barack Obama, Change, Inauguration 2009, President
Lifting Fog 
January 20, 2009 at 8:18 pm |
I am damn proud today, but it’s a tempered excitement I feel. I truly hope that no one voted for Barack because he was black, just as I hope no one voted for McCain due to the race of his opponent. I hesitate to define anything as “un-American”, because I think defining a group of people and mandating a set of ideals for them is…let’s say “un-Constitutional.”
I hope people voted for Obama, as I did, because we believed he was the right man for the job. In that sense, I think the fact that Mrs. Clinton wasn’t elected was an equal measure of progress. She didn’t lose because she was a woman, it was because she was a douche. That’s funny, but it’s an important distinction. It means she was evaluated as a politician. Nothing more, and nothing less, which is the ideal scenario, in my mind.
While I think the race of our president is important and deserves acknowledgment, I don’t believe we’ll have quieted the sins of our collective past until a candidate that looks like him can be elected without people saying, “Hey, Look! A Black Guy!”
All that being said, it truly is a great and humbling day to be a citizen of the world, born in the United States of America.
January 20, 2009 at 8:36 pm |
The un-American suggestion was aimed directly at those who purport themselves to bleed America 24/7 but simultaneously hold racist beliefs close to their heart. To me it’s funny, because all those racist, trailer park southern whites (stereotypes created from somewhere, probably the movie Joe Dirt) are now in a difficult position. They sing the praise of the USA in all their country songs while they all secretly wish slavery hadn’t fallen by the wayside. Now, their President is black. And there’s not a damn thing they can do about it, save move (good thing their homes are built with wheels on them).
Being anti-USA is something people of that particular stereotypical background vehemently argue against in scenarios in which they wish to keep people who look different than them down. It was a rallying cry from the Republicans even during the election, seeking to paint Obama as some sort of terrorist, etc. So the question is; will they take down their American flags or will they find some other way to suggest that people that look different than them are un-American?