The Official Inauguration Thread.....

[thekid]

Have the embers of November died so quickly????
Where are all those wonderful posts telling us that today is the end of civilization or the beginning of it??



Today is a historic day no matter what side of the fence you stand on.

We should all remember our system of government with all its warts is still a wonderful thing and that no matter the events we still have a peaceful transition of power.

I just read the current bio on Andrew Jackson (recommend it BTW) and it reminds me how fragile our democracy once was and how things could have turned out so very different.

[Rich-n-Texas]

Shoulda posted this in "The Steel Cage".

[JSE]

Sorry, been working my tail off in anticipation of the increased tax burden that will be forced upon me in order to pay for the ridiculous costs associated with this inauguration. Current estimates are something like 4 times the cost of the last? Fiscal responsibility seems to have slipped Obama's mind.

Ah what the heck, times are good!

[JohnMichael]

I am very excited. I think this is a great time for my country. I will be able to respect the Office of President and the man that holds the office. A day after Dr. Martin Luther King jr's holiday we are inaugurating a man based on the content of his character. Prejudice and hate are slowly fading. One day this will be a nation for all its citizens. Yes a bright new day.

[ForeverAutumn]

I am stunned, proud, but still cannot get a grasp on what happened last night. America has changed, changed for the good, and I am so.....I am having such a difficult time expressing myself. I never thought in my lifetime I would see a minority, especially an African American EVER be President of this country, but it happened. And it happened with a multi-ethnic coalition, a beautiful combination of so many races, faces, and backgrounds, the true America that this is just stunning to me. I could live a lifetime, but nothing bought me more pleasure than to see my two boys cry in joy over what we witnessed last night. I like this new America, and I am going to take the day off to savor this moment in history.

I was thinking of SirTtT and this post this morning.

As a Canadian, the view that we often get of Americans (and I'm not saying that this is right) is a very moral conservative one. The USA is portrayed as a country that is rife with bigotry of all sorts and has many human rights issues where minorities and those who don't conform to the moral conservative viewpoint don't get equality. I'm not saying that this is true, it's just how the media often portray things.

So, as a Canadian who so often sees and hears about this view of our neighbours to the South, it was a wonderful thing for me to see both a black man and a woman in a race for presidential candidate. And exciting to see a young black man win the presidency over the stereotypical "old boy".

Regardless of what the future brings. Regardless of whether Obama is a good president or not. Regardless of all political views. I see this as a huge step in the right direction and am excited for the possibilities that have been opened up.

[ForeverAutumn]

I am very excited. I think this is a great time for my country. I will be able to respect the Office of President and the man that holds the office. A day after Dr. Martin Luther King jr's holiday we are inaugurating a man based on the content of his character. Prejudice and hate are slowly fading. One day this will be a nation for all its citizens. Yes a bright new day.

Beautifully stated.

This is the sentiment that I was trying to portray in my post above.

[Auricauricle]

Dum spiro spero!

[Worf101]

Marched for Martin yesterday... prayed and cried...
Ducked out of work for 3 hours today... watched the festivities with a bunch of ole.. hippies... we toasted, roasted and cried... Thank God and the Republic for such a momentus day. The Rev. Lowery's closing speech was phenomenal. He said all that needed saying. Barrack looked years older already. Watched Bush's copter take off and then went back to work. As I said before, "only history will tell if today was a great day, but I know for sure, today is a NEW day."

Da Worfster

I guess Dick Cheney WAS "Dr Strangelove" after all....

[Rich-n-Texas]

Dick pulled a muscle while emptying out his desk, according to the news yesterday. Said he'd have to attend the inauguration in a wheel chair.

I guess no one pushed the wheelchair down the steps (ala OJ in the "Police Squad" flick), huh?

[JSE]

Dick pulled a muscle while emptying out his desk, according to the news yesterday. Said he'd have to attend the inauguration in a wheel chair.

I guess no one pushed the wheelchair down the steps (ala OJ in the "Police Squad" flick), huh?

Nope but Kennedy was rushed to the hospital for a seizure or something. I guess Karma is starting smack the lowlife around a bit more.

[nightflier]

Sorry, been working my tail off in anticipation of the increased tax burden that will be forced upon me in order to pay for the ridiculous costs associated with this inauguration. Current estimates are something like 4 times the cost of the last? Fiscal responsibility seems to have slipped Obama's mind.

The whole inauguration celebration was paid for by his supporters, mostly the very rich ones. The performers all volunteered their time (very much unlike the Bush inauguration, where they had to be paid). Aside from the regular ceremony expenses, not a penny more came from the taxpayers.

P.S. We'll be a lot busier paying for Bush's unprecedented spending. So much for conservatives being fiscally responsible....

[JSE]

The whole inauguration celebration was paid for by his supporters, mostly the very rich ones. The performers all volunteered their time (very much unlike the Bush inauguration, where they had to be paid). Aside from the regular ceremony expenses, not a penny more came from the taxpayers.

Either you are drunk or you just don't what the hell you are talking about.

Only part of the inauguration was paid for by Obama's supporters. About $125 million is being spent by the Fed. Who do you think is paying for all the added security in terms of police, fire, secret service, FBI, municiple services, waste services, etc? Not Obama! We are.

Get a clue!

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Inaug...6665946&page=1

[JSE]

Funny how not many care about the cost of this inauguration. The hypocrisy is amazing. Just eight years ago, the dems were crying about the cost of the Bush inauguration. His was far less than this one.

If it were McCain up there today spending almost $200 million, the dems would be eating him alive.

Like I mentioned a few months back before the election in another thread, Obama will be just like every other Washington Politician.

Change? I guess spending was not part of "that" change he was referring to.

Nice start!

[Auricauricle]

For Americans everywhere, today is a most unusual day. For many of us, it is a day of victory and hope. For me it a little of both, and as I sit here typing these words, my sense of grief and joy has engulfed me in an state of perplexity that can only be sorted out through writing about it. On these type-written pages, I do most of my best thinking, for on my feet, I am often tongue-tied and awkward. Here, on the page, as I ponder and consider, I can find my true voice. Here, amid the punctuation and the interplay of sentence and sentiment, I can exorcise the demons that haunt me and court the angels who keep me company. And so I sit, with the demons and angels, a grateful audience to the strange play in my head that is my little world.

As a White Man, I have taken for granted the color of my skin. It has been, and is as important say, as the ten fingers and toes that occupy my hands and feet. I grew up in the American South, a son of educated, nice people. My father is an attorney who practices law, as his father did and his grandfather and great grandfather. My mother’s father was also a lawyer, his father a sheriff. We weren’t rich, but we were comfortable and grew up without need and little want. Like many Southern families, we have an acute knowledge of our histories, a source of pride that can be and was drawn upon when we felt awkwardly “different” from classmates and associates. We learned early to count our blessings and to be mindful of those less fortunate than we, a genuine benevolence that was reinforced by Boy Scouting and enlistment in the military.

That others are differently hued than I has never been an issue that I placed much importance upon. I suppose there were schoolmates and friends who grew up with another point of view, but I grew up learning that the word n******” is an awful one, and I was forbade from using it, let alone thinking it. Occasionally, I would hear my father use the word, but he did not use it in the derogatory sense that is often referred to. In his world, the word was used generically to refer to African Americans in general. Although I cringed at his intonation of the term, I was placated by the fact that I had seen him perform many kindly acts for his brown-skinned country men. These he performed with true genuineness, not as smokescreen to conceal a disingenuous heart.

The fact that I have no conception of skin hue has worked to my disadvantage occasionally, as I suppose it paved the way for obliviousness to issues that are considered with great sensitivity. I cannot readily put my finger on such an example, but I have occasionally let slip with a comment that was thought cute or glib, thinking that the person I was with would appreciate my lampoonish witticism and my intent to barb good naturedly. This teasing has been directed at other persons of various colors, creeds and preferences, and has been, at times poignant and sharp. Because, as I said, I thought that my blindness was obvious, I proceeded thus to make an ass of myself. Funny how blindness and obliviousness are poles apart from one another!

Today I enjoy the friendship of a number of friends, who hearken from a number of lifestyles and heritages, a matter that has enriched my life in ways that cannot be measured. I have confidence that enables me to join nearly any crowd of people with ease, a privilege that I do not take for granted. My people were slave owners, but I am not one and have no conception of what it must be like to own a slave….

So why does the inauguration of Mr. Obama affect me so deeply? Why do I feel a real pang as I see him walk through the street in Washington, his head high and proud? Shouldn’t I be pleasantly content, but not so stricken with this strangeness that overwhelms me?

In the early 1900’s my great, great uncle went to Africa, on an expedition of sorts that took him to the Belgian Congo. There, he met and consorted with the pygmies, whom he wrote about fondly. A few years later, he was prevailed upon to bring a few to the Saint Louis Fair, where they would be shown, with other representatives of folk from around the globe, to admiring fair goers. When, the fair was over, the pygmies were returned to their homes, but one remained. His name was Ota Benga, and he asked to stay in America. His village had been (as I recall) burned down, and his wife was dead from a poisonous snake bite. Because there was nowhere to logically situate a pygmy, Ota was placed in the primate cage at the Bronx Zoo. After the NAACP complained his mistreatment, he was placed in an orphanage where, lonely and depressed, he committed suicide.

I don’t think that my kinsman was malicious when he asked Ota and his countrymen to come to America. I am sure that it was painful for him to see the pygmy jeered at by the goggle-eyed fair and zoo goers who did not comprehend that his teeth were filed for the sake of beauty, not because he was a savage or a cannibal.

The music group Deep Forest composed their first album in homage to the pygmies, and among the many beautifully wrought pieces that fill the discs, are yodels and intonations that, at times, make me weep. I have no reason to feel guilty for Ota’s plight, and I tell myself that I weep because the music is beautiful. But am I really, truly guilty? I do not know.

With these thoughts, with this history, I look upon Obama with reverent awe. I am grateful that I live today to see this sight, this vision that I never anticipated. As a White Man who has seen my fellow Whites scorn their brown hued brothers and sisters, I feel a great sense of satisfaction that is tempered with the sadness of memory and history. As a man who has seen the fruits of ignorance and hate spare no-one, I am in awe.

Dum spiro spero!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9a8bv...eature=related

[nightflier]

Either you are drunk or you just don't what the hell you are talking about.

Only part of the inauguration was paid for by Obama's supporters. About $125 million is being spent by the Fed. Who do you think is paying for all the added security in terms of police, fire, secret service, FBI, municiple services, waste services, etc? Not Obama! We are.

Get a clue!

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Inaug...6665946&page=1

I do believe I said that part of it was paid for by his supporters.

The cost above & beyond the regular inauguration expenses has been borne by his supporters. And as far as the extra security, I sure as hell expect my tax dollars to be spent there. Among other things, that's what taxes are for: security, police, and peace of mind. And I seriously doubt anyone in their right mind would expect us to skimp on security on this of all days. If something had happened, we would be looking at another 9/11-type embarrassment, even if it did come from within our own borders this time. It doesn't matter who's the next president, the security has to be adequate. Now quit your whining.

Or are you just pissed 'cause your guy didn't win? Well, tough. Live with it. And live with the fact that the vast majority of the people in this country don't agree with you, either.


And as far as liberals being big spenders, which is what you're fishing for, I seriously doubt you can make such a claim after these past 8 years of the worst spending, waste, and corruption we have ever had in a president's term.

[Feanor]

Congradulations to President Obama and to the citizens of the United States. There is good hope that a new page has been turned.

Obama's speech was even beyond my expectations, so comprehensive was its scope and full of candor too. There were a number of sharp shots at the outgoing administration, but none more critical than were deserved.

I was impressed by his words regarding the economy, ".Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. ...
But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. ...
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - ..."

And regarding foreign policy and actions, "As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. ... the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake."

[Auricauricle]

...This he said. And some thought the speech uninspired and unmemorable!

[ForeverAutumn]

...This he said. And some thought the speech uninspired and unmemorable!

I'd like to know, then, what they wanted to hear. I watched the speech live on CNN.com and thought that it was eloquent, covered many bases and it gave me hope for a new political philosophy and a brighter future.

His comment, "...and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath. So let us mark this day in remembrance of who we are and how far we have traveled". Brought tears to my eyes.

He appears, to me, to be a man of logic, reason, cool-headedness and, as my husband put it, class. I hope that time proves me right.

[nightflier]

Well at least the Canadians on this board like the man.

[bobsticks]

Marched for Martin yesterday... prayed and cried...
As I said before, "only history will tell if today was a great day, but I know for sure, today is a NEW day."

To the right, honorable gentleman I say thee, "nay", and repectfully disagree. It is a great day indeed.

For unenlightened caucasians it is both call and response to a national reckoning, an understanding that within all communities there exists both good and evil, the contemptable and commendable, and the ability to achieve greatness when surrounded by open minds...that an African-American gentleman prepared by accomplishment can and should aspire to serve his country with thoughtful determination.

For African-Americans it's the establishment of an ethos and the understanding that racism is not de facto that the sins of the fathers are not of necessity the sins of the sons...that we all have both the capacity and the opportunity to be considered First-Class citizens.

Racsim, sexism, and social discord are not ended but that this could happen validates for the first time that we approach the intents of the greatest aspirations of the Founding Fathers; we do hold some thruths self-evident, that all men (not some or 3/5ths) are created with equal potential and of equal right of opportunity. As a nation we came together and found a man of ethnicity to be closest in character and belief to the heart of our national spirit.

President Obama could not make another speach, not sign any legislation and not confront any of the moral conundrums that face our country and a victory has still been won. That victory's roots lie deepest in the phrase "possibility". I strongly suspect that Dr. King would regard this as great.

[Auricauricle]

Amen!!

[Rich-n-Texas]

Can I make a typical, for me, simpleton post now?

[Auricauricle]

No. Only high falutin', high brow posts tonight!

Aw, WTF! G'wan!

[bobsticks]

As a Canadian, the view that we often get of Americans (and I'm not saying that this is right) is a very moral conservative one. The USA is portrayed as a country that is rife with bigotry of all sorts and has many human rights issues where minorities and those who don't conform to the moral conservative viewpoint don't get equality. I'm not saying that this is true, it's just how the media often portray things.

Yes, the media both abroad and at home too often portray the American public as a monolithic voice of oppression and bigotry. The results of the election would seem to disprove this but I guarantee that nohing of such will be concentrated on in the press.

The reasons for this are twofold, the first of which is the tendency for ad hominem attacks within our public discourse. When a person of one race criticizes/argues against a person of another race the difference in ethnicities is invariably sited as the primary motive unless the two are familiar.

The second, and we all know this but fail to see its longterm efects, is the pandering of the Fourth Estate to the most base and prurient spirits within us. Headlines are filled with powerful action words..."Outlaw Brutally Slays Brother and Sister"...when was the last time you saw a story in the American News Media based on positivity?

"Deacon's Years of Public Service Celebrated by Congregation"...yeah right.

[Rich-n-Texas]

I'll wait 'til our great philosopher, Mr. sticks gets everything he needs to, off his chest.