The Next Morning in America

I’ve made no bones about my support for Barack Obama. On the eve of his inauguration I am thrilled that he’s the person to lead the United States out of the garbage created by the previous administration.

Every incoming administration faces this to a certain degree. This time, the country is facing wars, economic distress and a hunger for intellectual decision making. The country is facing the severe impacts of cronyism, a lax regulatory environment and a bureaucracy hell bent on given the president more power. Hundreds of signing statements and executive orders that need to be overturned and repudiated. A bunch of broken departments across the government spectra (Justice, Health and Human Services [“morality” medicine anyone?] that need some ass kicking. This is going to be hard work.

Despite the sad state of things, I have hope that decisions will be made over the next few months that will make life better. Maybe not immediately, but in a few years, I believe that we’ll be happier, healthier and on the way to living more responsibly. I don’t think the Obama years will be marked by miracles, but I hope that they will be marked by competent decisions and brilliant people bonding together to realize at least a smidge of the human potential.

Idealist? Me? Yep. At least for a year.

This inauguration is a huge step for the U.S.; we are moving forward, proving, in no small measure, that we can do great things. We have elected a person of color to be president. I figured I’d be a grandparent before this happened. I figured wrong and gladly so. We did it. We made this happen. What else can we do?

I’m interested in your thoughts about this historic day, even if you didn’t vote for Obama or don’t live in the U.S. Please share below, if you feel like it.

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  • http://kristanhoffman.com/ Kristan

    “I don’t think the Obama years will be marked by miracles, but I hope that they will be marked by competent decisions and brilliant people bonding together to realize at least a smidge of the human potential.”

    Exactly!

    I just have the Inauguration on in the background right now, but I’ll probably ball like a baby once Obama start speaking.

  • http://simplyblissful.blogspot.com/ tracy

    Today is an awesome morning. Listening to his name be announced (while driving in to work) made me cry a little bit. At work, I watched the streaming video, and am so glad I got to watch that moment & listen to his speech with the rest of the world.

  • wumples

    I am a direct descendant of John Adams, one of our founding fathers. My family has always placed a lot of importance on that, as a reminder of where we came from and why we came here to do it. So it was really nice to hear Obama bring up the mention of our founding documents, the importance of going back to what our country is supposed to represent. What and who we are supposed to be.

    I understand that Barack Obama is a politician, and in order to win you must play the game. I am willing to take small losses in the attempt to make great gains. I would rather have a president in office who is trying to fix things, than one who is more concerned with his own wicked agenda.

    I just watched the Obamas and the Bidens wave off the Bushes, and I can’t help but feel it’s symbolic of the day. “You guys go on ahead home. We got this.” And good riddance — this change should have come much sooner.

    Now enough of the pomp and circumstance, Washington — get your butts to work!

  • jrhearty

    John — I really enjoy your and Heather’s blogs…Thank you for sharing. I didn’t vote for Obama. Still, I got chills watching him take the oath of office. We live in a great country where ideals and beliefs truly can be changed over time, through peaceful means and that is something special.

  • http://bipolarbearsohmy.blogspot.com jodie

    I supported him and voted for him. This is an important historic day. I joined others in the cafeteria of the large corp. that I work for. We had a small crowd watching the oath & speech. I’ve never before been so happy to see a new President inaugurated. I feel like our country has a chance now to turn itself around. I’m hopeful for the future.

  • http://pageandnadine.blogspot.com/ lpageschalow

    I’ll start with one simple fact. I am a Republican. Why? You ask, when Obama-Mania has reached epic levels, and I, as a single, childless, educated, progressive (read: athiest) 26 year old female am nestled comfortably in the Obama demographic. Why then do I resist the urge to fall into all the hype, all the excitement that my generation is “generating”. It’s cause i’m a total dummy, that’s why. My friends all say so.

    Here’s my only issue. Terrorism (here and overseas) scares the living hell out of me. I am afraid for my future children. What if my son or daughter is sitting in a coffee shop in Anywhere, USA and in walks a suicide bomber. Everyone is dead and even more fear has been encited. It happens in the mid-east everyday. We thought 9/11 would never happen here. It did, badly.

    I was just out of high school when 3,000 + Americans died on a Tuesday in September, and ever since then, I have vowed to vote for the one who has no problem going “over there” before they come here. I know that this is an incredibly oversimplified statement. There are so many more factors to consider. How many lives ( both American soldiers and civilians) will be lost? Can we afford it? Is there a way to “win” (whatever that means)? How long will it take? I asked ALL of these questions, and then some. But, selfishly, I still don’t want these extremists on American soil.

    I have come to realize over my few years of adulthood that it’s all about choosing your battles in life. This is also true with politics. I know no one that completley agrees with everything that their political party does. I am one of these people. I simply made the decision to always vote for the issues that were most important to me. They just happen to fall along conservative ideals.….it’s my loss, I guess.

    Now, the other side. I am incredibly inspired by Barack Obama and his story. It’s been said so many times, but he embodies America. He is “the dream”.
    I believe he is a good man who will move America in the right direction. I think he knows very well that America must be better and stronger, and this is what I am banking on for his success. With that in mind, he has already rallied the country, starting by asking us to “be of service”. I am already debating between an animal shelter or Big Brothers Big Sisters.…

    He is my president, and I will fervently support him.

  • marimarimari

    Hope has flown home to us on fresh wings.

  • http://pimpajoentje.be Greet

    I’m in Belgium (Europe). The issue is very much alive here, too. I think everyone I know (+ myself) would have voted for Obama if they could and we’re all very happy he got elected. I agree with every word you said!

  • brionnaj

    I am in Athens Greece and we just finished a celebratory evening with ~600 other people. Although we clapped quite loudly when Bush’s plane took off out of Washington, the fact that it is Obama replacing him gives us the hope. It still hasn’t sunk in that we (both at home and abroad) have made this happen. No one expects him to be perfect, but the fact that we have hope at all strengthens our odds as a nation to come out of the troubles that we are currently in.

  • JessicaPesci

    I supported and voted for Barack Obama. I count many friends and loved ones as Republicans. Living in Central Pennsylvania I have heard it all — the nastiness, the hatred, the racism, and the straight up differing views on political policy. Politics isn’t really my game. I believe in shades of gray and some say this makes me a moral relativist. I believe that striving for and committing to ideals doesn’t make you weak or somehow out of touch with reality. That being said, I also know that what this world and our country are going through isn’t going to be fixed quickly with idealistic dreams and fits of whimsy. And the thing of it is, I also believe Barack Obama knows this. When he tells people who chant his name that it’s not going to be easy or come quickly, we know that this is an intelligent, practical, thoughtful and methodical man, and I am confident in my support of him as our 44th President.

    Also, the inauguration of our President is a lot of pomp and circumstance, a lot of tradition that I think we take for granted. There are places in this world who ceremoniously give power to a “President”, sometimes without an election, and the only people allowed into that celebration are wearing a military uniform and a weapon on their hip. In this country, at this inaugural ceremony, there were millions of ordinary people invited to take part in something that is their birthright as an American citizen, a transferring of power that is a true symbol of a peaceful democracy.

    I am 24 years old; I was only 17 on September 11, 2001, a day I thought would be the one major life-shaping event of my generation. Today I know that today’s event is just as important and will resonate with me for a long, long time. Hearing our national anthem typically gives me pride in the form of goosebumps– today it made me weep.

  • knolting

    As a multi-racial (or as I prefer to say “mutt”) American. Seeing Barack Obama become President is more meaningful than words can describe. My family has always been a rainbow of colors and because of that I never had to deal with all of the struggles and harsh words (from ignorant non-relatives) my parents had to put up with for dating outside of their race. When I became an adult and left the cocoon of family, where color didn’t exist, and noticed the minority of people who DID seem to care, I was astounded. Obama becoming President gives me the hope that maybe the color lines will finally blur completely. I am so proud to have voted for him and to see him become our President.

  • DrKoob

    I told a friend I talked to this morning that this was the first time since 1963 that I feel like we have a true leader in the White House. Someone that can inspire us to greater things. Over the weekend a column in the NYTimes mentioned that one of the things George Bush forgot to do was to ask the American people to sacrifice. Never before have we gone to war when the President hasn’t. Of course he probably figured no one would. But that’s what Barack is going to have to do.

    And I very much hope that the difference between how we handle it now as opposed to how we might have handled it four or eight years ago is huge. We all have to suck it up and join behind this new leader to move this country forward and back on the track it belongs on. He inspires us to do that and not since JFK can I remember anyone who inspires me to want to be a better American. In fact for the last 8 years I have not wanted to be an American at all.

    So if I need to pay more taxes to balance the budget, relieve the national debt then I’ll do it. If I need to give some other service to keep us going, I’ll do it. If I need to put extraordinary pressure on my Senators and Congressman to support him, then I’ll do that as well. We all have to help in every way we can. And with the right leader we can do this. It has to happen. I feel hope for the first time in a long time.

  • Elaine in the UK

    Here in the UK I and my family cheered, clapped, and wept with America as we watched the inauguration today. This is a great day for the world, not just for the United States.

  • solaana

    We watched here at work, and then had a potluck afterwards that included chocolate fondue. I’m American the same way that Obama’s American — by default, because there’s really no other category that would have us — so I’m pretty psyched for today. I described the feeling elsewhere as having made it to home base during a game of tag. He’s not going to fix everything, nor will he fix anything immediately, but he’s made me feel like I can make a difference, and has given me a lot of confidence in my fellow citizens, and that is pretty damn exciting in and of itself.

  • jmm1977

    I returned not too long ago to my house, 2 miles north of the U.S. Capitol. It was a long, cold day and I bet I walked about 7 miles, what with my spot on the Mall (roughly 12th St and Constitution Ave. NW, 50 yards in front of the jumbotron. See that little black hat and peacoat? There I am!

    It was a great day, the atmosphere was joyful. There was a lot of hope in the air that things can change. It will only change, as Obama recognized, if we do the heavy lifting.

    I hope that people will go back and read-or re-watch Obama’s inaugural address and take it in. It is a call to action!

    The President may in fact hold the codes to the nukes and be the “Most Powerful Person On Earth”, but I believe that the President is really just a figurehead, and a reflection of our society and its many facets. I am not sad to see Bush depart, but as I listen to NPR and to various people talking about how they are motivated to work to help Barack Hussein Obama succeed as our 44th President and to organize and educate and pressure our elected officials to act by the will of the people, it reminds me of how much we, as a people, have failed to do that over the past several years.

    We can’t wait for change to come. We have to be the change. We have to take committed action every day to move towards our vision of what the world, and the U.S.A., into reality.

    Let’s not whine and complain about PACs, corporations, political parties, special interests or what-have-you. At the end of the day, the labels aren’t important. Let’s start DOING something about it. Wouldn’t it be more productive and empowering to stop bashing the government and compel them to implement policies by organizing a powerful popular movement? Change starts with you and me. Obama may be the guy at the top of the pyramid, followed by Congress, but those at the bottom are the foundation, and we write their paychecks. No matter how much money they raise for their campaigns, no matter what the media says/doesn’t say, no matter what propaganda comes out from various PACs, at the end of the day, the people determine the winners and losers in elections. So stop giving your power away, people–get out there and ORGANIZE. Yes we can!

  • http://www.greeblemonkey.com Aimee Greeblemonkey

    I have to leave for an Inauguration party, and oh lawd, I have been Obamacizing all day.… To say it’s been an amazing day is an understatement. I broadcast the swearing-in for my 30 employees in our conference room and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. And I have been kind of wandering around the office in a daze ever since.

    But, I will copy the 3 tweets I started the day with, to wrap up my feelings:

    - There are two reasons I am out of mind happy today. The least of which is that my guy won.

    - The more important reason: A man who couldn’t drink from the same fountain as me 40 years ago is my president.

    - His color was not a reason to vote for him. But it is a reason to celebrate him.

    Happy Obama Day, Jon.

  • http://onepingonly.blogspot.com/ Maura

    I couldn’t be more thrilled about this day, I really couldn’t. If he’s successful at bringing people together the way I think he can, I don’t think he can fail.

    Like you said, no one could or should expect miracles, but we have so much potential to be a better country and I believe we only need the right spark to get us moving in the right direction. President Obama (oh, how I do love saying that!) is that spark.

  • mandee75

    Got back from inauguration a couple hours ago! It was amazing! The air was electrifying! Wish you and Dooce could of been there! Check out my blog of the day http://​www​.leapontothelilypad​.blogspot​.com!

  • tcc

    As a duel citizen I was able to vote in both the Canadian and US election in the span of one month. For the first time in a long time I was actually much more happy with the results below the 49th. Canada needs some new blood in the political scene, hopefully Mr. Obama has been an inspiration for something to happen up here.

    Congratulation USofA, you not only gained a much needed new president today, you also gained an enormous amount of international respect, something that had been lacking fro some time.

  • Le Fiffre

    Half a dozen colleagues gathered around my laptop as bandwidth strained to handle the load of hulu bringing us the inauguration and oath of office.

    I’ll remember this. Riveting.

    @ DrKoob +1

    It was a good inaugural speech, but he wasn’t swinging for the bleachers. He was stating his values, steeling us for the long haul, putting congress on notice, and denouncing the policies of the previous eight years (in a code that may have sailed cleanly over the former president’s head). He knows this party is going to end, reality will sink in gloomier than ever, and he’ll need to pull out the oratorical tour de force to rally the nation to make the sacrifices that must be made.

    Lincoln’s second inaugural speech is the one we remember best.

  • NinaCoolada

    Let me start off by saying, what an exciting time for so many people right now. My story is simple. I was raised in a very conservative home-Republican blood runs in these veins of mine. I work for a very conservative company and to top it off, I work in the Political division! Republican and conservative organizations that have been doing EVERYTHING in their power to try and stop Obama for months. I will admit now that no, I did not vote for Obama. But when I think back to that day at the voting booth, I just had this battle of epic proportions in my head while trying to vote for the next president. I wanted to vote for Obama, I did the research. I had Obama checked-and changed my vote because there was something inside me that screamed everything you have been taught to know goes against what your vote represents right now. I started to have a small temper tantrum because I wanted to. There was a significant number of Americans my age that voted for Obama. It was the cool thing to do. Celebrities, friends, teachers all believed in him. But i needed more satisfaction for myself before I made the plunge into the Democrat world. I have been raised to believe that Reagan was THE greatest president alive and Clinton was a sore on humanity. My mother along with several others have been saying that Obama is the Anti-Christ and after a year or so of repeatedly hearing that, how was i suppose to vote for the man without feeling guilty? Yeah, I’m 22 years old and don’t have the backbone to face my mother by telling her that i voted for the Anti-Christ
    So I lost-Republicans lost. I am okay with that. I’m excited to see what happens next.
    So we’re here. It is an amazing thing that happened today. What people have done to get this far. Watching a close friend cry because her son really can become the next president was a great feeling to experience. It’s for them. And now I get it. I get the hype. I get the hope people feel. I get that we need change for the good. We are pressing onto some extremely trying times. I hope that this will be what America needs It’s great that so many people are happy about the future and that is what this is all about-Change! Let’s see what he can do-what we can do by manifesting the dream!

  • jesster

    I supported Obama from the beginning…I like Hillary, but agreed with Obama more on more issues. I live in Hawaii and got up at 3 am to watch the coverage and have watched it all day.
    There were several things that struck me about today…
    He spoke about many faiths as well as non-believers, and I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard that come out of a politician’s mouth in recent memory. Just the vocabulary he used in his speech was refreshing. And you could tell that he knew what the words meant.
    He and his family are real. There doesn’t seem to be any pretense there. Watching him and Michelle with their daughters today was great. I’m sure it helps that he is closer to me in age than I have ever been to a President, but he seems to “get” it — whether it is not wanting to give up his blackberry or knowing who Beyonce is. He isn’t completely out of touch.
    I’m also dealing with this feeling that many call “patriotism.” I don’t exactly know what to do with the feeling, but it is kinda cool.
    The day is one that I will remember for the rest of my life. My parents had Camelot, but I think I got the better deal.

  • makfan

    I’m with you Jon. I’ll even go so far as to say that Obama will make mistakes. I expect they will be mistakes of good intention, rather than of cronyism and an unrelenting desire for more power.

    I also want to say that I have appreciated the tone and nature of the comments from non-Obama voters in this discussion.

    • http://blurbomat.com blurb

      makfan, I have appreciated the tone and nature of the comments as well!

      Despite partisan differences, we can all find hope in electing a minority to the Presidency.

      Thank you all for your civility. Here’s to the next four years being better than the last four.

  • Stacey G.

    I’m nineteen years old, and this was my first chance to vote in a Presidential election. I grew up with Bush in office; I don’t even remember the Clinton years clearly. I voted for Barack Obama. And today, I didn’t cringe when I thought about my– our– President. Instead, I felt an almost overwhelming pride and hope for who we’ve elected. What an unbelievable feeling to not be ashamed of being an American.

    I’m not sure, frankly, if President Obama will live up to the expectations that people already have of him. But I do believe that he can only improve the situation we are in. I believe the American people are ready for change, and if nothing else, he is offering that. However small, we can only benefit.

    Here’s to the next four years.

  • http://nummies911.typepad.com beckibritt

    I do expect miracles. But I guess my definition of miracle is just to be able to enjoy my family without repercussions. My partner is in the Air Force and lives in fear that she can be discharged just for who she is. We have three beautiful children and pretty much live a boring regular life just like everyone else, except NOT like everyone else. We can’t file taxes together. When she stayed home for a year with our newest child, I couldn’t put her on my insurance coverage. And I have no legal rights to survivor benefits should something happen to her while serving our country. So do I expect miracles? You bet I do. I’m counting on them, and Obama.

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