Inaugural Bliss

You may or may not have noticed, but there has been a lot going on in the DC area the past week or so. Preparations for the biggest Presidential Inauguration in American history have been going on for quite some time and culminated in a massive event which basically deadlocked the entire city for a weekend. There was no use in doing much. Unless you escaped the city completely, you were unlikely to experience much more than cold air and crowds no matter what you were doing.

I personally kept warm the entire weekend by avoiding all festivities. Maybe I will regret this down the road, but I'm not really into crowds or below freezing temperatures, so as of this point... I feel I made the best decision.

Having been heavily involved in the primary campaign within South, and then North Carolina, I do feel a stake in the process and therefore some ownership of the end result. We have a new president, and I think we should rightfully hold onto realistic hope that we can make progress towards a better world. We must expect great things from our new leader, we must pressure him to deliver on his promises, and never take the easy way out.

BUT, and this is a big BUT.... we should not expect a perfect man, we should not expect world peace, and we should not expect to complete four years without some disappointment. No man is perfect. No one can predict the future. A leader must make tough choices, and live with the circumstances. All that we can ask is that they take those choices seriously, that they weigh all options, that they seek wise counsel, and that they make the best decision they can.

We have not elected a messiah, we have elected someone who has the ability to make good decisions and who demonstrates sound judgment. We have elected someone who we trust to put aside the drama of politics and make choices based on reason and logic, and not on ideologies and in the pursuit of power. Now, this is still some lofty language, Obama is not immune from partisan politics... but I think that we all hope that he can blaze a new trail through Washington that shows us a better way of making things happen. Just maybe...

Washington has been an interesting place to be the past few weeks and I am sure it will continue to be for quite awhile... Over the weekend I heard many people comment on how nice everyone was being to each other. References to a real sense of community were made. I am glad people demonstrated such behavior, and I hope it lasts... but we have a long way to go.