Obama's Speech

A few more thoughts on Inauguration Day.

I liked Obama's speech.  It started out somber, an interesting juxtaposition to the jubilant mood of the crowd.  I suppose Obama was playing to the national audience - rather than the party in front of him - in laying out America's challenges.  Starting off slow may have also been a device to remind folks that he is not our savior or a celebrity but a serious man facing serious challenges, a president calm, smart and ready to deal successfully with our current national predicament(s).

But the serious opening also set up the rest of the speech, which I thought was great.  Obama followed the litany of problems with his own confidence in his and our abilities.  I thought that part was great, very Kennedy 'Ask not what your country can do you' esque.  

And the closing was great, quoting St. Paul and George Washington among others.  I love the invoking of history, a trait I think that is typical of immigrants and immigrant kids.  In my opinion, immigrant households are generally more fascinated by the incredible history of the United States, the good parts and the bad parts.  It seems the longer one's family has been in the U.S. the more they take that history for granted, at least that's one first-generation American's opinion.

But for me, the best part of the speech was not so much the words but the connection between Obama and the voters. The President seems genuinely inspired by the voters, and safe to say our fellow Americans are very inspired by the President.

A Few More Obama Opines

• I really enjoyed the crowd shots in the paper and online today.  Many have commented on how diverse it was and how it looked like America.  But the best part of the crowd was how happy and optimistic and inclusive it was.  It also struck me as the opposite of the typical Bush crowd, which is a smug and exclusive one that enjoys reminding everyone how they are more American than the liberal rabble.  Dick Cheney seems to be the typical Bush crowd member.
• Funny to think that eight years ago and today I woke up and asked the same question: how did that guy become President?  Obviously, the tone and context of the two questions are completely different.
• We went to the Western states ball last night at the Convention Center.  Though we did stick around to see Obama we did see and hear a quick speech from Biden and ran into lots of friends and colleagues.  We were entertained by Marc Anthony - with wife Jennifer Lopez for one song - and though it was a cash bar I had a good time. It was simply fun to be part of the festivities, to go downtown wearing a tux to mark getting the country back and electing a new - and good - president.