It's 10:39am on the day of Barack Obama's inauguration, a day that will, without question, be regarded as a historic cornerstone for as long as humans walk this earth. I've been glued to CNN for the most part this morning, but I did leave the house to get some breakfast and pick up a few copies of the Washington Post. Excitement is in the air in a way that I'm not sure I've experienced in my entire lifetime.
Now, don't get me wrong, there is no source of excitement for me greater than Obama's inauguration, but a very close second is experiencing the final day of the Bush Administration in power. I won't tarnish this glorious day with too much focus on the negative events of the past eight years, that being said. We are all familiar with the details, and now is not the time for a reminder, right?
Or perhaps it is. In celebrating this momentous occasion, it will do us all some good to remember why we need a leader of Obama's caliber in this day and age. Any less might not be enough. America has finally elected the best man for the job once more, illustrating that democracy can still work in this country. Eight years ago, however, it failed miserably, and we have and will continue to pay dearly for that failure. The true breadth of the corruption and self-serving agenda of government throughout the past two presidential terms remains to be seen, but few dispute the notion that the gross negligence of the Bush administration has placed this country and the livelihood of its citizens in jeopardy of unparalleled magnitude.
Yet we must remember--the mistakes of the Bush administration are our mistakes too. In embracing our democracy, and the success that it brings us today, we must also recognize our failure as a people to properly leverage the freedoms and flexibilities that it affords us. In the future, I sincerely hope that we need not repeat such incredible disaster to precipitate such success.
In all walks of life, proactive behavior yields better results than reactive behavior. Let us remember this, going forward, and each do our part to perpetuate the sense of unity and triumph that we feel today in the days that follow, and throughout the challenges that they will hold.
But enough of that for now. Barack Obama will be our president in 30 minutes. Hurrah!
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