The New Regime
It is now 1:00 AM, one day deep into the new regime. The 44th President of the United States was sworn into office early yesterday and I don’t feel any different. He was elected on the hope ticket, which is all anyone cares about now. If there is no hope, there is no country. We simply cannot survive without some glimmer of hope. And what better embodiment for that hope than a black President? Hope for change like the kind we’ve seen in the Civil Rights movement over the past forty years. He’s black! He’s white! He could be a goddamn Rottweiler for all I care, just so long as he breathes the much-needed life back into this country. America the Mighty has run on nothing but fumes for nigh ten years now, and that’s not even dipping into the fuel problems. The spirit of the people is divided and practically crushed to dust. Those old enough to remember “the good days” are too senile now to do anything to help. Most of us, the ones who matter anyway, see nothing but a dim fog up ahead. And those who look past the fog are no more at ease.
It’s not that I don’t feel we can persevere, we’ve got a good history for that. It’s more of a feeling that the countdown has begun and no one can see the clock. Like Rome before us we are at the verge of ripping ourselves apart, all our enemies will have to do is pick up what’s left, like grave-robbers pillaging the corpse of our once-great nation.
But that’s not what yesterday was about. Yesterday thousands upon thousands of American citizens, from all walks of life, gathered in the nation’s capitol to be a part of history. It wasn’t the color of his skin that drew people in, it was the magnitude of the idea his skin represents. In only a handful of generations, the black community has gone from winning their freedom, to seeing one of their own take the seat as one of the most powerful men in the world. Yesterday a one-hundred year old African American was there when President Obama was sworn in. In his lifetime, he has seen the change that comes with perseverance, and he turns his thanks to God for letting him live to see this moment. That is a power you cannot buy. That is a hope you can’t help but be a part of. The old way of thinking is becoming the new. The unmistakable idea of possibilities this country is supposed to represent seems to be on the mend. This is why black, white, yellow, and red alike gathered yesterday. This is the hope that we are so desperate for.
President Obama certainly has his work cut out for him. I feel correct in saying the very fate of our country is now resting in his hands. His actions will either inspire us to become the great nation we once were, or doom us to the realization that there is no hope, that we’ve already lost. I, like many of my generation, lacked the proper motivation to get off my ass and vote this year, a mistake I will not make again. If I did vote, would I have voted for Obama? In all honesty, I cannot say, but I’m part of “the people” and the people spoke for me…and I’m glad. I’m happy that everyone got what they wanted and I’m moved by the same power that has touched us all.
I leave the official running of business in our country in the hands of the 44th President, Barak Obama. And I myself will make an impact, in my lifetime, and do my very best to secure the blessings of liberty to myself and my posterity. Do ordain and establish this proclamation for The United States of America.
Quinn Allan
Wednesday January 21st, 2009
It’s not that I don’t feel we can persevere, we’ve got a good history for that. It’s more of a feeling that the countdown has begun and no one can see the clock. Like Rome before us we are at the verge of ripping ourselves apart, all our enemies will have to do is pick up what’s left, like grave-robbers pillaging the corpse of our once-great nation.
But that’s not what yesterday was about. Yesterday thousands upon thousands of American citizens, from all walks of life, gathered in the nation’s capitol to be a part of history. It wasn’t the color of his skin that drew people in, it was the magnitude of the idea his skin represents. In only a handful of generations, the black community has gone from winning their freedom, to seeing one of their own take the seat as one of the most powerful men in the world. Yesterday a one-hundred year old African American was there when President Obama was sworn in. In his lifetime, he has seen the change that comes with perseverance, and he turns his thanks to God for letting him live to see this moment. That is a power you cannot buy. That is a hope you can’t help but be a part of. The old way of thinking is becoming the new. The unmistakable idea of possibilities this country is supposed to represent seems to be on the mend. This is why black, white, yellow, and red alike gathered yesterday. This is the hope that we are so desperate for.
President Obama certainly has his work cut out for him. I feel correct in saying the very fate of our country is now resting in his hands. His actions will either inspire us to become the great nation we once were, or doom us to the realization that there is no hope, that we’ve already lost. I, like many of my generation, lacked the proper motivation to get off my ass and vote this year, a mistake I will not make again. If I did vote, would I have voted for Obama? In all honesty, I cannot say, but I’m part of “the people” and the people spoke for me…and I’m glad. I’m happy that everyone got what they wanted and I’m moved by the same power that has touched us all.
I leave the official running of business in our country in the hands of the 44th President, Barak Obama. And I myself will make an impact, in my lifetime, and do my very best to secure the blessings of liberty to myself and my posterity. Do ordain and establish this proclamation for The United States of America.
Quinn Allan
Wednesday January 21st, 2009
posted by Quinn Allan at
2:46 AM
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