Thanks god that President Putz is going away…
All hail the new King of the USA… oops I meant President
Bye Bye Bush! :raspberry:
Hello Obama! 
Yeah, I’ve been thinking the same thing. Why the hell not just go ahead and coronate him! I voted for him, I’m aware of the historical significance, but this is just about as overdone as any coronation creamony I’ve ever seen before. I don’t know. I’m a person who is always of two minds about things, but this kind of gives me the creeps. It’s not like he’s going to be sworn in and wave his hand and save the world.
Of course not, he’s not going to save the world. But it doesn’t mean he can’t walk on water, or multiply bread and fish for the destitute.
Hmmm… a picture of Obama in a limo… how does this differ from any other modern president?
As for the cost of his inauguration:
tw.youtube.com/watch?v=liKoE8h6omk
And as for “waving his hand”, he can, with a stroke of his pen, magically undo years of Bush injustice, through signing executive orders. For example, he can wave his magic wand (his pen) and lift the “Mexico City Gag Rule”.
Well none of the other US Presidents were the same colour as the Limo’s.
I’m not talking about the limo being over the top. The pomp and circumstance and the absolute sea of humanity. Of course, I’d be there if I could, too. It’s just overwhealming and seems a bit much.
YEAH!
President Barack Hussein Obama!!! :discodance:
I could be there, but you couldn’t pay me to fight that crowd. I’ll catch him on memorial day or some other time.
“Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss”
Amazing speach. Really amazing.
Bullshit. The same as George Bush? Not a chance. Sure, he’ll stumble, but he’s infinitely better than the old boss. Sorry for your constantly, hopelessly pessimistic worldview, cake; you may want to consider professional help. For god’s sake Bush has just left Washington and Obama’s been sworn in. This is definitely a time for great hope and optimism. 
You’re right, housecat, it was a great speech. Here’s some of it.
[quote]My fellow citizens: I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors.
I thank President Bush for his service to our nation…
(APPLAUSE)
… as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition. . .
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age.
Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many, and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable, but no less profound, is a sapping of confidence across our land; a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real, they are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: They will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics. . . .
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions – that time has surely passed.
Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
(APPLAUSE)
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. . . .
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions, who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short, for they have forgotten what this country has already done, what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose and necessity to courage. . . .
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.
Our founding fathers faced with perils that we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations.
Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. . .
. . . we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness.
We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and nonbelievers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth.
And because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect.
To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict or blame their society’s ills on the West, know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. . .
To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist. . .
Our challenges may be new, the instruments with which we meet them may be new, but those values upon which our success depends, honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism – these things are old.
These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history.
What is demanded then is a return to these truths. . . [/quote]
nytimes.com/2009/01/20/us/po … f=politics
God Bless America. :America: Go, Obama, go!
Saw the speech while I was at the gym. Chuckle. American rhetoric is just so absurd.
How so? I thought it was a fantastic speech.
You haven’t drunk the Kool-Aide yet, huh?
You haven’t drunk the Kool-Aide yet, huh?[/quote]
Cultural differences, I guess. A room full of people smirking, here in Oxford.
You haven’t drunk the Kool-Aide yet, huh?[/quote]
Cultural differences, I guess. A room full of people smirking, here in Oxford.[/quote]
Whatever. 
Smirking is in hte eyes of the beholder.
But even if they are smirking in Oxford, let them smirk (don’t forget who won the revolutionary war, loooooosers).
Smug, insolent smirkers have nothing to be proud of. It’s a great day for America. It’s a great day for the world.
Moreover, it’s not empty rhetoric. Obama and the American people have plenty of serious challenges ahead, but Obama and the American people have overcome plenty of serious challenges in the past and they’ll do it again.
The end to 8 years of Bush. The hope for a better future. Nothing smirkworthy about that.
You want something to smirk about, check out this old bird and her toadies:
tw.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1gXpboNp5Q
MT, it’s a cultural thing. The English never let themselves get excited by anything, because life always disappoints them. They hate you Americans for your frequent and disgraceful displays of optimism.
Meanwhile, as we slide back to the days of Kremlin and China watching - whereby political nuance is displayed in the subtlest of indications, I say BUY the Cuban, erh, whatever their currency is!
[quote]Cuban designer dresses Michelle Obama for inauguration
January 21, 2009 - 4:55AM
Fashionistas were delighted when Michelle Obama unveiled her inauguration outfit - a sparkling golden dress and matching coat designed by Cuban-American designer Isabel Toledo[/quote]
Comrade Obama lady has clearly indicated that the days of misery for Cuba are over, and America will now join hands with Fidel to form a mutually beneficial and ideologically enriching (thus the gold colour) Socialist partnership.
I really can’t believe the Americans fell for this!
HG
He was sworn in on a British Bible…
Struggled to figure out what ‘smirking in the eye of the beholder’ meant, but I’m guessing it was negative? Dunno, it might have been a good message but I didn’t make it past the first 30 seconds because it was all a bit ‘Independence Day’. Once I realised the orange jumpsuit dudes (no, not Guantanamo Bay realeases) weren’t showing up, I flicked over to The Simpsons.
Smug? Britain in 2009? 
Reminds me of Taiwan. Despite the Ma-doration, the placed is hai mei Shangri-La. And the Brits who attribute the economic problems of the UK to Gordon Brown have a shock coming. HOW does a head of state bring ‘hope for the future’? Absurd rhetoric. Enjoy the party, but the idea that the US will cease to be shit because the posterboy got shitcanned is nuts. Which part of the ether did all the people who supported him go to? It’s not a ‘change’, it’s just part of the natural cycle of back and forth right-left political swings.
Sorry, I don’t youtube, especially not from flob posts.