Na na na na,
Na na NA na,
HEY HEY HEY,

GoooOOOOooodbye!

I think they could have shown a little more dignity towards the outgoing president. And the reverend who gave the benediction made a comment that was definitely uncalled for.

I didn't watch it, what was it?

Sooooo much hoopla. Nice speeches and the number of crowd supporters was quite impressive, but does it really need to be done to that scale?

If they get that kind of reaction -after- actually having executed the job, that would be indeed be incredibly rewarding.

Not sure what was objectionable, but here's the Lowery Transcript. Maybe some may object to "when white will embrace what is right"--though that colorful rif has long been part of Lowery's stock civil rights speech.

Some people in the crowd chanted "Na-na-na-nah, hey, hey, hey goodbye" when they heard a television broadcaster announce, "George Bush is no longer president of the United States."

And oh crap, time to get dressed.

I don't know, two people peacefully exchanged the position as leader of the most powerful nation in the world, after exchanging gifts and having coffee. Compared to a large part of the rest of the world, that does deserve a parade and a lot of hoopla.

I don't see how they couldn't do it do that scale. The first black president is enormous, maybe more so than some younger people may imagine. I certainly didn't think I'd see it in my lifetime. In any event, if 2 million people arrive at the Washington DC mall to see the historic event, you can bet there will be some hoopla!

Its stupid hoopla, in my opinion. The celebrity status he's gotten from simply talking big, being black, and not being Bush, is ridiculous.

I'm with Avaer. I want to see, you know... results before I get excited. Anyone can say they're going to fix the country, but there is more to it then positive thinking.

I also find it interesting how the stock market did today. "Yay, Bush is gone- NOW SELL EVERYTHING".

But Acrune, you forget the most important thing: YES WE CAN!!!!!!

It's possible you're missing the point. You say "simply" being black. Simply? Yes, it's simple to be born black in the United States. Is it simple to be born black AND manage to get elected as President of the United States (with a name like Barack Hussein Obama)? I'd say...nope!!! Given the odds against him I'd say him being elected and making it to actually taking the oath of office is not simple at all. But besides that, the reasons you mention are not why he has celebrity status - though it certainly doesn't hurt.

Simply (there's that word again) put, he inspires people. Does he inspire you? Nope. Does he inspire millions upon millions of other people in this country? Yes. Now, you can say it's stupid or hogwash or whatever. But given how disillusioned a good majority of this country has been for such a long period of time, I'd say a little inspiration doesn't hurt. Now I'm no Obama maniac but even I can see that. I can also see that his whole message isn't about him saving the world. It's about everyone taking responsibility and doing what they can. Sitting and waiting for him to rescue or not rescue everyone seems to pretty much be completely ignoring his position.

Now, clearly, you are young. And I'm going to go ahead and guess that you're also not black, or poor, or so destitute that you desperately need even a glimmer of hope to make it through the day. You probably haven't had the experience of being denied a job or a promotion or common human courtesy because of the color of your skin. Your parents probably can't tell you stories about how when they were younger they couldn't eat at any restaurant they wanted or stay at any hotel they wanted. Your great-great-grandparents probably were not slaves. So it's really quite possible that you just...don't get it. But for all the millions of people who never thought they would see this day, who never thought this country could move past its rather ignoble history in race relations, who see in this man all the dreams of their grandparents, their parents, themselves, and their children finally achieved. Well, perhaps you'll be a little understanding if they want to celebrate. Even if it is "stupid".

They will be selling all they own, giving it all away to the country, then going to follow Him. Duh. Why haven't you started yet?

Ok, more seriously, Obama being in office is awesome for all the same reasons I would have voted for Ron Paul if given the chance. Do I agree with them on everything? No. Am I excited to see a willingness to try something new, or to re-try something that worked for a while in a certain time? You bet. Yeah, sure, the black guy in office matters to the older generation. President Kennedy and Rev. King didn't live that long ago, and think of how different the world was just then. Would you have guessed a landslide election of an African American president eight years ago when we were fighting over hanging chads? Or the election of a second-generation American, no matter what color? It does say a lot about how open-minded we are today compared to forty years ago. (I also think that it's not such a big deal to the younger crowd says a lot more about how far we've come, but hey, old people own the news channels.)

Regarding word choice: I think he chose a few words that definitely were intentionally designed to resonate with the conservative viewers, and perhaps chosen primarily for such pandering. One example came during a "filler" line about the nation's various religions. He rambled off a string of religions and then, instead of saying spiritualists, agnostics or aetheists, he said "non-believers" - that word is a strong one and implies that there is a greater truth simply not being believed. I hardly think this is nitpicking, given that the entire world was watching/will be analyzing his speech, and it was written with that in mind. Every single word was deliberately chosen. That's just one example...there are a few others, again, where it seems he's picked words which are aimed to subtly, perhaps even unconsciously, ingratiate himself with the more conservative (not in itself a bad thing. Unity in support is key), through the means of very quiet jabs at his more liberal followers.

In all honesty. I cannot say that I was overly impressed ... but then again, I have never been fond of political events and/or speeches. Thats all talk, I want to see what the man actually is going to do in the White House, not what he says. Men can always doubt what you say, they can never doubt what you do.

I've never been impressed by those kind of gung-ho speeches, but I actually found Obama's inauguration speech very inspiring. (Read: I favourited it on youtube. ) Here's hoping he follows through on it.

I didn't think much of the "nonbelievers" line, honestly. I interpreted as...anyone who just doesn't believe in any religion. I can see how it can be interpreted otherwise, though.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's wonderful you guys have a charismatic, highly intelligent, articulate and seemingly compassionate leader that clearly inspires hopefulness and with any luck a globally conscious sense of patriotism. I hoped he would get to this point, and I'm interested to see what he does next (the stuff about closing Guantanamo Bay and revising America's terrorism approach sounds fantastic!). It's also really encouraging that it seems this victory acknowledges his virtue as a person outweighs his lineage or background.

It's just that the excesses of the American political system, and the... religious fervour of it, I suppose, makes me uneasy.

Yes, I caught that to, but I think I have heard him use that term before and never Agnostic or Athiest.