Monday, January 21, 2013

Proud to be a Citizen of these United States

It made me cry, and it made me proud.  Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) quoted George Washington as saying the swearing in of the first President was not the test of the new county -- the swearing in of the second President would be.  We now have our 44th President and have completed our 57th Inauguration -- and we should be proud of our country and its structure as we move ahead, facing challenges and  looking for solutions  in our collective national life.

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/InaugurationCe

The ceremony was impressive, far more than the sum of its parts, showing the unity and diversity of our country.   As is appropriate for the occasion, it was the United States at its very best.

If you did not have an opportunity to watch the Inauguration live, watch the video, not the summaries.  If not the whole four hours, at least the speech.  I appreciated the President's speech -- especially its historical references -- and liked it better for its careful, understated nature.  It would be a pleasure to teach, because there are many important historical references that students would have to search for and figure out. 

Here is the Inaugural Poem by Richard Blanco:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/white_house/jan-june13/inaugpoem_01-21.html

And this was my favorite quote, (as illustrated and Tweeted by the White House)
https://twitter.com/whitehouse/status/293409419792900096/photo/1 it is also picture 17 in the White House photostream here http://www.whitehouse.gov/inauguration-2013 in the section "Your Voices at the Inauguration".


"With passion & dedication, let us answer the call of history & carry into an uncertain future that precious light of freedom" 

                         - -  Barack H. Obama, 2nd Inaugural Address, January 21, 2013





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Fortune Cookie

Information is not knowledge.
Knowledge is not wisdom.
Wisdom is not truth.
Truth is not beauty.
Beauty is not love.
Love is not music.
Music is the best.
Frank Zappa