Inauguration
The first event of Inauguration Day happened at about 5:30 p.m., a memorial to the now-400,000 Covid-19 deaths since last January. There were 400 lights, each signifiying one-thousand deaths. It was brief and very impressive. A nurse sang “Amazing Grace” – her singing has gone viral. Here’s tonight on YouTube. Note the second song at the same space, sung at the same event.
TV Screen Shot Jan. 19, 2021
3:30 a.m. Jan. 20: This initial comment on soon-president Joe Biden and vice-president Kamala Harris will be very brief.
They are the perfect team to lead this country at a time of incredible crisis in many areas. There’s will be an extremely difficult job. All presidents have extremely difficult jobs – impossible to please everyone – but Jan. 20, 2021, is near the top of any list I can imagine, including WWII. But that’s a conversation for later.
I have liked Joe Biden since the beginning. His strengths are just exactly what our country needs. I’ve mentioned them before: he’ll change the tone of our country; he has far more relevant experience than most anyone who’s ever run for the office, local office, U.S. Senate, Vice-President.
His life experience has amplified his empathy for others.
His mantra will be, I think, helping the United States of America, which includes all states and all of us.
I don’t know as much about Kamala Harris, but the fact that Mr. Biden chose her has great meaning; and she is the first woman, to have ever held the office and for this and many other reasons everyone knows will bring a new and fresh perspective to governing this country.
The critical link, now, will be every single one of us. To continue to be for, and not against. As the sidewalk sign I saw at the beginning of the Covid-19 epidemic said so well on April 8, 2020: “Smile. We will get through this Together!”
Forward.
At entrance to Carver Park walking trail, Woodbury MN April 8, 2020.
POSTNOTE: Yesterday, I took the hour and 50 minutes to watch, on-line, the 2011 film “The Wave”, about a high school teacher who did an experiment with autocracy. The film is German, subtitled, and is very powerful and appropriate, especially for today’s unrest in the U.S. I rented it through Amazon for $3.99. I think it is available at other places as well. Tomorrow night a group of us will do an on-line conversation about it. If you are interested, check the website for Global Solutions MN, and scroll down to Third Thursday films. This is a continuing program and you are invited to participate from wherever you live.
POSTNOTE 2: One of the headlines in The Washington Post columns this morning says “Joe Biden’s fundamental challenge is to root out the domestic insurgency” by David Ignatius. I agree, but only to the extent that the task really falls to each and every one of we citizens where we live. We know these people in our own environments.
COMMENTS (more at end of post):
From Mary K: Smile, we will get through this. God Bless America I will look for “The Wave”. Ciao.
from Fred: Nicely stated. I agree with your depiction of Joe Biden and, as the shadow from the last four years lifts, look hopefully to the future.
from Lydia: [See] link to April 1961 Speech by JFK on the press (you can read or listen to it). I immediately thought you’d find it of interest/inspiration.
from CNN’s “Reliable Sources” for Jan. 17, 2021: Remember how presidents used to speak?
With Biden about to take over, it’s a good day to read or re-read inaugural speeches, and other compelling addresses by past presidents. I re-read John F. Kennedy’s 1961 speech to newspaper publishers, which contains a lot of wisdom about democracy, national security, and the power of the press. Kennedy spoke of “our obligation” — both his and the news media’s — “to inform and alert the American people, to make certain that they possess all the facts that they need, and understand them as well — the perils, the prospects, the purposes of our program and the choices that we face.” Read or listen to the speech here…
Screen Shots: Jan 20, 2020, White House, Bidens
Vice-President Kamala Harris and her husband. about to enter the Vice-Presidents office, Jan. 20, 2021
White House, Jan. 20, 2021
To think that only due to his insecurity, ignorance, arrogance and narcissistic personality, Trump has denied America let alone Joe Biden the benefit of a true celebration of the peaceful transition of power that has been up until 2021 a hall mark of America Democracy. Such a man-child who cannot accept defeat or ever concede it as he has always been able to blame others for any defeats or losses that he has incurred in the past. It is always someone else’s fault or effort to beat him but Donnie has always been able to overwhelm them with court suits and intimidation. It did not work for the clown this time on the biggest stage of all and with all of the support from Cruz (Cruz is at the inauguration ceremony this morning so no hypocrisy there at all), Hawley, Haggedorn and Fishbach, both very, very minor players, and, of course the pillow guy, who continue to push the stolen elections bull hockey! It has become so very, very obvious during the past four-years and especially on January 6 with the unsuccessful attempted coup generated by Donnie, that he must just hate America with all of his heart,. “Gees, I just wanna be king, is all!” Fortunately, as all folks who have lost their bids for re-election quickly find out, once you are out of office, no on knows your name and the phone stops ringing. Donnie will soon become the Willie Lohman of presidential politics.
Interesting line in the David Ignatius piece you linked in postnote 2:
“But even as the Biden administration attacks the most seditious members of the insurrection, it should consider a tactic that’s quite radical in the current political climate — listening to the other side.”
Immediately after Trump’s surprising 2016 victory there was a lot of talk among the pundits about their collective failure to understand the mood of America and anticipate that result. I wonder if the pundits, or political leaders, have become wiser since then? Listening couldn’t hurt.
Thoughts towards a better world.
We are all being distracted by the Trump/Biden/COVID circus — while Wall Street, War Street, Big Pharma, the World Economic Forum and the Federal Reserve rob us blind. https://jpstillwater.blogspot.com/2021/01/keeping-track-of-all-different-ways.html
Thank you Dick! Here is a good commentary on the movie “The Wave”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKJPKIwy9cU
Mr. Biden is being naive to think his election can bring unity back to our country. Half the voters are joyous while half feel betrayed and saddened. For more than 4 years Dems and their media acolytes have been filled with bigotry, hatred, and spewed vicious verbal venom at Trump and have repeatedly called him an illegal president, setting the stage for the ensuing civil unrest which plagues us today. Remember the “peaceful” ? transfer of power Trump received for 4 years after his election? There is such profound hatred in Dems they even want to silence the 75 million Trump voters and have even mentioned deprogramming them! Democrats and the media would scream to high heaven if they were purged from all social web sites. So much for free speech! Notice the liberal ACLU is silent! Have you noticed since the election the overtly biased media have sidelined their offensive team and have sent in their defensive team? Several million Americans expect Mr. Biden to screw up our country so bad that the 2022 election will be a retributive bloodbath for Dems, with even many moderate Dems voting to oust many liberal Dem socialists. With Biden and or the media crowd calling Trump voters thugs, racists, deplorables, white nationalists, and terrorists they now expect unity from Trump voters?!?!?! In 2020 Trump campaigned TO the people (note his huge crowds), while Biden avoided campaigns and interviews and hid in his basement and let his vengeful friends talk DOWN to Trump voters and engaged mainly in electioneering. Biden will achieve national unity when pigs fly, or maybe possibly when Dems utter a SINCERE mea culpa to purge their hatred and bigotry for people on the other side of the fence. The Dems not only have knocked Trump down, they kicked him while down and now want to rub salt in his wounds. This disrespectful bigotry by the left may even cause Trump and his half of the country in 2022 to rise like a Phoenix out of the ashes from the Dem’s dumpster and quell the Dem egotistic power trip. Please spare me any (usual liberal slay the messenger) response and instead call for a genuine peace treaty and extend an olive branch as kind of mind changing atonement meds to the swamp leftists in an attempt to purge their chronic systemic bigotry, systemic hatred, and systemic intolerance of American citizens who walk along a different path towards a free great productive country, while carefully and thoughtfully avoiding socialistic leg hold traps and the bottomless puddles of liberal quicksand. We can now watch for a rising China and a sinking United States, many more “Made in China” and less “Made in America” products in our stores; more illegal aliens; increasing American employee layoffs; jobs and companies moving to China; more citizen victimization; higher taxes; increasing homelessness; more goofy gender classifications to de-sex or re-sex the population; higher gasoline prices if even available; continued contempt for American history, and the green light for the destructive cancel culture crowd. One area which Biden certainly will excel will be in the sheer number of vindictive dystopian bass ackward executive orders he will sign. Trump built a wall at the southern border to keep out illegal aliens, but Biden built a fence around the Capital Building with 25,000 armed guards to keep out legal American citizens. For several months Dem mayors and Governors let protestors riot, brutalize police, destroy, burn, and pillage many cities with impunity while police were ordered to stand down. Anyone arrested went to jails with the revolving door type of Democrat justice. But when Republicans rained on the Dem’s parade police had to arrest as many as possible, take them to jail and throw away the keys. One green goon suggested Iowa corn fields be converted to windmill farms that won’t produce during calm weather, or solar farms that won’t produce at night. Imagine enduring Iowa’s July and August weather without air conditioning when the temp and humidity hover in the high 90’s, also what are we going to eat, tofu, rice, and raw fish produced in non-unionized China wet sweatshops?
PS: Unity may return when Dem’s offer atonement for their incessant uncivil behavior, and promise to govern to the center rather than just for the aspiring Banana Republic leftists.