Between the Lines: The Best Thing About The Second Obama Inauguration
*Returning from President Obama’s Second (and last) Inauguration, there was a lot of things to take away as the country continues to struggle with its identity, prosperity and its humility. National pride can be a great thing, and we have a lot of it. But it can also be a bad thing when pride is a foolish one. As Americans, we go back and forth, like windshield wipers, when identifying what we’re proud of-and what we’re not.
The culture shock we call the Obama Phenomenon is less threatening but still an enigma to nation not used to reporting to diversity. The national pride in him showed during this inauguration. But the animus showed too. It can’t escape the reality of Obama leading the nation anymore than it can embrace the realism of his populism.
Nearly a million people came to Barack Obama be sworn into office, a little more than half of what showed up four years ago, but still much more than any other President had show up at his inauguration. Mostly people that missed it the first time, though there were many repeat inauguration “Obama-ites” in attendance. You heard the frequent, “It wasn’t like this last time,” or “it wasn’t as cold as last time,” or (my favorite) “last time was historical…”
This time was historical too. The last time was the first time you saw a black man take the Presidential oath of office. This time was the last time we’re likely to see a black man take the Presidential Oath of office. At least in our lifetimes. There might be a woman or two, or another man of color, but I believe this was too much of a culture shock for America to let this happen again, more than once every 50 years or so. That is the history. That was one of the things I took away.
“Obama” the cottage industry – was another thing I took away. People making money on the President, even those that don’t like him. Like the Republicans found, just because you don’t like him doesn’t mean that tens of millions of others don’t. The President is probably as popular he’s ever going to be (in office). Just when you think you have seen everything “Obama”? Guess again… Obama dice??? Last time, it was just the playing cards. Now you can lighten up your party by throwing back your tequila shots with Obama shot glasses. Bomber/letterman jackets?? Who wears those? At $550, they wasn’t movin’. There were the usual t-shirts, hats, caps, buttons, sweaters, sweatsuits, hoodies… I got my 57th Inauguration hoodie. So now if the hoodie doesn’t scare nervous white people in the middle of a gun control fight, seeing that Obama signature on it will definitely make em stand their ground. I’ma wear it at this year’s Trayvon Martin protest…if George Zimmerman ever goes to trial. I took away the wonderment of what am I going to do with all this Obama stuff four years from now. I still haven’t wore, or
Source: Electronic Urban Report