21 Jan 09 The Rest Of The Year And Beyond

It’s January 21st today.

Yes I know that you know that.

Still it’s a significant date.

Why?

Well, We’ve got the ‘holiday’ season out of the way. (On a personal note, I’ve got my birthday out of the way as well). We’ve long since taken down all the decorations. We’ve got back to work, and done at least one full five day week.

Yesterday, we got the new man installed at the White House.

So, now, all that remains, is the rest of the year, and to revive the economy we all need to quit partying and get back to work!

Let’s give President Obama a little time to see if he can turn rhetoric into firm action, and see if Congress and Senate are going to help this to move along smoothly, or be obstructive.

Of course, not everyone wanted to see him elected, but elected he was, and with none of the Floridian-style fixin’ and fiddlin’ that went on eight years ago. A clear mandate in other words, that folks want change.

Many people aren’t sure what changes they want. Lots of folks can’t agree on which changes would be best even if they know what they’d like to see. Most people, however, Obama supporters or not, seem to agree that a change of direction was needed. Many felt that the previous captain of the ship was enjoying the view, but not issuing many useful orders from the bridge anymore (if he ever did).

I personally don’t give a damn what party he’s in; I don’t care what color he is (although I understand the significance of that to many people). I always find it ironic (and this isn’t just a US thing) that some of those big political noises (politicians and media) that bang on the most about patriotism, always seem to put their party before country.

To those that want to trash him before he’s even started, simply because he’s not in your party (and partisan politics does way more harm than good in any case), at least give the guy a chance to succeed or fail.

Politics aside, though, I’d like to be able to be sitting here in four years time, and say that even though he’s screwed up a few things, he’s helped to turn the nation around somewhat, and that he did what he thought was best for the majority of Americans as a whole, and that above all else, he’s proven himself to be a person with decency and integrity, not just at home, but on the world stage too.

Tags: bridge, change of direction, congress, economy, fixin, floridian style, holiday season, i don t care, little time, mandate, new man, partisan politics, patriotism, personal note, politicians, rhetoric, senate, white house