Leading Off (01/20/09): Yes I Can Edition

1. Can I point out that President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration speech will most likely be “straight out of church and the black experience”? Yes I can.

2. Can I point out that Michelle Obama should enjoy it now while they’re doing stories on her inaugural ball gown instead of, oh, say, how the soon-to-be former president’s approval rating is so low that the new director of your presidential library has to defensively say that “generations will decide” your legacy, not the people you led. Yes I can.

3. Can I point out that Tony Romo’s off-season continues to get worse? Yes I can.

71 comments

  1. I will be the cute older guy wearing the ear protection that’s got FM reception today.

    Yup, I’ll be out there putting them up while listening to the inauguration on NPR. A man has to do what a man has to do.

    Eric, aren’t you glad Virginia gets the worst thing about Dubya?

    @ 6:27 am on January 20, 2009
  2. Can I point out that offseason is spelled without a hyphen when used as a sports reference? Yes I can.

    @ 7:49 am on January 20, 2009
  3. Can I accept the fact that I will pay higher taxes? Yes I can!

    @ 9:12 am on January 20, 2009
  4. Can I point out that The Dallas Morning News’ baffling insistence on continuing to use the racial slur “Anglo” even on the very day that America’s first African-American president is being inaugurated is a contributing reason fewer and fewer people are willing to pay for the insults?

    @ 9:14 am on January 20, 2009
  5. Cathy – yes you can!

    @ 9:26 am on January 20, 2009
  6. PR: not if you’re laid-off.

    @ 9:27 am on January 20, 2009
  7. Can I point out that some people obviously just want to look for something to complain about, i.e., the use of the word, “anglo?”

    @ 9:27 am on January 20, 2009
  8. @ 9:40 am on January 20, 2009
  9. Ok kiddies, remember to say your pledge every morning:

    “I pledge to be a servant to our President and to all mankind because together we can, together we are, and together we will be the change that we seek.”

    @ 9:47 am on January 20, 2009
  10. PR – this is from a vid on youtube, they are quite serious.

    (No link, can’t access at work.)

    I think I’m going to pledge to be a servant to Nancy Pelosi, I hear she treats the help ok.

    @ 10:25 am on January 20, 2009
  11. Jeez, it took eight years for the lesson to finally take (I’m rather the recalcitrant one): Failure to observe proper fealty to our president, no matter his level of folly or incompetence, is an insult to our Constitution, our way of life, our Founding Fathers, every man and woman who has ever served honorably in our nation’s military, and Jesus Christ Himself. Disagreement with the policies set forth and championed by our president, it turns out — and again, I had no idea; chalk it up to bad civics instruction in high school, I guess — constitute a type of Derangement Syndrome.

    Don’t go changing the rules on me now!

    @ 10:31 am on January 20, 2009
  12. I hope Obama is the greatest president this country has ever seen. As a matter of fact, I hope that about every president who is voted into office. I think anybody who hopes otherwise is simply misguided.

    With that said, I find it disturbing that so much of this country is so excited today. Watching the interviews and hoopla the last few days makes a person wonder; why didn’t some of these people care about their country or president before now? Why do so many people get excited about a person when they don’t even know what his policies or ideals are?

    And don’t start with the tired old argument “he isn’t Bush.”

    @ 10:42 am on January 20, 2009
  13. @ Robb

    Because clearly all the people who are excited about the new President have no clue about his policies or ideals. Heck, they’d probably just clap at flashing lights or bright colors.

    Does looking down your nose at people that often cause any long-term vision problems?

    @ 10:50 am on January 20, 2009
  14. I like his idea of nationalized health care. Under his plan, everyone will get FREE health care — just the government will get to pay for it and isn’t that like free money?

    And, when the gov doesn’t have enough money to cover all the costs, then they will have to ration service only to those they deem worthy like the young, the good looking, Northeasterners and those who know the right people.

    And, that means that if you are 80 years old you are S.O.L. The bean counters will eventually figure out that you really don’t have a lot of years left anyway so why give you medical treatment when a 25 year old with a full life ahead of them should get it first.

    Then the old people will start dying off and that will help keep medical costs low and our roads will be safer. Old people are dangerous drivers – they always leave their turn signals on — just drives me crazy!

    One time I saw this old lady take out her teeth and clean them in her water glass at Luby’s — disgusting.

    @ 10:52 am on January 20, 2009
  15. Free medical care = greater control over personal liberties.

    Smoke? No new hip for you!

    Drink? Forget about those dental implants

    I suggest everyone read Jonah Goldberg’s “Liberal Fascism” as a primer.

    Things will then make sense.

    @ 10:57 am on January 20, 2009
  16. Amandacobra — then there’s this.

    @ 10:58 am on January 20, 2009
  17. And, Obama will pay for our gas and mortgage!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P36×8rTb3jI&feature=related

    @ 11:00 am on January 20, 2009
  18. WE MUST STOP DENOUNCING OUR NEW PRESIDENT!!!!

    Let’s give him the same respect and courtesy the Democrats gave George W. Bush when he was first elected. Oh wait…..

    @ 11:08 am on January 20, 2009
  19. Just checked out about 30 blogs. This is the ONLY one that is not celebrating hope.
    Read your own words. Understand that you are now the minority. You are the new parapalegics that use to make fun of cripples and still do. Sadly the facts will get in the way of your venom. Perhaps you should just put on your knee pads and head out to Love Field.

    @ 11:26 am on January 20, 2009
  20. Some of you seem to forget that Obama won in what is considered a modern day landslide.

    @ 11:27 am on January 20, 2009
  21. Well, PR, when Bush was first elected (in 2004), we’d already had four years of “leadership” by which to judge him.

    @ 11:32 am on January 20, 2009
  22. “On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.”

    - President Barack Obama, Jan. 20, 2009

    @ 11:32 am on January 20, 2009
  23. J Paul,

    You are right. And when Reagan and Bush #1 won, Democrats seem to forget that too.

    @ 11:33 am on January 20, 2009
  24. “What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works …”

    @ 11:35 am on January 20, 2009
  25. @ Brother Fromer

    Hope is the refuge of those who can neither think nor do.

    @ 11:36 am on January 20, 2009
  26. Paulo:
    Sanity may be madness but the maddest of all is to see life as it is and not as it should be.

    @ 11:38 am on January 20, 2009
  27. Brother Fromer,

    I agree — we need more blog entries about hope.

    I hope Obama does not raise my taxes.
    I hope Obama does not decimate our military.
    I hope Obama does not pander to enemies of our country.
    I hope Obama does not grow our government the way Bush did.
    I hope Obama does not increase our welfare state.

    @ 11:41 am on January 20, 2009
  28. Allow me to be the first to declare this new administration an appalling failure.

    @ 11:44 am on January 20, 2009
  29. This can’t be — Obama is so smart! He just flubbed his recital of the Oath of Office!

    @ 11:45 am on January 20, 2009
  30. Trey,

    True dat!

    @ 11:46 am on January 20, 2009
  31. To Trey and PR. Bitter never tasted so sweet….keep it coming.

    @ 11:48 am on January 20, 2009
  32. I see nothing superior nor reasonable (nor reasoning) about Republicans.

    I’m amused anyone sees any substantive difference between the two parties.

    @ 11:49 am on January 20, 2009
  33. Trey,

    Wasn’t it the Democrats who opposed the civil rights movement in the 50’s and 60’s?

    I’m not saying, I’m just saying.

    @ 11:49 am on January 20, 2009
  34. @ Daniel

    “If those are “typical Obama supporters,” then obviously the commenters who took them to task are typical Republicans, right?”

    I would think the comments are from typical Howard Stern fans. IJS

    @ 11:52 am on January 20, 2009
  35. Trey, good points in both posts. Agreed.

    My point was, you never have to go too far to find an idiot. I think you can agree with me on that, as well.

    See? We’re healing already!

    @ 11:56 am on January 20, 2009
  36. Everyone today who has Hope for our country, don’t let the small, mean voices drag us down. They are the frightened minority now, and they know it. They see very little hope of ever asserting their brand of mean, petty, exclusionary politics ever again, because the American people just won’t have it.

    Look at them as the anchor that we have to drag along to progress anyway, even though they will try to stop it. We will drag them along to a better country with us, because that’s what we do. We don’t shut people out.

    @ 12:04 pm on January 20, 2009
  37. @ Daniel

    “My point was, you never have to go too far to find an *****”

    One click to treygarrison.com and you’ve found one.

    @ 12:08 pm on January 20, 2009
  38. @ 12:12 pm on January 20, 2009
  39. I don’t think that came out the way you meant it to, Julie.

    And Zac — tongue in cheek? Moi?

    @ 12:13 pm on January 20, 2009
  40. @ PR:

    Yes, you are correct. Those democrats who opposed the civil rights movement then left the democratic party in a huff. See if you can guess which party they joined…

    I’m not saying, I’m just saying indeed.

    @ 12:23 pm on January 20, 2009
  41. “I don’t think that came out the way you meant it to, Julie.”

    No it didn’t because we were posting at the same moment. That’s ok; no sour grapes can ruin my day today!

    @ 12:29 pm on January 20, 2009
  42. The nation has endured 8 years of sour grapes, we’ve toughened up.

    @ 12:31 pm on January 20, 2009
  43. So if I understand your point, PR: With the election of a Democrat, we’re headed inexorably toward an era of rigid racial segregation in our country.

    An analysis of surpassing breadth and subtle perspicacity, sir. Bravo!

    @ 12:37 pm on January 20, 2009
  44. Congratulations, Trey. You have identified the exception that proves the rule.

    @ 12:40 pm on January 20, 2009
  45. @ Lemmy: I haven’t deleted any comments here, have I? Chill out.

    @ 12:42 pm on January 20, 2009
  46. I’m just glad that the Republicans I know all adopted the position the day after the election of “Well, he’s our President now and we will support him because we want what is best for our country.”

    Today’s a good day and no amount of pettiness or name calling or link wars can dampen the spirits of those of us who are both happy to see a new administration ushered in and relieved to see the old one end.

    As a side note, Aretha Franklin, now THAT is a hat!

    @ 12:42 pm on January 20, 2009
  47. Obama quoted something like:
    Its time to stop acting like children.
    Ya know he writes his own speeches.

    @ 1:08 pm on January 20, 2009
  48. I would just like to point out that our new President gave a shout out to non-believers today. I knew I liked that guy.

    @ 1:20 pm on January 20, 2009
  49. I am committed to not treat Obama with the same disdain that half of our country has W the last 8 years. The hypocrisy of the ‘non-judgemental’ left (see Hollywood and ‘Big Media’) and the conclusions that they came to about W is off the charts whackjob.
    I disagreed completely w/ W on immigration, but I didn’t subscribe to the conspiracy theory that he was on the payroll of Mexico….just that he was well-intentioned but wrong. I will extend Obama the same respect, despite him being that last person I would have voted for (Chicago politics, big government, stupid ass sayings like ‘yes we can’.)

    @ 1:33 pm on January 20, 2009
  50. I’m just glad they found a woman large enough to fill that giant, purple hat…

    @ 1:37 pm on January 20, 2009
  51. Of course you are right, Trey. The purpose of the congressional black caucus is to be exclusionary and oppressive. Spot on.

    Seriously. This is starting to read like a well thumbed copy of an Ann Coulter novel. As usual, the playbook is to ignore the point, and instead recite an out of context bit of simple mind tripe, the kind that appeals to the lowest common denominator.

    An original criticism? Please? I thought not.

    @ 1:38 pm on January 20, 2009
  52. Whoops

    http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/

    Better get a proofreader.

    @ 1:50 pm on January 20, 2009
  53. Benediction at Obama ’s inauguration, Rev. Joseph Lowery:

    ‘Lord, in the memory of all the saints who from their labors rest, and in the joy of a new beginning, we ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back, when brown can stick around… when the red man can get ahead, man; and when white will embrace what is right. That all those who do justice and love mercy say Amen.

    “when white will embrace what is right?!?!” — now that is bringing our country together!

    @ 1:51 pm on January 20, 2009
  54. I like Tony Romo.

    @ 2:02 pm on January 20, 2009
  55. I love lamp.

    @ 2:06 pm on January 20, 2009
  56. I like steak.

    @ 2:16 pm on January 20, 2009
  57. This is actually a pretty mild blog, even when folks go into conniption fits over Bush.

    I’ve seen worse on MSNBC.

    @ 2:41 pm on January 20, 2009
  58. Unfortunately, Bethany has now pulled up the trap door to the tree house known as EB Nation and locked it to non-members of the Secret Club, so it will be difficult to compare degrees of blogging experiment failure between the two.

    @ 2:44 pm on January 20, 2009
  59. what else would you guys like to gripe about less than 5 hours into his term? so cranky, aren’t we? all this hope and goodwill and optimism, gosh, it must be just awful for you.

    @ 3:04 pm on January 20, 2009
  60. Obama’s seat and I agree (and the healing continues!).

    The Most Bilious — [announcer voice falsely suppressing chuckle] and hilarious! — Moments on FB (with some scenes that were Too Hot for the Censors!) are mild, mild, mild stuff compared to most political blogs, left or right.

    @ 3:23 pm on January 20, 2009
  61. I would agree with that, sure.

    @ 3:24 pm on January 20, 2009
  62. Joe Biden is going to be a blast to follow over the next 4 years….he isn’t Amtrack’s most famous commuter, he’s just a trainwreck.
    Good to see AlGore there…..I still don’t know why he had a coat on in these days of Global Warming.
    Dick Cheney looked like Mr Potter from It’s a Wonderful life today.
    Enough Vice Presidential talk.

    @ 3:27 pm on January 20, 2009
  63. [deleted by ZC]

    Now THAT is an offensive comment.

    ZC: It was, SB, so I took it down. Everyone else, I’m letting this play out. (I’m not the only admin, so there are other deletions I am not in charge of.) Just watch your mouths no matter what side you are on.

    @ 3:40 pm on January 20, 2009
  64. @ Daniel: I have on my desk: a copy of Breaking Free, Herschel Walker’s “life with dissociative disorder” book; a Nicaraguan cigar; or a bottle of bloody Mary seasoning.

    Your choice. I’m tight on funds.

    @ 4:36 pm on January 20, 2009
  65. Welcome to Obama World! We’re just along for the ride.

    @ 9:44 pm on January 20, 2009
  66. My comments never vanish, they just fade away…

    Let’s remember that D Magazine is a Going Concern, this is their property – the structure is based on free market principles, and D magazine is under no obligation to publish what anyone has to say, in print or on the web.

    The writers who interact here have a lot riding on what they say, – and as editors, what they allow to be published under their name is their responsibility.

    If they proceed cautiously, so be it. They didn’t cover this **** in j-school, cut ‘em some slack.

    @ 10:44 pm on January 20, 2009
  67. Was the inauguration *today*?

    @ 12:27 am on January 21, 2009
  68. @ Trey

    I’d support the deleting of my comment. FB is clearly not the place for this kind of debate.

    If I may have a little leeway, I always enjoy a little political argument here:

    http://www.whistlestopper.com

    Tell ‘em towski sent ya…

    @ 7:41 am on January 21, 2009
  69. Summarizing from some of the messages here, if the other side once was harsh, disrespectful, disdainful, ugly, then it’s now okay for us to be harsh, disrespectful, disdainful, ugly. It’s the old “He hit me first” argument. I used to hear it all the time when my kids were young and didn’t know any better. They grew up eventually.

    @ 8:59 am on January 21, 2009
  70. I was deleted for chubbily gyrating — or put differently, for exercising great personal restraint and adding a deep burnish of dignity to the proceedings.

    I now require my money back twice.

    Look, it’s still negotiable, all right? You can give me five dollars, I’ll give it back to you, then you give me the same five dollars back again and we’ll call it even steven.

    @ 9:38 am on January 21, 2009
  71. While one is never pleased when his comments are deleted, this is why they are, and why I respect the decision.

    @ 10:11 am on January 21, 2009