(My favorite response to this hot and bothered dispatch was "Oh, for the love of God, man..." It's good to have honest friends.)
New York City (Dec. 21, 2009) -- To all the Republicans that might be getting this message, let me start with an apology and a disclosure; I've sipped the Kool-aid, bought the coffee mug, the t-shirt, the poster and the button. And then I pinned the button to my overcoat.
I've got Barack's back. For real, for real.
To see how a city could be filled with people acting generous to each other was a thing of beauty. We're all in this together, they seemed to be saying by way of their actions, and everything is going to be all right.
The crowd was crushing, but also gregarious. We sang "The Star-spangled Banner" while huddled together against the cold and then it was time for "We shall overcome."
Anything you said or did was heard and felt by dozens around you. This changes your behavior. And once you were out of the group, the wind was sharper and the benefit of being part of a group was nostalgic since that mass of people constituted one massive, if cold, organism.
Inside the security gates it was an easier time. My sister Shannon and her friend Shelly and me jumped a stone wall to get into an open field. A group of guys were helping everyone get over the fence and we all laughed when one of them said in a mocking tone that invoked President Reagan, "I say to you, tear down this wall."
We were about 400 yards away from the ceremony and could barely make out officials as they arrived to take their seats.
When former President Bush (that's so nice to type) was introduced the crowd burst into song. "Nah, nah, nah, nah/ nah, nah, nah, nah/ hey, hey, hey, goodbye." It was so loud that I'm certain he could hear us singing.
After the event, as we walked out into the city, Bush's helicopter swooped overhead and the crowd went wild again, waving and giving one-finger going-away gestures to W.
"I prayed for him the first time he was elected," one women near us said. "I was hoping for the best."
Her voice just trailed off. We all knew what came next. We had lived it.
But that's the thing. We had to earn Obama. We had to earn having a smart, funny and cool president. (One of the buttons for sale in D.C. was of Obama in the James Bond scope with "The 44th President" under his picture.)
So that was history. It wasn't easy and the crowds were of biblical proportions and it was cold, but it was grand.
Take care,
Brett
