Yes We Did
Well, we just returned home after attending President-elect Barack Obama's victory rally here in Chicago. What a night. My first thoughts are of relief and happiness. However, it turns out I'm not really sure I know how to feel right now. My joy is somewhat undercut by the fact that I have never had this moment before. Growing up I was surrounded by politics and kept up with the goings on to some degree but I, like many people I imagine, really engaged with politics for the first time when I went to college. As a result my political consciousness has developed in hard times. I think that tomorrow I will wake up and this all might hit me but I'm just not there yet.
Matt
1 comment:
Yeah, I guess I'm just feeling like there's a lot of tough choices ahead. There's no way Obama's going to have the cash to do everything he promises, so I hope he can be a president of belt tightening, hardship, and cleaning up messes.
Is Obama the guy to lower our expectations? To lead the US to dealing with lower consumption and lower incomes? Better than the alternative, obviously, but that's not saying much.
So I don't think of it so much as Yes We Did as I think of it as Yes We Will. Yes We Will raise gas taxes. Yes We Will cut taxes on personal savings. Yes We Will cut Social Security, the military, and Medicare. Yes We Will cap carbon emissions. Yes We Will bust teacher's unions. Yes We Will cut off the auto and steel industries. Yes We Will expand free trade and eliminate farm subsidies.
All I'm saying is that sacrifice and scarcity should be the theme of the day now, and I'll be interested in seeing between now and January if Obama can keep it real.
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