Change Your Mind!

The Inauguration of a lifetime

He is the 44^th president, 47 years-old and fourth youngest president to be elected.

He is following in the footsteps of many inspiring leaders before him, but as for the first time a president is not just making history he is changing history for the better.

Hundreds of years in the making, and a moment no one will forget. Today is the day Barack Obama swears to God and country to not only lead the world, but save it.

During times of despair and an unknown future Barack Obama has a difficult road ahead. A road few envy, but many worry he will either flounder or fortify.

He asked us to believe in change, believe in him and believe in ourselves. One man won the hearts of the world by saying little more than those words.

He motivated the world to believe and gained a 78-percent approval rating coming into office, more than most presidents before him.

He stood his ground and revived the spirits of Martin Luther King Jr. and President Abraham Lincoln to carry out his message of hope to the masses.

Two million people waited by the reflecting pool and all the monuments built by slaves for a glimpse or word from America’s first elected African American president.

Then it came.  He accepted the oath into office and “A New Birth of Freedom,” echoed through the minds of millions as he addressed the nation with words of encouragement….

“On this day we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, on this day we come to proclaim an end to petty grievance and false promises, we remain a young nation and the time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit…..the God given promise that all are equal all are free and all deserve a chance to preserve their full measure of happiness.”

“We must dust ourselves and remake again the working of America.”

“Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism they knew that our power grows from them just as our cause and the tempers in qualities of humility and strength. We can meet those new threats that demand even greater quality and new nations with all friends and former foes we will not apologize for out way of life.”

“Know that your people will judge you on what you build not what you destroy.”

“As we consider the roads that unfold before us, we remember those brave Americans who have something to tell as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper throughout the ages a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. It is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all. It is the kindness to take a stranger when the levies break, it is the firefighter courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke…..”

Consumed by his color, inspired by his honesty and hanging on his every word, Obama once again hypnotized the audience with his strong and poetic speech, but as President Bush leaves the White House, one can’t help but wonder what is next?

Will out new president live up to his promises? Will the world truly change? Will women be seen as equal? Will homosexuals be seen as equal? Will our current economic worries change for the better? So many questions, and not enough answers, but if history has taught us anything it is that time will only tell and today will live forever as the day the world embraced an African American man as their leader of the free world.

Where's the little guy in the Big Three?

Ok, I had to write something about the Big Three bailout plan and although no decision has yet been made, it doesn’t look good. Despite the facts, I think a few things have been over looked by our government.

President-elect Barack Obama has immediately started to address this issue and according to his speech yesterday he is not in support of bailing out the Big Three and he condemned them for not having a better plan.

Some expert’s think simply giving the Big Three $25 billion dollars (which is not enough anyway) will not solve their long term problems nor do they think tax payers should have to pay for this, I agree.  But with the increase in unemployment rates due to the closing of assembly plants won’t we end up paying for it anyway?

The three American-owned auto companies employ 75 percent of the nation’s 333,000 total auto workers including foreign-owned companies, according to the New York Times.

So far this year GM has laid off 5,500 employees, and Ford plans to lay off 760 employees at a plant in Minnesota. All together if nothing is done soon for the Big Three auto companies, then there could be a combined loss of 50,000 jobs, according to the World Socialist Website.

The Chrysler Belvidere Assembly Plant in the small town of Belvidere Illinois is the 20^th Chrysler plant to receive layoffs this year. This plant will lay off 2,400 employees before Christmas, which means those people who normally receive a yearly salary of $50 to $60,000, will get next to nothing.

The small town of Belvidere relies on this assembly plant for the majority of their employment and while these employees will receive severance packages, there are no there are no long term plans for their future. These packages are not jobs.

Obama, who I support, is not thinking about these people. He is currently assembling his financial team and is talking about a bailout package of over $10 trillion dollars, to be used towards our national debt and help us out of the housing crisis, but where is the little guy in this decision?

Republicans and Democrats agree this country needs money now and spending is something we eventually have to do, but what about spending some money on the thousands of people loosing their jobs at these auto plants across the country?

Despite recent allegations that the Union is to blame for high wages and too much employee benefits, I think the corporations are at fault. After all it was their decision to continue making SUV’s, trucks and other non-fuel efficient cars, knowing full well that times were changing and in order to stay in business they need to stay ahead of the curve.

So what about the people making the cars?  Where is their bailout plan?  And if the plan to refuse money then the government should think of a LONG-TERM plan to immediately help these people before Christmas. After all we elected these people, and last time I checked it was their job to serve us not their agendas.

Only 70 days left!

It’s been exactly one week and one day since Sen. Obama was named our new President-elect and the heads of the media, government and free-world are already spinning.

Economically, Obama has started to make plans for another stimulus package, this time with more money that will be directed to specific organizations and unions, but this may not be soon enough.

On the international front especially with China, trade relations among the U.S and China remain worrisome and some people think Obama’s campaign promise to impose more regulations on imports is not a good idea, especially with the U.S.’s continuing failing economy.

“Four years is going to be a really short time and the U.S. is financing three wars, plus the global economy,” said Chen Yong, University of California, economic student.

Yong thinks trade relations between the U.S. and China are already on shaky grounds and with China’s new $586 billion bailout, their countries economy is going to get out of this economic slope faster that the U.S., which could mean more trouble for the U.S.

“If Obama, puts high tariffs (more regulations on imports) on China, then we are putting a limitation on one of the biggest trade partners and that will further ruin the economy,” said Yong.

It seems as though people all over the world are genuinely worried about what new changes he will make in the White House, and after these last eight-year we should be.

We already know who he has designated as his Chief of Staff, (a well known Chicago politician and Congressman, Raum Emmanuel) and we also know his right-hand man, David Axelrod, will be given all the keys to the White House, and with his history, there lies more controversy.

Another issue (not policy oriented) is the kinds of people he will be begin to surround himself with, such as the 10-plus political democrats from Chicago, and whether those people have enough experience outside of being his friends to help him lead the country.

While it would be great to be able to foresee the future, I for one am glad that I cannot, because if I could I would not have enjoyed being there the day Obama was elected president.

It will take a long time to clean up the eight-year mess Bush made and I want to give Obama the benefit of the doubt, contrary to popular belief in my eyes he is not the messiah.

National Public Radio Podcast

Honestly I do not listen to many podcasts, but I do listen to National Public Radio online, that is until I recently found NPR’s Planet Money podcast.

Like the trustworthy NPR this podcast did not disappoint. I like it because unlike shock jocks on the political morning radio shows, these guys are factual, have no bias and include a variety of important stories with good interviews.

Hosts Alex Bloomberg and Dan Costello gain perspective from economists, money experts, and regular people all weighing in on the current U.S. economy and the global economy.

Their shows usually last no longer their 30 minutes and doesn’t include a lot of economist jargon, which is something I think is important when explaining these important economic issues.

Today’s 5p.m. show “Bankruptcy Goes Big Time,” discussed current bankruptcy issues within major corporations, such as General Motors. They also discussed housing stock prices and the lowering of health benefits within these failing corporations.

Their first interview was from Chicago bankruptcy attorney Steve Jakubowski, who said unlike American Airlines, GM will not file for bankruptcy because of certain government stipulations associated with Filing. They went on to discuss options these major corporations have when choosing to opt out of Bankruptcy.

Needless to say I learned a lot more about bankruptcy and realized just how many corporations continue to go under in our failing economy.

National Public Radio has always been a great source of news information, but unlike a live stream radio show, a podcast show, like this one, reports not only news but answers specific questions, that the mainstream media doesn’t.

It was a magical night!

At the end of the longest line in the world with my ticket in hand I stood among the 230,000 other people waiting to see Obama and witness history.

I stood shoulder to shoulder with these people for over three hours waiting. I stood there with my continuous lower back pain waiting. I stood there with my ongoing cold/cough that had plagued me all week, waiting, and for all it was worth I would do it all over again, in a heartbeat.

Under the luminous lights of the city, watching police on their horses patrol every inch of the streets, I finally made it into Hutchinson Field, 100 yards from the podium, standing like everyone else watching the poll results roll in on the big screen until I heard, “Barack Obama will be the next President of the United States!”

That moment felt like a dream, the crowd went wild, but all I could do was take it in, the 60-degree weather, the soft breeze blowing on my face, it was surreal to watch the thousands of people around me throw their hands in the air, and reach for the night sky.

Before last night, I was cynical about change and hope, and I did not like the idea of being in a large rowdy-crowd downtown late at night. But, there were no rude comments, nobody cutting people off when walking, it was as if I had been deported to another plant, these people were kind, polite and giggly and it was wonderful.

The crowd was a mix of black, white, Asian, Hispanic and Muslim men and women, some with mohawks, chains, sagging pants, weaves, and polo shirts all standing together for one purpose, and sharing in each others laughter and tears listening to the words of our next president echo through the field.

I saw gray- haired white men tap their feet and nod their head to hip-hop music playing over the loud speakers.

I saw gay men and women publicly holding hands and kiss.

I saw Goth kids standing next to older more reserved men and women.

I saw a black man hug a white man who was a complete stranger.

It was as if after all these years, we were able to forget about our sorted racial past and unite, if for only one night. And it was then that I realized, amidst the laughing and the crying, that while we are all different in appearance we all want the same thing, a better life for us and a better life for our children.

As Obama ended his speech I looked around at the Muslim women next to me wearing their Hajibs hugging, and the black couple behind me rejoicing, and I noticed there was not one dry-eye in the crowd. Everyone was happy.  It was a magical night.