Comments on: Inauguration Liveblog

By: The Hunsblog » Live-Blogging My Phone Call to the California Student Aid Commission

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 18:36:15 +0000

[...] Most notably this occurs at sporting events, music festivals, conferences, and most recently, political events. Today I venture my first attempt at live blogging, a phone call with the California Student Aid [...]

By: patty

patty — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:17:26 +0000

Don't quote me, but I think the hamsters we want to harness were all gathered in Aretha's hat.

By: The Confabulum » Blog Archive » Citizenship vs. Love (II)

The Confabulum » Blog Archive » Citizenship vs. Love (II) — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 17:09:40 +0000

[...] Will Wilkinson translates Obama’s inaugural: Basically, all dichotomies are false. Freedom AND security. Free markets AND big government. […] The troops are awesome, because they “find meaning in something larger than themselves.” So we all need to be like troops in the war on badness. [...]

By: Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 05:18:03 +0000

Hey, why'd you stop in the middle of the inauguration? It was getting really good!

By: Kevin B. O'Reilly

Kevin B. O'Reilly — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 02:41:26 +0000

Enh. I liked your commentary. “Facebook us, Kenya!” Classic.

By: DMonteith

DMonteith — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:51:32 +0000

But of course.

By: Sol

Sol — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:47:39 +0000

If you mean the song with lyrics something like “Dance, dance, whomever you may be”, then that's just a different set of words to the tune of “Simple Gifts”, and the piece at the inauguration seemed to be a John Williams arrangement/bastardization of part of Aaron Copland's arrangement of “Simple Gifts”. (That is to say, Copland's ballet “Appalachian Spring”.)

If instead you are implying some sort of Michael Flatley involvement, I must have missed that bit.

By: jryager

jryager — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:36:41 +0000

“Facebook us Kenya” had me hanging on to my chair so I didn't fall out.

By: Greg N.

Greg N. — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:20:35 +0000

I take it back. Just watched it again and it the “nonbelievers” part was on par with the others. I wish he had started with us, though.

By: Greg N.

Greg N. — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:17:51 +0000

Even watching the speech with my class, I couldn't help but say out loud, “say atheists, say atheists, say atheists” and then give a “woo hoo!” when we got “nonbelievers.” That said, and maybe I'm making this up, I thought I heard him kind of toss that one in as an aside.

THAT said, I'm convinced Obama isn't religious in any meaningful way, which is to say in any way that doesn't help him politically. And that's something.

By: B

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:16:45 +0000

I've been trying to think of an atheist benediction for weeks now. The best I can come up with are only slightly more eloquent than “drive safely and don't forget to tip your server.”

But maybe that would be OK.

By: Tim

Tim — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:13:58 +0000

I agree with that as well. As one of those non believers – who doesn't make a big deal when believers assert their right to invoke god – I was very happy to hear it. It was a pleasant surprise.

By: Will Wilkinson

Will Wilkinson — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:56:49 +0000

I agree! Woo!

By: Will Wilkinson

Will Wilkinson — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:56:23 +0000

You're right. The romance of politics drives me crazy in a way it doesn't for most people. So I know I do look like a jerk. Obama's speech was indeed sober and appropriate. That's part of what I meant about his being boring, which I really hope he keeps up.

By: RonCo

RonCo — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:54:30 +0000

Also (I forgot to add) just his use of the word “nonbelievers” was worth the whole show. I can't recall another President even acknowledging that they exist. Obama 2nd inaug program item: atheist benediction! Change we can believe in! So to speak.