President Obama
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
I'm breaking in a new keyboard. Please forgive the spelling errors or odd typos.
I sat through most of the Inaugural address, even though I was at work. My company streamed it to our desktops. Oh brave new world, and all that.
I listened with the cynical ear of a Yerpie that has listened to too many politicians, and one that saw all the hopes we had for Labour fall apart, and I did a lot of grinning. Yes, Obama said a lot of nice things; he mentioned a return to diplomacy, a willingness to treat other cultures with respect, a desire to put science at the forefront of education, a reminder to the world that you still don't mess with the United States and expect no response, and a dozen other things.
He spoke about the need to grow up and face a world in which we can't always have what we want and in which we have to think about where the cornucopia is drawing it's bounty from. He spoke about fortitude, about the great strength of America which lies not in guns or missiles, or even in technology, but in the will of its people to do what is right. He reminded the American people that with that will, nothing is beyond their reach.
At about this point, my literary radar (my wordy-sense, if you prefer) started pinging away like mad.
President Obama was shifting gears between lofty rhetoric and simple, plain terms with ease. He was speaking to everyone at the same time. As Kipling said
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;"
His name is Jon Favreau, he's 27, he's the youngest chief writer in Whitehouse history and the President refers to him as his "mindreader". Between them, they seem to have constructed a piece of rhetoric that is destined to go down in history. How it is remembered is for time to decide, but it lit all sorts of happy lights in my word-loving heart and, even as the message was driven home by the President's presentational skills, I realised that the days of stumbling Gerorge W and his overabundance of Common Touch were gone.
History will judge President Obama; we've had the words and the deeds are yet to come, but I can't help feeling a sense of optimism and joy. We have a man in the White House who loves words as much as I do. All of a sudden, I look forward to the State of the Union address.
5 comments:
Shakespeare did the same common/exalted thing, as regards wording.
And there's someone in The Day of the Triffids whose accent does it.
My inner cynic keeps remarking, 'Anyone can say the right things.' Yes, but at least Obama is saying the right (mature, peaceful, fact-facing) things.
He's also an encouraging example of someone with a loser absentee father who has been successful despite having no paternal encouragement. 80)
Is your new keyboard the one with no letters on?
I agree with what you say about Mr Obama. He's the kind of chap you wouldn't mind being stuck in a lift with. And no matter what mistakes he may make, I will always bless him for closing Guantanamo Bay.
x
The new keyboard is a Microsoft ergonomic elite things, the curved one with the qwerty keys split into two sections so you're forced to use both hands in order to feel comfortable. It's getting easier to use, but the placement of keys is off compared to a normal keyboard, so until I learn it properly you get a lot of first run sentences like:
the quick borwn fox jumped over the lasxzy dsogs.
which is a lot worse than I type on a standard keyboard.
The old keyboard - yer basic black Dell model - had suffered much abuse and was about to give up the ghost. This one is also in prep for writing about 10,000 words of short story, which I was supposed to start tonight but didn't get to.
There is always tomorrow.
Plus, it is really hot in the flat and the PC has started to wheeze and protest. Off to bed with me, to dream of cooling solutions.
Why are you taking the PC off to bed with you?
:-O
'There is always tomorrow' - Well, there was until yesterday.
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