What a long, strange ride the last eight years have been. As I'm typing this, former President George W. Bush's helicopter is leaving the capitol headed for St. Andrews Air Force base. From there he and Laura will head home to Texas. And so ends his tumultuous two terms as President. I can't help feel a little melancholy about Bush's departure. I voted for him twice, but I was far from his biggest fan by the end of his second term. Still, I think he served as President in the best way he knew how. Sure, you can take issue with his ideals, his choices, even his belligerence or ignorance. But I think Bush is a principled man, a hard working man who cares deeply for this country, and he's leaving office under not just a cloud of embarrassment, but a full on hailstorm. He'll go down in history, at least over the short term, as the least popular President in history. He leaves as a housewarming gift for President Obama both a lingering war and a lingering recession. His legacy is one of complete and utter failure. I think that's sad.
As for Obama, welcome Barrack to your sweetest dream and your worse nightmare. You inherit and awful set of circumstances to rectify. And quickly. These problems aren't of your making, but you'll no doubt be held accountable even over only four years for finding quick and long-lasting solutions.
Today's inauguration was breathtaking. The speech was magnificent. The spectacle was nearly unmatched in my lifetime. This goes down as one of the seminal events of my 34 years. It's right there with the explosion of the Challenger and 9-11. Fortunately, this is an historic event that we should all remember fondly. Welcome, all, to a new age.
PS. Dear Barack, please keep gas prices low.
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