Switch! And the ugliness begins…UPDATED

One of the best-delivered inaugural addresses I’ve ever heard, although “we are ready to lead once more” seems inappropriate to me – (and to Ann Althouse, too) – as Bush has led the whole world in fighting terrorism and AIDS) and a touching farewell as President and Mrs. Obama saw off the Bush’s, and one really can hope that finally the tone can change and we can enter into a post-partisan era. But I think perhaps the left does not understand that calling the right “yahoos” and “neanderthals” (and throwing shoes at the president in effigy) and so forth has left a wound that will not heal overnight.

There was some wonderful imagery in that speech, and some gorgeous prose. He threw a mild bone to the Bush-haters, which is politics, I guess, but it was jarring and seemed misplaced and a bit ungracious, but then, this is politics. Those few bones kept it from being anywhere near the speech of the century.

I was surprised at how poorly Chief Justice Roberts administered the oath of office. I like Obama’s manner, very much.

And sorry, but that poem by Elizabeth Alexander was awful. Badly written, badly delivered. I can think of ten rappers who could have written something more meaningful than that vapid-prose pretending to be free-verse.

Tomorrow morning, President Obama’s first act will be what had also been Bill Clinton’s first act as president, to overturn the Mexico City Policy, thus allowing federal funds to be spent on abortions overseas.

Well, that does not give me much hope. This is interesting:

President Reagan first put the Mexico City Policy in place and it is named for a population conference that took place in the Mexican capital in 1984 when he introduced it.

President George H.W. Bush continued the pro-life policy, President Clinton overturned it, and President George W. Bush kept it for eight years and threatened to veto any Congressional spending bill reversing it.

So, this policy keeps going back and forth – Republicans come in, they end funding for overseas abortions, Democrats come in, and the “first thing” they do is put the funding back.

It almost seems like the first thing they’re doing is making a token offering to Moloch – to the Culture of Death.

Which is why we need to pray for our presidents.

So, the ugliness starts.

Sorry, I can’t go along with “praying for Obama’s failure.” I don’t believe in negative prayers; there is no negative in Christ.

I can pray, however, that Obama’s heart be turned away from political expediency and the pop-culture-glamor excesses to that which best serves our nation.

Such a prayer requires trusting that God knows more than I do, and that what I “think” will be best for the nation at any given moment may not be what God thinks – or, that what I want to see is not what must happen, for the very “best” thing to occur.

To pray for President Obama to “fail” would be exactly like those haters on the left, who wanted the economy to fail, who wanted our young people killed in Iraq, who wanted nothing but bad to happen for Bush. Might be emotionally satisfying to pursue that for a day or two, but that’s a prayer that would ultimately be bad for the nation, and bad for my soul.

And God help me the day I ever think along the lines of Ellen Ratner, who famously told Linda Vestor on Fox that “we’ll have to hope things go badly in Iraq, so we can get the White House,” before the ’04 elections. If I was reduced to that, I’d bite a gun.

President Bush will undoubtedly be praying for the good of the nation. If you can’t make a positive prayer for Obama, then make that your prayer, too. Don’t let your heart be consumed by this stuff, or your soul. Remember that half of what you see is illusory and passing.

Linking around:
Best point-counterpoint: Anne Applebaum says “Barack is Capt. Sullenberger”. Bob Owens says, “No, he’s High Speed Pate”

Yeah, lots of switching going on.

And sorry, but this switch is backwards; the president is the servant of the people, not the other way around. At least in America.

Is AlQaeda dying by their own biological weaponry?

Okay, I’m going to try to keep an open mind about Obama, but I don’t need to have one about Mrs. Pelosi or Mr. Reid, who are well-known at this point, and so let me just get this off my chest, now, so I don’t have to repeat myself:

Ed Morrissey: Good Luck, President Obama

Tony Blankley: Economic Crapshoot Ahead

No, this will not end Bush Derangement Syndrome. That’s a whole industry and mindset unto itself, full of spiteful people who need to hate. It will grow dim but never end.