A Charge Kept

“I’ve often spoken to you about good and evil, and this has made some uncomfortable. But good and evil are present in this world, and between the two of them there can be no compromise.” -President George W. Bush, January 15, 2009

Tomorrow, we witness the departure of moral clarity. We bid farewell to a Commander-in-Chief that was not afraid to seperate good from evil and right from wrong. America will welcome the open-ended haze of buzz words meant only for Hallmark cards and elementary school self-esteem classes. We will miss the distinctions  made between freedom and tyranny as we walk the shaky ground of “hope” and “change.” We will miss the the unconditional love for America, the unreserved support for our troops, and most of all, the unwavering definition of life as the new guy struggles to cope with a definition he views as “above his pay grade.”

Hope’s true strength is drawn from firm principles, not a big government program. Change is believable only when it is attached to something meaningful. Crowds can chant “yes, we can,” all day long, but soon they will ask themselves, “what is it exactly that we can do?” Buzz words, we shall learn, wear thin during uncertain times.

Bush was certain about what was right and wrong, good and evil, and who was with us or against us. It was a firm worldview in a world that demanded weakness. Bush truly had a “charge to keep,” and he kept that charge, even at the cost of his popularity. We won’t have leadership, or character, like that in the White House for at least four years.

Obama will keep us happy. Bush kept us safe, but we were afraid to admit that safety made us happier than anything.

Thank You.

Berkeley’s So Excited, and They Just Can’t Hide It

UC Berkeley is giving students the chance to worship their dear leader. I received this e-mail from my old chancellor, Robert Birgeneau:

TO ALL MEMBERS OF THE BERKELEY CAMPUS COMMUNITY:

I invite you to join UC Berkeley students, faculty and staff and members of our local community at a public viewing of the inauguration of President Barack H. Obama on Tuesday, January 20, 2009, in Sproul Plaza.  A large screen will be installed at the main entrance to Sproul Hall, and proceedings from Washington, D.C. will be broadcast beginning at 7:30 am.  The Presidential Oath of Office will be administered by 9:00 am (noon EST), with the inaugural address following.  Note that the proceedings are outdoors and will be held rain or shine.  The University’s formal program will begin at 8:15 a.m.

Where was the JumboTron for Bush’s inauguration? The only  thing I remember when I was at Cal during the last Inauguration Day is the World Can’t Wait kids playing dress-up in their Guantanamo Bay uniforms. Now what will they do?

They get to change out of their orange jumpsuits and join the throngs of giddy Cal students that will scream louder than teenager girls at a Jonas Brothers Concert. Some women will faint, others will throw their underwear at the screen, and a few men will do a lap around Memorial Glade while speaking in tongues. Chancellor Birgeneau will give some remarks before he switches on the television, but he will be interrupted by his own uncontrollable weeping.

After Obama concludes his inaugural address, the students will be so moved that they will begin looting every business along Bancroft Avenue. They may even begin looting before Obama utters a single word, since Pastor Rick Warren’s opening prayer probably won’t sit well with any Berkeley locals. It will be a sight that that would have never been seen if the country decided to honor an American hero instead.

America gave us a president perfect for Berkeley and every other college campus across the country. Obama is the charismatic student sitting in the front row, whose answers sound brilliant only because he is good at explaining why he doesn’t have an answer. Obama is the young freshman that is willing to try anything, and be friends with anyone, since it is pretty cool to know an anarchist or a feminist when you’re away from your parents. His racist, anti-American friend is just a guy that sits in front of him in Sociology 3AC. The radical socialist and unapologetic domestic terrorist that he knows is just a dude living in his dorm. Obama is the the young, untenured professor that holds office hours in a coffee bar, and is quick to bump up your term paper grade unless you challenge his knowledge or question his brilliance. Americaan college students ultimately voted for one of their own.

America’s youth is drunk on Obama, and they will stay sloshed long past Inauguration Day. The media will order them more shots, prolonging the eventual hangover.

Berkeley’s non-Republicans should be grateful for the free party. My peers and I did not have the privilege of enjoying an early morning celebration on the University’s dime. Our attempt at celebration was inconvenienced by a few middle-fingers, some spit, and more curse words than a rant from Rod Blagojevich. But even in victory, something tells me that Berkeley’s liberals will be greeting campus Republicans the same exact way they did in defeat.  So much for Change.