Inauguration notes

Okay I’ll buy in now.

There was some booing when dubya walked up, which I thought was awesome. The crowd was polite to Carter and the real George Bush, and went buck-wild for the Clintons.

“Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath.” — technically untrue, Mr. President. There now have been 44 presidents, including Obama, but only 43 of them were different people. The 22nd and 24th presidents were both Grover Cleveland, and arguably he was two different presidents, but he was definitely only a single American.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

THREATEN OUR PLANET. Looks like Climate Change is now officially recognized. I have a recommendation to Climate Change deniers: fuck off. Go move to the desert and hoard guns or something.

We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost.

Yay! Science! Maybe we can live in reality again!

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified.

I think this is awesome. Maybe all the debate shows on TV can be canceled now, since they are based on politics rather than solving problems. I can dream anyway.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill.

I like that too. Money has no moral alignment.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.

Finally! someone call Bruce Schneier.

CAT scan

I was thrashing around putting a too-late lunch together yesterday (Monday) and I hit my head REALLY hard on the kitchen counter.

Over the next few hours I got really sleepy and sort of flaky– it was difficult to articulate thoughts in words. Diane took me to the ER.

After waiting about 4 hours I got a CAT scan which showed I was not concussed and had no permanent damage. However I still (Tuesday morning) have a slight headache and I’m still sleepy.

I woke up several times last night in a panic: what if I couldn’t clear my head? Would I still be able to program? Would I still be able to write? What if I am in a fog forever? A lot of it was because I was just waking up, and not due to head trauma.

This morning I feel much better, if a little headachey. I got mom to drive me to work.