That's one way to put it

Everyone has the right to protest, at least here in America they do. We kind of pride ourselves on that whole freedom of speech deal. As we should. There are many countries that don't extend that right to their citizens. Voicing dissent can be met with severe punishment, even more harsh than the criticisms The Dixie Chicks received after lead singer Natalie Maines made her ill-timed statement about President Bush. But I digress... Over at the PrawfsBlawg, Mr. Paul Horwitz had the following to say after reading this piece at The Times...

I found today’s New York Times story about the thousands of protestors who made their way to the streets of the nation’s capital to protest big government compelling and a veritable profile in courage. As they made their way “by bus [on federally funded highways, carried in buses whose safety, licensing, and non-discrimination policies follow federal mandates], car [mostly those of the post-Pinto, NHTSA-approved, non-exploding variety], and airplane [under FAA supervision]” to the streets (road maintenance and sewer service permitting) of the District of Columbia (see, e.g., U.S. Const., Art. I, s.8, cl. 17), these valiant souls faced fire (happily, less of a worry, given the existence of . . . fire departments), famine (especially in those parts of America’s heartland, seedbed of independence, where the seeds come courtesy of federal agricultural subsidies), flood (OK – maybe we haven’t done a perfect job here, although, if I recall correctly, we’ve at least done a heckuva job), and foes (kept at bay, it is true, by a substantial police presence, in possible combination with a large number of concealed weapons) to deliver one powerful, sincere, totally consistent and coherent message: Get the government off our backs!

This could be you

And a good portion of the world breathed a sigh of relief

President Obama in the Oval Office on Wednesday

photo credit: Pete Souza/The White House

What are some of his first moves? 

1. Pay freezes for senior White House staff. Good.
   
2. Tightening rules on lobbyists. Good.
   
3. Ordering immediate halt to all pending military war crime trials so he can review the information. Good. 
   
4. Not giving a job to anyone in an area in which he or she had lobbied within the two preceding years. Good.
   
5. Scheduled meeting with military leaders to draw up plans for draw down of troops in Iraq. Very good.
   

Happy Inauguration Day!

Wow. I'm listening to NPR while feeding Monsieur Henry a breakfast of scrambled eggs with cheese, cereal, and applesauce, and I have just heard that outgoing Vice President Dick Cheney (in a wheelchair because he somehow hurt himself lifting boxes) and incoming Vice President Joe Biden are getting into the cars to head off to the inaugural ceremony. And now outgoing President George W. Bush and incoming President Barack Obama are doing the same. What a huge relief today brings.