Contributor Opinion By John Britton: Another Inaugural Observation

>The following contributor opinion is by Rockville City Council member John Britton:

It was not difficult to make the decision whether to stay at home and enjoy the inaugural events from the comfort and warmth of our living room or go to what promised to be a too-crowded, too frigid Mall to view the Inaugural events. A no-brainer; It was go from the beginning for all of us – Katherine, Eric , Anna and myself – to hear the Inaugural address directly, to see the people, to breathe the same air as President Obama and the other dignitaries, to insert ourselves into a moment of history. We did not have tickets to anything, so we were full into the common man thing which kept our expectations at a manageable level. To our great surprise, these expectations were exceeded.

We decided to head into downtown on Monday evening to spend the night in my office located within the security zone. Think camping without s’mores and mosquitoes; hotel without the beds! Apart from being in a room with a hyperactive motion detection light system, the accommodations were, well, accommodating. Being there gave us the strategic advantage of leaving the office in the morning by foot, destination anywhere on the Mall (with a quick stop in Starbucks for breakfast). We quickly learned of the mass of humanity travails at the east end of the Mall and worked our way from 7th Street, NW to 18th Street, NW before finding our access to the Mall. If nothing else, the trek across downtown DC – devoid of automobiles save for the occasional emergency vehicle — was worth the moment. Along the way were ad hoc vendors selling everything imaginable, restaurants with their offerings and urns of coffee set out on tables in the street and spontaneous celebrations at nearly every turn – as one pundit put it, “a block party of historic proportions”. By the time we encountered the snaking conga line led by someone dressed in a polar bear outfit singing tunes to Obama, we were no longer surprised by what downtown could offer that day.

After a minor stand-off with the National Guard who were woefully outnumbered by the masses (power to the people!), we worked our way onto the Mall and stood in the shadow of the Washington Monument. We arrived in plenty of time for the swearing-in ceremony, with a view of a jumbotron and clear, crisp audio projecting from the Capitol Building platform. There was an ever so slight but detectable disconnect between the movement of lips on the screen and the words that we heard – akin to watching one of those old B-rated, 1960’s era Japanese horror films. But certainly no distraction from the solemnity of the moment. After its obligatory booing and hissing in the beginning each time President Bush or Vice President Cheney appeared on the screen, the crowd fell into an incredible hush. To the dilemma of how to silence nearly 2 million people, evidently you need only a Barack Obama on the stage in front of them. And what a crowd – the mood and diversity made the scene the mother of all Pepsi commercials.

At the risk of being hyperbolic – actually there is no such risk in this situation – the experience was exhilarating, majestic, stunning, breathtaking [insert superlative here]. Put simply, it was awesome. Even through the slightly harrowing situation of 1.8 million people implementing the same exit strategy at the same time (when even the words “yes we can” presumed herculean efforts!), the day’s experience could not be diminished. We now proudly carry the right to say for all time, “We were there!”

John Britton

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The Inaugural View From Our Fair City

This afternoon >Barack Obama was inaugurated 44th President of the United States. The leaders of Our Fair City were kind enough to make the Mayor and Council chambers available to watch the ceremony for those who could not make the trip into DC. (The Lincoln Park Community Center and the Rockville Senior Center also hosted similar gatherings.)

I attended with my family and enjoyed myself thoroughly — it was a wonderful feeling to watch our nation’s orderly transfer of power with my fellow citizens.

The mayor and council chambers were reconfigured to make it more theater-style, and the seats were mostly filled by 10:30. In a darkened room, there was a constant buzz of conversation. Even here, at this remote location, people brought cameras and flashes popped, people capturing the event.

While the crowd held a tinge of partisanship, it was much more about the ceremony. Amidst the chit chat, there was a solemn tone to the room. Coffee brought in shortly before eleven, and a line formed immediately, chatter and jostling. It was a capacity crowd, with citizens even sitting at the normally reserved chairs for the City Manager.

I saw city council members Piotr Gajewski and Phyllis Marcuccio, as well as city manager Scott Ullery. There may have been other notables, but those are the ones I saw.

Obama and Bush appeared together, and the room erupted in applause as they approached the limo. Each time he appeared, a woman behind me told her toddler children, “There’s Barack Obama! See, look!” It’s not every day we treat presidents (or presidents-elect) as the celebrities they truly are. To a civic geek such as myself, it warmed my heart.

A cheer and then a hush — and then finally another resounding cheer — filled the room as Barack Obama took the oath of office. You can see the scene by clicking on the YouTube video link:

“We have chosen hope over fear,” said President Obama. “The time has come to choose our better history.” I am proud to have as president an orator who is up to the weight of his words — and who is unafraid to raise his rhetoric so high.

And I am proud to live in a town that embodies the “spirit of service and responsibility to one another” that President Obama called us to in his inaugural speech.

Now, as a city, as neighbors, as individuals: What will we do to make real this call to step forward? What will you do?