http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2009/01/rev_lowery_inauguration_benedi.html

Rosalie Stine

Hi Johnny,
I checked your blog this morning hoping to read your comments on the inauguration yesterday. Hope you were able to watch it. All of it was like a breath of fresh air after a suffocating past eight years. But the highlight, to me, was the benediction. In case you hadn't gotten to hear it I hope you'll read it in it's entirety at the link above.

~

Sorry I haven't been on the blog. As of late, I've been throwing myself into a new project. In fact I was so involved in it that I missed every bit of inauguration news there was... excepting Jon Stewart's late night - haha- report.

I suppose it must feel as though some barrier has been broken for the former slaves of whitey. But seriously, while I appreciate what this day embodies for them, and everyone for that matter, the day is no more or less historic than any other. I see masses of people who've simply waited for the times to change.

Obama deserves all the respect in the world for what he's accomplished. But the average black man or woman will be no better or worse off today than the day before. Instead of taking pride in what the President has accomplished, they should be ashamed at their lack of the courage, conviction, fortitude and principles that Obama has displayed throughout his life, and that ultimately won him the presidency. Any one 37 or older and native born can run for the highest office in the country. It's been this way for years, the black man is not held down by the few racist pricks who still exist. He's held down by his own expectations of what he can achieve.

A man once asked why I was so happy that our high school football team had made it to the divisional playoffs. I, being young and dumb answered "because their my team." He laughed and said, "You shouldn't be celebrating. You should be ashamed that you didn't have the balls to join them on that field. This is their victory not yours." The same goes for the people celebrating on the mall of our capital: This is not your victory, this is the time to ask yourselves why it wasn't you on the podium.

PS:I'll admit that I celebrated a little as well. But you can't blame me... Bush is finally gone!