There was such a hullabaloo back in November when Obama was elected President that got a majority of Americans wrapped up in politics, but what exactly has Obama been up to since he took office (besides this whole Stimulus Package mess)?
To answer that question with style, NPR (National Public Radio) has a nifty Flash program on their website called The Obama Tracker. It lays out each day's major work (eg Jan 27:"Aid for Gaza Refugees") and puts each item into one of three (color-coded) categories: Economic, Domestic, or Foreign policy.
Showing posts with label Obama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Obama. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Poem Read at President Obama's Inauguration
Praise Song for the Day
by Elizabeth Alexander
A Poem for Barack Obama's Presidential Inauguration
Each day we go about our business,
walking past each other, catching each other's
eyes or not, about to speak or speaking.
All about us is noise. All about us is
noise and bramble, thorn and din, each
one of our ancestors on our tongues.
Someone is stitching up a hem, darning
a hole in a uniform, patching a tire,
repairing the things in need of repair.
Someone is trying to make music somewhere,
with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum,
with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.
A woman and her son wait for the bus.
A farmer considers the changing sky.
A teacher says, Take out your pencils. Begin.
We encounter each other in words, words
spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed,
words to consider, reconsider.
We cross dirt roads and highways that mark
the will of some one and then others, who said
I need to see what's on the other side.
I know there's something better down the road.
We need to find a place where we are safe.
We walk into that which we cannot yet see.
Say it plain: that many have died for this day.
Sing the names of the dead who brought us here,
who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,
picked the cotton and the lettuce, built
brick by brick the glittering edifices
they would then keep clean and work inside of.
Praise song for struggle, praise song for the day.
Praise song for every hand-lettered sign,
the figuring-it-out at kitchen tables.
Some live by love thy neighbor as thyself,
others by first do no harm or take no more
than you need. What if the mightiest word is love?
Love beyond marital, filial, national,
love that casts a widening pool of light,
love with no need to pre-empt grievance.
In today's sharp sparkle, this winter air,
any thing can be made, any sentence begun.
On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp,
praise song for walking forward in that light.
by Elizabeth Alexander
A Poem for Barack Obama's Presidential Inauguration
Each day we go about our business,
walking past each other, catching each other's
eyes or not, about to speak or speaking.
All about us is noise. All about us is
noise and bramble, thorn and din, each
one of our ancestors on our tongues.
Someone is stitching up a hem, darning
a hole in a uniform, patching a tire,
repairing the things in need of repair.
Someone is trying to make music somewhere,
with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum,
with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.
A woman and her son wait for the bus.
A farmer considers the changing sky.
A teacher says, Take out your pencils. Begin.
We encounter each other in words, words
spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed,
words to consider, reconsider.
We cross dirt roads and highways that mark
the will of some one and then others, who said
I need to see what's on the other side.
I know there's something better down the road.
We need to find a place where we are safe.
We walk into that which we cannot yet see.
Say it plain: that many have died for this day.
Sing the names of the dead who brought us here,
who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,
picked the cotton and the lettuce, built
brick by brick the glittering edifices
they would then keep clean and work inside of.
Praise song for struggle, praise song for the day.
Praise song for every hand-lettered sign,
the figuring-it-out at kitchen tables.
Some live by love thy neighbor as thyself,
others by first do no harm or take no more
than you need. What if the mightiest word is love?
Love beyond marital, filial, national,
love that casts a widening pool of light,
love with no need to pre-empt grievance.
In today's sharp sparkle, this winter air,
any thing can be made, any sentence begun.
On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp,
praise song for walking forward in that light.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Every American Should See This Chart
"Obama and McCain's Tax Proposals," from the Washington Post
Read every word on it (even the small ones), and this chart basically stands for itself. Love it or hate it (which all depends on your point of view), this is what your family's income will look like in 2009.
The only extra piece of information that I would use to contextualize the numbers is that Obama's tax increase on the top 1% of earners in the country comes from eliminating the tax cuts that Bush put into place at the beginning of his first term. This means that the top 1%'s taxes go back to the same levels as in the 1990s (and they get to keep that 10% extra from the meantime).
Read every word on it (even the small ones), and this chart basically stands for itself. Love it or hate it (which all depends on your point of view), this is what your family's income will look like in 2009.
The only extra piece of information that I would use to contextualize the numbers is that Obama's tax increase on the top 1% of earners in the country comes from eliminating the tax cuts that Bush put into place at the beginning of his first term. This means that the top 1%'s taxes go back to the same levels as in the 1990s (and they get to keep that 10% extra from the meantime).
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