Gitmo. No more. In one year's time, the infamous prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba will close, indefinitely, therefore thrusting America back on the road to the world's perception of redemption. Barack Obama, on his second day as the President of the United States, signed an executive order issuing this decision. It was a bold move in the first 48 hours of his presidency, but a move that must build confidence in any of his detractors and naysayers. It's a small clue showing that he is more substance than style... that he will carry out the promises on the campaign trail, or try very hard to.
In addition to the Gitmo order, he also signed rules on lobbying, government ethics and transparency. Change, anyone? I think so. So, Obama is actually doing what he said he would do? Is this really possible? Obviously, it's too early to tell, but these are major steps in the right direction to really making a difference in American politics. Most of all, with these early moves, he's setting the bar very high for himself, but also future politicians.
So, with this week's post, I want to ask you a question. What should be the next priority for the Obama team? Should he get moving on the environment next? Should he take immediate/drastic measures to fix the economy? Obviously, a president can do more than one thing at a time, so what are his priorities? What's next?
On a side note with some similarities, has anyone heard about the Morgan Freeman documentary (PROM NIGHT IN MISSISSIPPI) about segregated proms? This is a very interesting story. Eleven years ago, Morgan Freeman heard about a high school in his home state that had a segregated prom - one black prom, one white prom. So, he offered to pay for a joined prom. It was met with much resistance, as over a decade passed before the school decided to accept his idea. When I first read about this, I was amazed that there's that much insanity going on. I know it's the South, but come on! It's 2009 in the South. We've passed most movies' idea of the future - 2001: A Space Odyssey, in THE TERMINATOR films, judgment day is in 1997, and I forget when DEMOLITION MAN takes place, but it's right around now.
So, my question here is this: What can we do on a daily basis to rid the country (then world) of racism? Knowledge is power. So, do whites have to learn more about black and African history? Should there be a weekly public discussion or TV show that talks about the roots of race problems? Should there be more or harsher bigotry laws? Should we all hold hands and sing sweet loves songs until we're so slap happy we couldn't care less if our neighbor was green? Or, does everyone just not care? My main concern is that racism stunts the growth of a nation. One of my main goals is to rid the world of any and all ignorance. So, I'm invested in this on a moral level. Plus, I'm a new parent. And, these are the things I think about when looking at my son's future. I want him to see the world and people in bright, exciting, unique and interesting colors. Not black and white... unless he's watching a really good film.
Not very many jokes in today's post. Chris Rock was right - it's hard to make Obama jokes. You can't really make Michael Jordan jokes, either. It's hard to be funny about excellence and brilliance. But, I do apologize. I'll try and be funny next week.
