Inauguration Day

Somehow I wound up scheduling the two talks I have given in Germany for Election Day last year and now Inauguration Day this year. The talk times were seemingly chosen at random from a selection of dates that happened to be available, but it is rather strange to me that two events in history I desperately wanted to observe were put off for the only speaking obligations I have had in this country. The time change meant of course things had barely begun to be interesting on Election Day, but yesterday I did miss the swearing in ceremony and the speech. Of course, I watched them both online later and found it rather appealing to both agree with the ideas about which my president was speaking as well as appreciate the words with which he chose to express himself.

I am not a true believer as some may call them. It seems rather clear the man is in fact human and many of the problems he is trying to solve are of the nature no human has ever encountered before. And no matter how many times god is called upon at our political events, there will be no divine intervention to solve the many problems facing society today. So, I know it will take time to stabilize the global financial system, make the health care system more accessible and effective for both our patients and physicians, move us towards environmentally safe ways of generating energy, improve our educational system, reinvest capital in investments that can grow sustainably and lead to future opportunities, and in general change a mindset of a country that has become accustomed to blind consumption. Will he be able to lead us effectively during this national time of crisis and bring forth a new time of prosperity and peace in the world??

I have no hopes of such high minded ideals, but in truth I hope we do all start giving more back to our communities, taking more active roles in the lives and educations of our children, working together locally to better the health of everyone and trying to resolve differences with the world at large. I do not know if it is possible to see a cultural shift of this magnitude on a global level. However, I do want to believe we are moving towards a role in the world where we do stand up for the ideals of human dignity, appreciate and encourage people in jobs that leave a legacy of innovation and ideas for society to learn from and build upon, bring struggling people up out of poverty and find ways to encourage a pursuit of peace from the many bloody conflicts that rage about this world every day.

The reason I suppose I am hopeful is that he seems to have ideas himself, surround himself with people who have a great deal of ideas and be able to express ideas in ways that make people want to try them out. In my field you learn very early on that many of your ideas will be based on completely incorrect intuition, but as long as they are there you have the ability to make progress. In fact, usually you learn something invaluable in figuring out why a certain idea does not work. It clarifies points of a problem that occasionally a correct solution just cannot do. People may not have much patience for mistakes in a president and probably should not have patience for huge mistakes, but the fact that he seems to appreciate knowledge, seek to gain insight and take a thoughtful approach while being willing to lead people and take risks gives me hope. Yes, dare I say it, hope he may find a solution to some of these problems or at least set an example of each individual finding personal solutions.

The bottom line is that we are all just human. We all have weaknesses and faults which some will find ways to prey upon, and there will always be the powerful and the powerless in every society. This world is filled with a history of violence and oppression as well as a history of altruism and sacrifice, but if as a society we find someone to unite us under the common purpose of service to the people around us, perhaps it really can change the direction of a nation and a people. If we can strengthen the bonds of community not just within our own borders but also with people of other nations, perhaps we can avoid being brought down by disregard for the dangers of our amazing technologies, tendency towards war, or lack of respect for the resources available to us. With great power comes great responsibility. As a species, we are capable of and have committed rather atrocious acts. However, over the course of time through more access to education, encouragement of the free exchange of ideas at a level sufficient to give many access to new information, increased levels of wealth and basic contracts guaranteeing trust and equality amongst citizens of many nations, we have come to see those acts committed on smaller scales and with I really do believe less frequency (perhaps per capita anyway). Of course, now we have the technological capabilities of doing much more damage on a much smaller time scale. We are at a crux in history I believe when we can go backward as a society through fear, ignorance and arrogance or forward through education, investment and tolerance. I am pulling for forward, but the work starts today for all of us, not just the man we have elected as president.