歷史的一刻 A moment in History

歷史的一刻 A moment in History



依據就職典禮日程表，奧巴馬要到美國東岸廿日時間正午宣誓就職。實際情況，在美國東岸時間廿日正午12:05 即香港時間廿一日凌晨一時零五分，Barack·Hussein·Obama(II) 巴諾·胡辛·奧巴馬(二世)，宣誓成為美國首位黑皮膚的非純白人總統，隨即發表就職演說。


奧巴馬特別刻意，效法林肯總統，一家人會乘搭火車，由費城出發，到 威爾明頓接埋副總統拜登一家，再經過巴爾的摩南下到華盛頓，進行宣誓就職典禮。而他也從華盛頓國會圖書館，借來林肯總統當年用過的同一本聖經，作為宣誓時用。 So Far 一切 rundown ok，平平安安，就職典禮宣告禮成。之後會舉行午餐宴會，及在賓夕法尼亞大道的遊行，晚上還有更多宴會和舞會。


巴諾·奧巴馬生於夏威夷州檀香山，父親老巴諾·奧巴馬是生於肯尼亞的盧歐族純非裔黑人留學生。母親 Ann Dunham 生於美國堪薩斯州純白人。巴諾·奧巴馬是黑白混血兒，不是純黑人，也不是純白人。 奧巴馬父母在他兩歲時已經離婚，奧巴馬一直跟隨著白人母親。


奧巴馬的成長期，是由母親方面的白人祖父母看管，在夏威夷完成 highschool，兒童時代深受母系的白人祖父母的影響，可算是一個黑皮白心的孩子。對於奧巴馬能否促使種族融和，有所保留，況且 巴諾·奧巴馬的黑人血統，並沒有和美國本土的非裔黑人任何關連，美國的非裔黑人，是在二三百年前，他們上幾代的曾祖父母，已經離開非洲，被賣到北美為奴。


奧巴馬將要建立第一個近附社會主義的美國，早在競選就有跡象，眾所周知，再加上金融大海嘯的沖擊，美國政府向銀行、金融機構和三大車廠注資，間接國有化了，成就了規範化，受到嚴密監控，自由經濟主義切底被推翻。


奧巴馬的 Secretary of State是克林頓夫人，內閣之中很多是克林頓時代的舊臣，就好像個舊生會 reunion，就職典禮後，奧巴馬推翻現行制度。 實行翻天覆地的改革勢在必行，更可能恢復部份克林頓時代的舊制，請大家拭目以待罷。


Change！ 轉變！可以是好的，也可以是不好的，也有可能是壞的。不過奧巴馬自初選到大選，他除了 sell Change 賣他的改革變革意念外，還賣一個重點，就是 HOPE！希望！


奧巴馬成名于 2004年在波士頓舉行的民主黨大會，當年的民主黨提名候選人是 John Kerry，奧巴馬發表演說：就是以“The Audacity of Hope" 為題。

In the end, that's what this election is about. Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or a politics of hope? John Kerry calls on us to hope. John Edwards calls on us to hope. I'm not talking about blind optimism here -- the almost willful ignorance that thinks unemployment will go away if we just don't talk about it, or the health care crisis will solve itself if we just ignore it.

No, I'm talking about something more substantial. It's the hope of slaves sitting around a fire singing freedom songs; the hope of immigrants setting out for distant shores; the hope of a young naval lieutenant bravely patrolling the Mekong Delta; the hope of a millworker's son who dares to defy the odds; the hope of a skinny kid with a funny name who believes that America has a place for him, too.

Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The audacity of hope!


之後出版咗本同名的書：" The Audacity of Hope" 副題是："Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream"

而 The audacity of hope：Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream 就是 奧巴馬 sell 給美國選民的另一個 selling point，給予民眾一個希望，一個夢想。 而四十六年前，美國著名民權領袖 Martin Luther King Jr. 也是 sell " I have a Dream!"


人們有著祈望、希望，就會較有耐性，總希望明天會更好，今天唔好的話，希望明天就會好，明日復明日，明日何其多，咁蜜月期會有幾長呢？


咁究竟奧巴馬的就職典禮的演說涵蓋甚麼呢？

奧巴馬總統就職演說拙要

《明報專訊》美國奧巴馬正式宣誓成為總統，發表就職演說，他表示，國家正面臨危機，但最終要面對及解決。

奧巴馬表示，不能在短期內克服問題，但將會解決。他呼籲國人面繼承國家開創者的精神，克服困難，面對挑戰，令下一代的美國人更好。

他指出，國家正與一個龐大及暴力及憎恨網絡作戰，經濟衰退，根源是貪婪及不負責任。

奧巴馬重申美國的偉大，但偉大不是一定的，要去爭取，美國從來沒有走捷徑或妥協。他提及先人的貢獻及無懼精神。

他指出，政府將會興建道路、橋樑及學校，使用更環保的能源。有人質疑他們的計劃過大，但他強調，這不是政府大小的問題，而是政府能否幫助人民，亦不是市場是否好或壞的問題，而是市場缺乏監管，最終失去控制。而國家不能長期繁榮，如只是對有錢人有利，國家經濟的成功不單是看經濟規模，而是繁榮可伸展的範圍。

美國總統奧巴馬表示，美國人由今日起要振作，拍走塵埃，重新開始再造美國。

奧巴馬表示，美國仍然是全球最繁榮及強大的國家，工人仍有競爭力，思想仍創新，生產能量仍存在，但他們過於保護少數利益，推遲難受的決定，這個時刻已過去，美國人由今日起要振作，拍走塵埃，重新開始再造美國。


補記：
剛在舊文 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton 講過，奧巴馬 延攬一班比他有經驗的民主黨人入閣，無可厚非。 作為一個總統，是依靠一班信得過的部長們各施其職，而他個人就是統籌，和 fine tune 一吓，在那裡加啲潤滑劑，減少各部門之間的磨擦，令到整部機器依照他的大方向運作。

不過 拜登就首先巧施手段示威，透過老婆在名嘴 Oprah Winfrey 的 talk show 中說：希拉莉國務卿個職位是 拜登所棄，才由 希拉莉執二攤。其實 拜登是機會主義者，情願當副總統，因為黑人總統很有機會在任內被人暗殺，咁咪一句唔該，就坐上總統個位囉。不過還未正式開波，奧巴馬班馬仔們，已經暗裡角力，啲暗湧就很明顯了，亦是整個團隊的隱憂。


後記：
在就職典禮中，帶領祈禱個位神職人員，把奧巴馬說成 the son of an African Immigrant 一位非裔移民的兒子，確實令人失笑，為何竟然有咁嘅誤解呢？ 還是另有所指呢？


奧巴馬演說全文: It's time to remake America（CNN）

My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often, the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebearers, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land -- a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America: They will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the fainthearted -- for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor -- who have carried us up the long, rugged path toward prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again, these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions -- that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act -- not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions -- who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them -- that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works -- whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account -- to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day -- because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control -- and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart -- not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: Know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort -- even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West: Know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment -- a moment that will define a generation -- it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends -- hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism -- these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world; duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence -- the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed -- why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

"Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive... that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."

America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested, we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back, nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.


後記：奧巴馬就任一週年
【明報專訊】奧巴馬就任美國總統一年，民望下滑，他承認施政上有失誤，與民眾直接溝通不足，不夠緊貼民情。

奧巴馬接受美國廣播公司訪問時表示，政府過去一年來曾作出不受歡迎的決定，他自己也犯過一些錯誤。他承認政府與民眾直接溝通不足，未夠了解他們的核心價值，以致施政時與民望的核心價值有有落差。

對於民主黨失守麻省聯邦參議員席位，奧巴馬表示，共和黨的布朗贏得麻省聯邦參議員席位，與他08年贏得大選入主白宮一樣，均反映出民眾感到憤怒及沮喪。但他強調，這並非因為過去兩年所發生的事，而是過去八年來發生的事情，矛頭直指前任總統布殊過去年8年施政失敗，留下一個爛攤子給他。

布朗贏得麻省聯邦參議員席位，令民主黨在參議院去大多數席位的優勢。

奧巴馬表示，希望國會議員能盡快就醫療改革方案的核心內容達成共識。


伸延閱覽：
Barack·Hussein·Obama(II) 維基百科
巴諾·胡辛·奧巴馬(二世) 維基百科
Obama Shi 小浜市 おばまし 維基百科
奧巴馬就職典禮最新日程表 新浪網
Martin Luther King, Jr. 維基百科
I Have a Dream speech by Martin Luther King 維基百科
The Audacity of Hope 維基百科
奧巴馬就職演說將談責任感 明報
就職演說效甘迺迪強調責任 明報
成立基層組織 為連任鋪路 明報
黑人對於奧巴馬能否促使種族融和有保留 明報
Jill Biden Tells Oprah Her Hubbie Offered Choice of VP or Secy of state 谷歌
拜登妻子說漏嘴 爆出希拉里當國務卿只是「執二攤」 （明報）
奧巴馬就職專輯 （明報）
Presidency Inauguration 新聞 CNN.Com
President Obama's Inaugural Speech 原文 CNN.Com
美國總統奧巴馬就職演說(全文) 新浪網
奧巴馬就職演說（全文） 中國評論新聞
奧巴馬承認施政有失誤 雅虎新聞網


我的舊文：
選舉人票 ～ 通吃制
希拉莉 敗選者的氣度
歷史新的一頁 a new page on American history
歷史更新的一頁 a newer page on American history
寫在塵埃落定時
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
奧巴馬 被 question validity of citizenship?