"I wouldn't like any impressionable mudcatters to leave this thread under the illusion that everything is going to be "all right" simply because the American media have elected a black man." ake

Thanks for your efforts in educating this "impressionable mudcatter". In my opinion- and in my experience - the most important part of Barack Obama's grasping the helm is not that he is a "man of color/colour". That is nice and I am proud and hopeful about it but it is just the icing on the cake.

Far more important is that he is an articulate person of vision, one who appears to have integrity and insight and a clarity of purpose. Frankly, I have sincere doubts that anyone on earth can remedy our ills immediately - but a change of direction is at least a start.

As for me, no, I'm not going to the inauguration. W A Y too many people. However, I am taking the day off work and attending an Inauguration Day party at our local Centennial Hall. The way I see it, this is a once in a lifetime event and I want to 'be there'.

East Coast time is four hours ahead of Alaska so our breakfast, speechifying and seats athwart a big-screen television will run from 7:15 to 10:00. (Well, maybe not 'athwart')