Waiting for the End, Finally

While waiting to see what George W. Bush might do with pardons as the hours tick off to the end of the 43rd administration, not surprisingly, Israel and Gaza have reached a seize fire. That Israel began this assault into Gaza in the waning days of the rule of the Neo-Cons and ended it just before the inauguration of the Obama administration, where such actions might not have been tolerated, is banally predictable. Too many lives have been lost, too much hatred has infected a new generation of angry, alientated Palestinian youth.

As Obama and Biden took their historic train ride yesterday, stopping to greet thousands of well-wishers, I called friends to see what they were doing for the inauguration. My friend Vanessa is taking her seven year old son to Washington so that he can be a part of this history. Her preparation is meticuous: laminated cards with the telephone numbers of her companions on this historic journal, colorful hats and scarves, stratgically located hotel rooms, and prepaid Metro cards with Obama's face printed on it as a souvenir. Her son has his notebook and new camera so that everything will be turned into a school assignment.

Another friend turned 93 on Saturday. He grew up in a different world than we have now. Happy Birthday, Arthur! He will be watching at home with a close friend, although there was a moment when he thought maybe he and his son could make the journey together.

Washington is expecting 2 million people. No inauguration has gone higher than 1.5 million. The Mall is open from the Lincoln Memorial to the Capital. Much of DC will be closed to traffic after 9:00 am on Tuesday. 22 jumbotons will be placed on the Mall, so everyone who gets there by 11:30 will be able to see and hear.

Slate.com has a gallery of Obama paraphenalia that will be sold on the streets to make this a truly American experience! Thongs We Can Believe in!

I will be watching the inauguration with my husband and a group of friends with whom politics, literature, film, and food are paramount. We will be close to 30 people at a dear friends' home, Wini and Mike. The oldest person there will be 85 year old, the youngest 18 months old!

As we wait for Tuesday at noon, I am also waiting for the last minute announcements of pardons from the Bush administration. Will he attempt preemptive pardons for Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld, Gonzales, Addington, Yoo, Bybee? Will Libby get more than commutation of his sentence for taking the fall for Cheney and Rove in the Valerie Plame affair? With Eric Holder under fire before the Senate this week over his role in the last minute Clinton pardon of Mark Rich, will Bush continue to be stingy with pardons, especially after his goof last month with the pardon of Isaac Toussie that was immediately revoked?

Countdown!!!!