Two million people are expected to converge onto D.C. in the coming days-all to experience the Inauguration of Barack Obama.
What will my friend Taylor Kidd be doing? Watching TV.
“My face will be glued to C-pan.com’s coverage of the events,” he said. “I enjoyed White House week, and the promise of commercial-free, all-day coverage is just exciting.”
You may not think this is all that strange. For most American citizens, it isn’t. But Taylor is different.
Because, you see, he scored four tickets to the swearing-in ceremony.
Let’s start at the beginning. Taylor is a sophomore at Hendrix College in Conway, Ark. Last summer, he worked on Capitol Hill as a Congressional intern. It was through his diligent networking that he was able to secure those tickets.
“What can I say,” said Kidd. “This was a case of who you know, not what you know.”
But Taylor isn’t traveling to D.C. because of transportation. His reasons are: 1) tourists scare him so he can’t take the Metro, and 2) he won’t be able to park his car. And he isn’t planning to actually use the tickets. So what’s to become of them?
He isn’t selling them. I’ll leave it up to you, the reader, to decide if this is a mistake. Tickets to the Inauguration are selling like hotcakes, and there’s no question that my friend could easily get enough money to help with his college expenses.
Instead, he says, “My mother has claimed them as historical artifacts.”
“I assume they will go under glass and will hang in our Republican home as a tribute to (as my parents predicted it) the demise and downfall of America.”
So there you have it. Those coveted tickets will be hanging in his parents’ living room for the rest of their lives.
Are they historical artifacts? Absolutely. But I say, why not experience history firsthand if you have the chance? Witnessing the Inauguration is quite possibly, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (or at least once every four years).
Don’t forget that this Inauguration is extra-special. Not only is Obama the 44th President, but he’s also the first African-American President. That’s the first African-American President in a country where slavery was once legal. I think a brief subway ride is worth the hassle.
Oh, and for those of you who are wondering, Taylor did indeed support Obama. Although, he says, “The idea of a flag-pin-wearing, moose-shooting, Republican vice presidential candidate was appealing.”
