Hope and Virtue

Barack Obama was inaugurated today as the 44th President of the United States. I greatly enjoyed the ceremony and speech. The piece composed by John Williams of "Air and Simply Gifts" was one of my favorite parts. You had a multi-ethnic group making beautiful music on the country's legislative front porch, welcoming a new leader and hopefully a new approach to American politics. I was particularly struck by the comments from President Obama about hope and virtue. In a similar way that he describes General Washington's quotation, we are challenged to take up a similar banner and go forward to meet the challenges ahead of us.

I can't help but draw similarities to the calling of us to address our own personal challenges with the tenets of faith, hope, and love. I just finished reading Covey's "7 Habits" and Hunter's "The Servant" and they both emphasize the awesome responsibility that comes with leadership. It is not enough to have power over the people that work for you; you must work towards gaining their trust, leading to the more meaningful status of having authority over them. They will, in turn, work willfully and enthusiastically on the tasks at hand. My hope is that President Obama will develop relationships within the DC power structure for him to exercise the appropriate authority and accomplish the higher goals and ideals that he espouses.

Although I certainly have had my differences with outgoing President Bush's policies, he was my first Commander-In-Chief (CINC) during my active duty career. His discipline and unwavering beliefs were a model for principled leadership. I hope that he is able to enjoy his retirement and work towards worthy causes that promote peace and prosperity here in the U.S. and around the world. As for the new CINC, I can only encourage him to become more familiar with the way in which the military works (and sometimes doesn't work) to accomplish national political objectives. The military is a necessary instrument of power along with both diplomatic and economic means. They are each necessary for the others to work. To think otherwise is naive. The key for our new leadership is to recognize when, where, and how the military can be used effectively. Fortunately, President Obama has picked some very capable former military folks to join him in his cabinet and advise him. He and Michelle still have a lot to learn about the military so I can only trust that President Obama will exercise his duties with calculated restraint and firm resolve. Nobody hates war more than the warrior.

Godspeed to both outgoing and ingoing Presidents. Good luck and my prayers are with you.