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An excerpt of one of my favorite parts, though there are so many quotable parts throughout.

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 faint-hearted, 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 towards prosperity and freedom.

Here is a link to something from the NYTimes similar to the tag cloud graphic below, but with all of the presidents. Also, the Economist did a similar chart, but only comparing “hope” and “change.”

Originally uploaded by emilychang

I know I beat my love for Mo’Dowd to death, but her latest column is one of her best, in my opinion. She is concise and honest, albeit a little facetious (of course) in analyzing former (heh) President G.W. Bush and cautious with President Obama. Really, it’s almost everything I could ask for.

That is vividly apparent as we watch W. and Obama share the stage as they pass the battered baton. One seems small and inconsequential, even though he keeps insisting he’s not; the other grows large and impressive, filling Americans with cockeyed hope even as he warns them not to expect too much too soon. Even Obama’s caution — a commodity notably absent from the White House for eight years — fills people with optimism.

Also from the NYTimes, this graphic displays the hopes of people across America for our President. And last but not least, check out our new Web 2.0 WhiteHouse.gov website! Seriously… is that flash?

Aside from all of that, did anyone else notice that Michelle Obama was basically wearing Pantone’s 2009 Color of the Year?