It finally hit me when I was watching the concert at the Lincoln Memorial today. We didn't elect a new president in Barack Obama. We crowned a new king. Possibly even anointed a new god. I have never seen people act like this before. I can't imagine it lasting, given that things are probably going to get worse before they get better, and Obama, rightly or wrongly, will be blamed for some of that. But for now, the devotion people on the Mall had for him bordered on the cult-like.
Here are a few observations from the concert.
- Springsteen was a good choice to open the concert, but the song sucked. I know "Born in the U.S.A." isn't the rah-rah pro-America song Republicans seem to think it is, given how often it's played at their rallies, but it is pretty catchy, and it has U.S.A. in the title. That would have really kicked things off.
- Until she came out to speak, I had no idea Laura Linney was in town, much less, would be at the concert. She's my number one over-40 celebrity crush. I had planned to meet and seduce Anne Hathaway this weekend, but I figure I can do that anytime. How many shots am I going to get with Laura Linney?
- When Marisa Tomei was announced, there was a noticeable WTF? reaction from the crowd. Did she give a lot of money to the DNC or something? Marisa Tomei is someone you call when you're inaugurating the new city comptroller, not the President of the United States. I guess there's no expiration date on how long you can milk your Oscar for. I'm surprised Cuba Gooding Jr. wasn't invited to speak.
- People apparently still love Tom Hanks. No, I know. I don't get it, either.
- On the other end of the spectrum, based on the groans I heard when he was introduced, Josh Groban was not popular with the crowd. I don't even know if most of those people have even heard a Josh Groban song on which to base their dislike on. I think it's just the idea of Josh Groban people object to.
- During the song by Usher, Shakira, and Stevie Wonder, the girl next to me was complaining about the logic of putting the three of them together. I found myself agreeing, until she outed herself as an idiot by adding that it should have just been Usher out there. Yes. Because who needs Stevie Wonder when you have Usher?
- Improbably, Garth Brooks was the highlight of the show. He had people literally jumping up and down with "American Pie" and "You Make Me Wanna Shout." Then for his last song, I think he actually tried singing a Garth Brooks song, and people quickly settled down. He should probably just stick to other people's songs.
- The Naval Academy Glee Club's performance was a bit awkward. There were some more groans and a few mutters of, "Come on..." Because everyone wants to support the troops and all, but to be perfectly blunt, when you have acts like the ones playing today, no one's really that interested in the Naval Academy Glee Club.
- U2 was great and got the crowd going. But saying U2 was great and got the crowd going is like saying grass is green and water is wet.
- That bit with the bald eagles could not have been more lame. Look, if you want to come out with a bald eagle on your arm, come out with a bald eagle on your arm. If you want to let the bald eagle fly away, let the bald eagle fly away. But don't tie the bald eagle's legs to your arm so that he takes off, gets a foot away, and then discovers he's restrained.
- Obama was absolutely mesmerizing. And the best part is, I could actually see him from where I was standing without the benefit of the Jumbotron. I can't even recall what he talked about. Something about America, I think. I was too busy just sucking in the atmosphere. If Jesus had shown up and announced he'd be speaking at the Jefferson Memorial, no one would have left the Obama speech.
- I'm not a Beyonce fan, so we left while she was closing out the show. Part of me was bothered by the fact that with all those great acts, Beyonce is the one they pick to close it, but it allowed us to make a quick getaway while most people stuck around to watch her, so it all worked out.
Now, we got to the concert about 1:45, only 45 minutes before it started. And frankly, there were lots of areas along the Reflecting Pool where there was space to move around. So it didn't even occur to me that there were people who either couldn't get into the main concert area or didn't choose to. So when I got to the World War II Memorial, this really surprised me.
It's not the greatest photo in the world, but you see all those little dots from the street to the Washington Monument? Yeah, those are all people watching the show from a distance. Imagine you've pushed and weaved your way through a few thousand people in order to get out of the concert area, and then come face-to-face with about a hundred thousand more. Getting to the Metro was not easy.
And Tuesday's going to be a fucking nightmare. A fun and spiritually-uplifting nightmare. But still a fucking nightmare.
15 comments:
Granted, I'm somewhat prejudiced with regard to USNA and it was an honor that they were chosen; however, your ego i-as evidenced by your choice of a user name for your blog [SCOTUS, indeed, asshole] -which I will hereafter avoid as if it praised geo. dubyous shrub- matched only by the pompous-assed remarks you make. If you had any talent, maybe -just maybe- you'd have some right to criticize those whose talent has accorded them some degree of success ... but you obviously don't appreciated the effort of others who came to celebrate one of the most amazing events in American history ... so who really gives a fuck if your benefit, so who really gives a good fuck if you were not completely or even partially satisfied ! THis show was not put on for your sole benefit, so why don't you just get over yourself !
For fuck's sake, get down off the cross. I didn't state an opinion about the Glee Club's performance or talent one way or the other. I'm just reporting what I observed.
You want to whine at someone for disrespecting the Navy, head on down to the Mall. I'm sure there are a few of them still around.
Hey, asshole ... my comment had little or nothing to do with the Glee Club ... it had to do with you and your totally unwarranted exaulted opinion of yourself !
See, I want to respond to this, but I have no idea what you're ranting about. If you don't like Bush and you don't care about the Glee Club, what are you so pissy about? Be specific.
Yeah, asshole. Don't you know Usher is the greatest performer since Michael Jackson? I was elated when he came out on stage, a bit disappointed when he opened his mouth and didn't sing "Confessions," but then happy again when I saw he was picked to do the duet with Stevie Wonder. And then Shakira showed up and f*cked it all up.
Also, THANK GOD someone else also finds Tom Hanks utterly ridiculous. Even if you are such a big asshole with that "unwarranted, exaulted [sic] opinion of yourself!" And on your OWN BLOG, as well! Unimaginable!
:)
First Indy 4 and now Tom Hanks!
You're killin' me. I love Tom Hanks. His bit played very well on the TV. The eagles on the other hand... just as awkward on TV as I'm sure it was on the Mall.
But don't worry, I'm not gonna go all glee club on your ass.
Marissa: I actually have him pegged as a disgruntled Josh Groban fan. God knows, they're an angry, foul-mouthed lot.
JC: I don't hate Tom Hanks nearly as much as I hate Crystal Skull. But the collective gasp that arose from the people around me when he came out was a bit much.
at the risk of outting myself as an obamamaniac (as though everyone who knows me would say, "duh") i have to say that the atmosphere at the concert today wasn't particularly king-crowning or god-birthing. i think it was the kind of happiness that comes with good music, not horrible weather, and the beginning of the end of 8 years of serious suffering.
i say this, because the applause for obama was barely greater than for joe biden, or for "shout!". i think people just needed an excuse to enjoy themselves for once, and the obama people gave them one - and for free! no harm in that. and certainly no messianic worship.
It might have just been a matter of where you were standing. Around where I was, people lost it every time Obama was simply shown on the Jumbotron for a fleeting second, and there were a lot of arms waving in the air, church-like, when he started speaking.
Damn you Scotus, your name is so egotistical. You should never criticize someone else for their talent. Where do you think you are? Why don't you go back to whatever free-lovin', hippy world you came from.
Oh, by the way, USNA Ancient is a first class citizen. He should definitely receive a cabinet position. His intelligent comments have moved to hate all things DC Universe.
Please note the sarcasm...This will always be one of my favorite blogs.
Pft. Everyone knows that bloggers are conceited assholes with a holier-than-thou mentality and big egos. That's why we fuckin' do it!
I couldn't figure out why they didn't just end the concert with the Pete Seeger/Springsteen "This Land is Your Land" sing-a-long. That would have left everyone on an appropriate high note. When Beyonce came out, it was really anticlimactic, despite her talents.
I watched this on HBO, since I was unable to come down to the Mall. I have to say, I'm an absolute sucker for "Fanfare for the Common Man" and it was a killer way to open the gig, with the U.S. Army Herald Trumpets. I got chills.
In retrospect, I wish I'd slapped a bunch of pain patches on my crappy back and gone down to witness it.
Ngewo: The weird thing is that he seems to think I took my "name" from the Supreme Court, when in fact I took it from the philosopher who inspired the dunce cap. So he should actually approve of it.
Malnurtured Snay: Absolutely. If you're not an asshole with a big ego, why would you think anyone would care what you think?
Merujo: Yeah, I didn't get that, either. I didn't dig the performance that much, simply because I hate that song with a passion, but it would have been an appropriate finish.
You're right about the name and I apologize for mistake [or would it merely be a "disappointment" ... (;o} ...] ; I guess my point [... poorly stated, apparently] was that this event wasn't intended to conform to your likes and/or dislikes; it was intended to have something for almost everyone [ ... although I doubt they worried too much about the rebubbacans] ... it struck me that your comments indicated they should have consulted you before the program was finalized ! Also, I think you're a little too judgmental about the attitude of the crowd ... people for the most part are simply celebrating Barack Obama, himself; the improbability of the entire primary campaign; the election of the first Afro-American ... and the final departure The Idiot ... in short, a celebration of a n hopeful, new beginning !! I also agree that most bloggers have an over-inflated opinion of the worth of their opinions ... your comments in this instance just struck me as way off base ... however, that's your right, just as objecting to some of it is mine ... [in my own defense I would not that virtually every major media outlet praised both the event, the performances, and the atmosphere, as did most of the other blogs of people who attended]. I do agree that the eagle bit was misinforrmed and should never have been allowed. Also, is that a picture of Marion Barry on the left ... I met him in the 60s [before his ego became so inflated it exploded] and greatly respected him ... then ... despite the fact that the meeting was where my Dad worked and Barry was picketing with SNCC [I think] it [Kann's] ! Boy, was my Dad pissed ... not because of why -he agreed- but because of the methods ... at Barry, SNCC and me !] ... if it were a younger picture of Barry, I could understand, but I -personally, again- don't agree with the juxtaposition with Obama. I guess at least I created a little controversy and opinion ! Have a good one ! P.S. you're correct that I despise geo. dubyous shrub and co. and almost everything they have done/not done and that I've been an Obama supporter from virtually the beginning.
See? Isn't life so much better when you talk like a human being?
To address your points:
1) You're confusing "wanting the show to conform to my likes and/or dislikes" with "having an opinion." If I didn't comment on the acts, the post would have just been a list of performers in the order they came out. If you poke around, you'll undoubtedly find blogs that loved Usher and hated U2, and those opinions are just as valid.
And for the record, if I had been consulted about the line-up, the entire concert would have consisted of nothing but 70s soul acts, and it would have been much better.
2) I didn't pass any judgments on the crowd. I don't give a shit about the crowd. I was reporting what I saw. If they'd cheered for Josh Groban or the Glee Club, I would have written that, too.
3) There's no juxtaposition between Barry and Obama. The Barry photo is a permanent part of my banner. The Obama poster is a one week thing to celebrate the Inauguration, and by Sunday, it'll be replaced with a poster of whatever stupid movie happens to be coming out the following weekend.
4) I'm glad you hate Bush. There's hope for you yet.
5) Indentation is your friend.
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