A Moment of Possibility

 
The noonday sun shining upon the tallest obelisk in the world cast a long shadow over the millions gathered to watch it happen. Some came to confirm the departure of Dick "Dr. Strangelove" Cheney and his murderous lapdog George. Some came to dance and celebrate the first black president. Some came because they were drawn together as a tribe, as a culture, as a society to mark the moment when a mass redefinition could actually be at hand, to feel the powerful energy of such a gathering being focused and directed in a positive direction for a change, to stand for a thing instead of in opposition.

We made it.

We're exhausted, but we made it.

It's like we can finally let out a long, huge breath.

We heard Obama give the back of his hand to the ugliness and horror of torture and the Bush administration's gleeful, hideous participation in such useless cruelty. We heard him speak of putting away "childish things," and becoming aware of our place together. We heard the appropriate boos when George took his seat. We felt the rush of hope along with everyone else as Obama took the oath, and the relief that this day was actually happening.

And we here at ATKE are happy to report that all the conspiracy theorists (ourselves among them) were wrong! Despite positioning troops which would, no doubt, allow him to declare Martial Law and seize control of our democracy indefinitely...it's official: he's gone. The helicopter lifted off and the singing of "Na na goodbye" echoed across the trampled landscape of the Mall. Goodbye, you motherfucker, goodbye to your cronies, goodbye to your terror and fear, goodbye to your gilded life. Goodbye. And not a moment too soon. We are in a bad way. We are gutshot and bleeding out. Even at his final moment in power he just didn't get it. To smile, snicker, wave, glad-hand after all he's done to destroy America...he just never got it. Never will.

As we continue to survey the wreckage of the last 8 years, as we try to stem the still-onrushing tide of his disastrous policies, we look forward, look ahead, and try to figure out how to save our country. ATKE has recently reached out to a few folks we feel are uniquely positioned to offer us some insight into any number of topics, and we'll be posting new articles soon. But please don't let that stop you from submitting. As ever, our goal is to give interested and interesting small-press types an avenue (or pulpit) to traffic in ideas. Give us a mix of politics, fore-thought, and humor. Give us what you care about. Give us your loot! Give us your blood! Figuratively speaking, of course...

The Editors