The Obama Administration: Turning the US into Us

John Cusack compared the "promise" of the Obama campaign to "Antigone before the king." The comparison illuminates something we have to acknowledge.

In Sophocles' play, Antigone defies the king's decree, but without building allegiances, without words. She violates the king's decree solely with her silent determination to do what she believes is right. The king's decree has good intentions, but there is an ignored perspective that invalidates it. Antigone embodies that perspective. Her image is simultaneously beautiful and tragic, because her course is "a" right course, but the odds are impossible odds that she can legitimize it. Her powerful image shakes the community at the very core of their beliefs. Antigone's image forces the community to acknowledge what they previously refused to acknowledge. The old value system crumbles. Hordes of people break down and cry.


John Cusack characterized the "promise" of Obama's campaign as "Antigone before the king." The old value system collapsed into tears. But Antigone didn't bring about change. She makes the community realize their own responsibility to bring about change. Society does change, but it can't happen unless the community does the work.

The promise is over. We've shed our tears. It's time for actuality. But we can't expect a president to do it for us. The president is just a vessel through which we can achieve our goals. And Obama has given us a way to do this: http://change.gov/page/s/application:

This website is designed to provide prospective applicants with information to help them apply for positions in the Obama-Biden Administration. President-Elect Obama will make appointments throughout the federal government. Some positions will require Senate confirmation while others will not. Some appointments will be made during the transition process and others during the early part of the new Administration.

The presidential administration is an empty vessel, waiting to be filled with active citizenry. Now is the time to sign your name into the empty space. Otherwise, the promise isn't merely over. The promise of Antigone will have died in vain.