Things I've Noticed

Idolization of Leaders and the 1% Phenomenon

With the recent passing of Steve Jobs who has been idolized due to his contributions in creating Apple and leading its efforts in product innovation, I am reminded of how much we as a society focus on leaders.  I don’t want to take anything away from Steve.  It’s sad that he passed away so early in life and he was a successful visionary leader of the company.  But once the company reached a certain size, he just led.  He wasn’t singlehandedly responsible for the continued success of Apple.  In fact, all leaders just lead.  They do not do everything that makes an organization succeed, and without others in the organization, they would be ineffectual.

Every strategy or product idea does not originate in the brain of the leader.  The people who had the actual spark in their mind are rarely mentioned to the public.  She or he may have made decisions to approve them, but without the few people with the original idea, the leader would never accomplish goals.  Those ideas are worth millions.  Without the many hardworking people at the bottom of the pyramid and everywhere in between, a leader can never flourish.

In our American press, articles are written about leaders as if that person is almost 100% responsible for the success of an organization.  Some leaders eat that up and don’t mind being put on the cover of Time magazine or being interviewed as the star.  That’s probably why many of them they ask for high salaries.

They often do work hard and that is admirable, but many of us would work extra hard for millions of dollars.  Even when they fail, they are given golden parachutes.  A true leader sacrifices on behalf of others who are led.  If they made all the hiring decisions, one could say that they put all the right people in place.  But they usually don’t.  Leaders cannot be experts on every detail and so they delegate to people that can figure things out and provide recommendations.   Remember too, that one entry level employee can screw up in a big way to affect a company’s results.

High expectations from a leader can increase the chances of success, but the employees have to have the skills, knowledge, talent, and dedication to deliver.  Leaders do help to inspire, but often employees are motivated by other factors.  They do it for their paycheck, for their family, for their customers, or in support of their coworkers. 

Much of leadership is a façade of invincibility which we inadvertently ask for because we won’t follow somebody who appears as insecure or unsure as they really are.  A leader's belief that this facade is real can lead to feelings of entitlement and superiority that often result in failure.

In the end, the mentality of putting leaders on a pedestal, which is something we tend to do in the US of A, leads to the runaway wealth extremes of the Top 1%.  The big bank executives feel our economy would collapse without them but they don’t realize that it would also collapse without us.  We have continually let CEO’s get the high salaries they demand and now we are powerless to stop it.  (It’s interesting that in other parts of the world the CEO income disparity is smaller.)  I often say, “high salaries don’t get you the best leaders, they get you the greediest.”  These are the ones who take the job for short-term gain, line their pockets, and then leave.  It’s our short-sighted culture that exacerbates this phenomenon.

It’s time for some collective appreciation for the everybody in an organization, not leader worship.  Only then can we expect economic fairness.

+ Atul

9/11 Ten Years Later. Never Forget, But Remember Our Principles

Ten years ago, horrible atrocities were committed against innocent children, women, and men at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and over Pennsylvania.  Nothing can ever make up for the physical and emotional pain and suffering that was experienced by the victims and their families.  Members of the fire, police and rescue crews went in to help despite the risks holding the lives of complete strangers in higher regard than their own.  Many of them sacrificed their lives and we should have nothing but respect for their actions.  Despite all this, some goodness did come out of the atrocities as many people helped complete strangers in times of need.  The lives of those who died and the lives of their families have forever changed and we should never forget what happened.  Additionally, the lives of our military servicewomen and servicemen  as well as hundreds of thousands of innocent people who died in Afghanistan and Iraq should not be forgotten.  Most importantly though, we should remember how the world has changed and how we shouldn’t let feelings from 9/11 dominate our innate goodness and behavior towards others.

Here is a blog post from five years ago that references an email I sent out right after September 11^th.  It focused more on the subsequent victims who were also innocent.  It's an unfortunate phenomena that many minority groups face.  If you're a (relatively) small group, the actions of a few in your group can easily represent the whole minority community in the eyes of the majority.   From these events, the reputation of a whole religion and its members were unjustifiably spoiled.  I always say that 99.999…% of Muslims are not terrorists.  We have no right to judge an individual based on the actions of others who happen to share some religious beliefs.

These events have sometimes led to increased understanding for those who are open minded but often, 9/11 makes life harder for people even though it shouldn’t.  My life has personally been affected.  I sometimes feel a vibe from others that I didn’t feel before 9/11.  Being brown is enough for some people to dismiss me as “one of them.”  Much of the American public thinks it’s OK to take away the civil liberties of people who look a certain way or have a certain faith.  I’m not saying that we shouldn’t remain vigilant to prevent future terrorist attacks.  But our officials have to be smart about how we go about monitoring and investigating for national security, whether it’s the CIA or the airport security personnel.

 With the Patriot Act, basic rights were sacrificed in the name of fear.  Use of hatred as a political lever is wrong and un-American but it happened.  Our country was founded on religious freedom and our strength comes from diversity.  Unfortunately, with freedom comes risk.  Every time we take away freedoms, the terrorists have scored more points towards winning.  Every time we judge based on religion or skin color, the terrorists have scored more points.  Let’s not fall for this trap.  Let’s allow freedom and respect win out over fear and loathing.  The better we understand those from other cultures, the more those other cultures will respect us and like us.

God bless the world.  We are all God’s children and we should be hopeful that we can all work towards getting along more peacefully.  Let’s never forget 9/11, but let’s always remember how it has changed the world.  With conscious effort we can win out over the hatred that led to the despicable events of that day ten years ago.

+ Atul

 

Appreciation and Compliments for Hard Work versus God-given Traits

I overheard a conversation a few years ago when our department’s administrative assistant said to a very tall gentleman, “you’re so tall!”  He replied, “thank you.”  And that started a chain of “notice-ings” for me on how we compliment and appreciate others.  “Why was he thanking her?”  He didn’t do anything.  And “why was she complimenting him in the first place?,” I wondered. In another more recent instance, I heard Bo Derek talk on the Oprah Winfrey Show in a very humble manner about how her natural beauty had nothing to do with her actions.   She realized that she was fortunate enough to have the genes and environment to grow into a beautiful woman.  She made a career out of her beauty, something which took very little effort for her to maintain.

What do we get by complimenting somebody for something that they were given at conception?  Is it just an acknowledgement of how much we appreciate those attributes?  Perhaps their beauty made our day.  Maybe we compliment the tall, the beautiful, the naturally smart to make them feel better.  But that would only make sense if they were friends or loved ones.  To compliment strangers on these traits means perhaps that at a deeper level, we want their approval or we want them to be our friends.

Here’s an idea… When we meet a naturally beautiful person, we should praise their parents.  I know that it takes effort to maintain a good physique as one gets older so those efforts deserve praise based on the results even though we never really know how much comes from diet and exercise and how much comes from genetics.  But one can’t mess up their own height or facial symmetry.  Many of these same principles should apply to how we tend to compliment others for things they own.  All it takes is money and perhaps good taste, but the items could have been bought with old money through no effort of the possessor of the object.

I don’t think we should appreciate physical attributes the same as work people do.  I would argue that instead of praising people for things they aren’t responsible for, we should instead, for example, tell people who perform acts of kindness how nice they are.  We should show appreciation to people who work hard at a task that few others could complete in the same successful manner.  Many of us make careers out of action-based work based on abilities.  But much of this work takes effort.  It doesn’t stem from a state of just being.  It’s not passive.  There is often behind-the-scenes effort to develop knowledge and keep it up-to-date.

That’s why I think scientists and janitors should get paid more than somebody who looks pretty.  Scientists study and work hard to solve puzzles that others cannot.  Janitors work hard to do things others don’t want to do, ones that disgust many of us.  (Why do humans get grossed out anyway?  That’s the topic for a future post.) 

Feel free to compliment me for my writing but not for my slightly below average height and slightly above ideal bodyweight. :-)

+ Atul

Merry Christmas and Happy Other Holidays

As the sole contributor for Things I’ve Noticed, I want to wish all of you a wonderful day.  Merry Christmas!  There, I said it, and I’m not Christian.  The whole dilemma of whether to say it or not has been blown out of proportion.  I can understand that government entities which are supposed to separate church and state should not be showing manger scenes and should be careful in not endorsing a religion.  But for private businesses, it shouldn’t matter.  If the majority of the people in this country are Christian then that’s what anybody who is here should be willing to accept.  It shouldn’t make them feel uncomfortable just as being around a person of a different religion should not.  It’s OK to say Merry Christmas even if the day doesn’t have the same significance to you as it does to devout Christians. 

It would be nice if people from the mainstream would learn about their non-Christian friends’ religions just as they might want to learn about their families or hobbies.  It’s such a pleasant surprise for a non-Hindu to say Happy Diwali to me.  In no way does it mean that they are endorsing my religion and giving up their own.  It would just be a sign of acknowledgment.  India has it right in this way.  There is such a mix of religions, but people who have friends of other religions know about the other religions’ holidays and wish their friends well upon each of their own holidays.

On the other hand, if somebody doesn't want to say Merry Christmas, it doesn't mean others should ostracize those people or want to kick them out of the country.  It would be nice of them to say it, but this is a free country that allows us to believe what we want and to be offended by what we want.  I’m endorsing the use of “Merry Christmas,” but there are other happy holidays besides New Years that we can take the effort to learn about.  Christianity and all religions are supposed to be about peace and good will towards others.  There is no better way to practice this than to understand each others’ perspectives whether they are Buddhist, Mormon, Atheist, or Pantheistic.  I never liked the bumper sticker that says, “Tolerance. Believe in it.” anyway.  Tolerance just means that we can deal with each other being different if we have to.  It sounds so negative.  The stickers should say, “Diversity. Appreciate it.”

+ Atul

 

My New Comedic Experience - Stand-up 2010

When I was in college (undergrad), I started to realize that I could at times be funny in conversation. Sometimes a few beers made me funnier (at least to me), but then I started writing Top 10 lists for friends’ weddings or going away lunches. Being the nerd that I am, I started writing down every funny thought or quote on a Microsoft Word file for my “material.” One thing led to another and I tried performing stand-up at a few Network of Indian Professionals dinners in Michigan where I knew half of the people. Those performances were more like reading essays but I got a few laughs. Then a friend and I took some improv comedy classes at Second City in Detroit. Improv was fun, but it’s not me. So I thought I should try to perform stand-up in front of strangers at a real open mike night. It wasn’t until I signed up for Acme Comedy’s Funniest Person Contest in Minneapolis that I made a point to write a real routine. I have since performed four times and I they were all unique experiences.

The first time I performed, half of my jokes were decent but the other half were nerdy. I realized that the young crowd at an open mike night generally doesn’t like cerebral jokes. I tailored the routine by throwing in some more dating and relationship type jokes. The second routine went twice as well, even had people whistle after I walked off the stage. I was psyched for contest night. Contest night was totally different. The crowd was older and they had paid to watch Andy Kindler as the headliner, not us five contestants. They laughed about 60% as much as the prior crowd. My friends who attended helped get the laughter going but when there are 70 people in the crowd, it can only help so much. I didn’t win the night but at least I was able to chat with Andy Kindler backstage and I got his autograph. I did one more open mike night at a comedy club at the Mall of America with the support of friends but the place was empty and hardly anybody laughed at anything. This is with 80% of the same material. I just didn't resonate with strangers in the crowd. It was not enjoyable for me or them.

My routine is full of small two liners that rely on exact wording so I chickened out in every performance by resorting to the use of a crib sheet with my jokes. I knew that I had many of them memorized, but I didn’t want to skip jokes or deliver them wrong. It probably hurt me on contest night for my delivery score, but my jokes retained their purity.

I may do an occasional stand-up routine here or there, but I am not changing careers. I feel I can be probably be funnier by writing than by performing. I don’t have the stage presence or professional delivery. Perhaps that just takes practice, but planning to perform takes time and effort. And even though I’m generally not nervous on stage, prepping can still be nerve-racking. Scheduling at some clubs requires you to show up to sign up with no guarantee of stage time. That doesn’t fit with my work schedule.

The other part of comedy that doesn’t fit well with being “a white collar professional,” is that the jokes that go over the best are the ones that tend to be dirtier, and those could hurt you if somebody does a background check on you for a job and is offended by a video they might find on-line. (This is why I haven’t recorded any performances to post).

Overall, I do recommend trying an open-mike night for any of you that think you’re at least somewhat funny or clever. It’s a character-building experience and it makes you realize that just like business or life, it’s all about the audience.

<<< A special thanks to all my friends who supported me by coming out to watch me perform. I really appreciate it. Also, that picture is of me singing but it's the only image I have of me with a microphone.>>>

+ Atul

Our World Is Driven by “Dramatic Reactionism”

As I continue to observe the happenings around me, I’ve realized that our society has a few characteristics that don’t really help matters.  We only live on this planet for 70’ish years so each of us has a time frame of reference that is not so big in the grand scheme of things.  Collectively though, we seem to respond mainly to dramatic happenings in a reactionary way thinking only of the short term.  Great examples include 9/11, the Great Recession of 2008, and Toyota’s accelerator pedal recalls.  Instead of thinking ahead and preventing bad things from happening, we let things slide for a while until something terrible and dramatic happens.  Then we overreact and institute changes that sometimes help, often don’t, and usually do little more than make us feel better.

Policemen keeping cars moving in front of airport terminals is one feel-good “solution.  I didn’t know that suicide bombers will only detonate car bombs once their vehicle has stopped completely in front of an airline terminal and that any velocity above 0 mph will prevent it from working.  The people at Homeland Security must know something I don’t. The airport security Terror Threat level has been at orange for about 8 years now.  I can pretty much guarantee that the threat level, (and caution that goes with it), will only go up if and after another incident happens.  When it comes to investing, we tend to jump on board when the stock market is hot and bail when it has gone cold.  It’s exactly the opposite of what we should do.  We can’t prevent natural catastrophes, but we can take measures to make them affect us less severely, like not live in coastal areas that are prone to flooding and erosion.  But we do anyway and ask for help and insurance when the surprise catastrophe happens.

Even personal well-being is an area that is usually overtaken by “Dramatic Reactionism.”  We let ourselves go with bad diet and a lack of exercise until one day we end up going to the hospital and to find out (after much expense and hassle) that we need to do something drastic or one of our lives might end soon.  Only then, do we take action.  Smokers are even worse with this phenomenon.  Just don’t light up the first time and you never have to quit.

It’s not just the expense and ineffectiveness of this strategy to tackle societal and life challenges that are annoying, but the things we entertain ourselves with are usually dramatic.  There is no show about a preventative medicine health clinic.  That would be boring.  Instead, there are 5 shows about the emergency room.  We like drama.  Maybe we want our lives to be more like TV shows; not the reality kind but the dramatic kind.  Perhaps we’re subconsciously trying to make our lives more exciting by not planning ahead, enduring major negative occurrences, and by reacting severely.

We should probably stop with this strategy.  It’s time we start planning ahead.  Look at what’s happened to our planet.  We’ve neglected it for so long and now we have to take drastic measures, but those are difficult for people and economies to swallow and now we’re in trouble.  If we just had controls in place to prevent the creation of toxic financial instruments, the economy might be better off and never would have gone through such a crisis.  Companies lay off employees to increase shareholder returns for the next quarter without regard to how hard and expensive it is to find good employees.  Don’t forget all the company knowledge in their minds that they take without transferring it to anybody else at the company.

The other problem with drama is that it gets our emotions going.  Emotions don’t usually help us make the right decisions for the good of the general public.  Drama and reactionary behavior prevent us from taking a step back to look at the whole situation and to determine how our actions could impact the long term. A lot of violent crimes could be considered “Over-Dramatic Reactionism.”

 Of course we are humans and not psychic robots.  We can’t plan for every problem with foresight and a cool mind but any movement in that direction would help us all.

+ Atul

Applause and Standing Ovations, Hard to Figure Out

Even the all-knowing Wikipedia doesn’t describe where applause originated. They say it’s as old as humanity. Basically, it came about as a noise-making action to signify approval for an accomplishment and it has become universal. But I’ve been noticing and thinking about why and how we applaud for things that happen. Obviously, we applaud for entertainment events like concerts and sports accomplishments, but there are so many other things worthy of applause for which we take no action. A chef makes a great meal and does not get applause, let alone a direct compliment. A kid gets an ‘A’ in her class and she gets no public recognition. (More often than not, she has to hide the fact that she got the ‘A’.) It comes down to emotion, surprise, and crowds watching something happen. Often applause is just given as a polite gesture for something that we don’t even like that much.

I suppose we can’t extend applause to consistently cover any good accomplishment. If people applauded in restaurants or at the dry cleaners for something delivered in a timely manner, the establishment would be a fiasco. We all know how rare good customer service is these days. It truly is applause-worthy. Hmm. Maybe applause would lead to better customer service.

For non-public, non-entertaining accomplishments, we sometimes give verbal compliments, but those can be tricky. Or at work, we resort to emails which can seem fake and they fill up inboxes. It would be great if one-on-one applause was OK. Why not? It can be done quietly. Then, nothing needs to be said either. No word-smithing required. No misinterpretations.

Sometimes applause goes too far. Standing ovations are over-used and they instill a sense of obligation from those seated. If you give a standing-‘O’ against your will, you are misleading the performers into thinking that you really like the performance and you have to get off your seat and stand up. If you don’t stand up to applaud, then you can’t see over those who are standing and you look like a grump who doesn’t want to compliment others.

Applause isn’t easy to know how to use and it sure can be hard to earn. It really depends on a few people starting it up and then others follow. But if they’re just following others, it doesn’t mean as much. It would be nice if you applaud after reading this blog post. Maybe record the video on your phone and email it to me.

+ Atul

Being Reliable, Not a Maybe’er

In modern society, we tend to buy products such as cars that are reliable. That’s because we feel that it’s important not to be stranded or let down. Statistics prove that cars are getting more reliable every year, so we generally have little to worry about when it comes to our personal transportation. People today are a different story. Those in professional jobs at work tend to be reliable because their job and income are at stake. They are usually held accountable. But with personal relationships and leisure activities, I’m noticing that people are becoming less reliable and it irks me to no end. I always wonder why it is so hard for some people to commit to doing something and then actually do it. For a gathering or activity, people like to say “maybe I’ll show up,” or “I’ll try to make it.” Why? Is it that hard to decide what you’re going to do on a Thursday evening or a Saturday night? Are there really that many unexpected emergencies you foresee happening that you can’t say with 99.9% certainty that you’ll do something? Unless you have children or an elderly person to take care of or a serious illness, very few excuses are good reasons not to show up. (On the other hand, people can use kids or significant others for fake excuses to not go somewhere.) A lot of this ambivalence comes from people waiting for a better option. If that better option comes up, they won’t attend the event to which they said they might come. Then I wonder how often a better option actually pops up.

Little in one’s life is going to change if you show up at your friend’s party. It’s not like you’re choosing a job or a spouse. It’s just three hours of your time and you might actually have fun, learn something, or meet somebody interesting. Most importantly, if it’s a friend, you can bond with that person. Even with acquaintances, showing up when you say you will goes miles in developing friendships or networks. In my experience, “Maybe means a 98% chance of no”. What perpetually unreliable people do is diminish friendships. If you commit to doing something with a friend, doing it is part of your duties as a good friend. Not doing it means you value other things over your friendship. There’s another element to this. Events take planning and no-shows can really have an effect on the host’s reputation and budget. If it’s an event that unreliable people don’t show up for, then the people planning it can look like idiots in front of important people that were asked to attend. They may also spend too much on the event for the anticipated larger attendance.

I don’t know if unreliability in people is increasing but it sure feels that way. It might be a generational thing or a geographic thing, but the world would be a better place if it stopped. Technology hasn’t helped. Mobile phones, and websites like Facebook or Meetup are enablers to people being "Maybe’ers." When there’s an event where 40 people say yes, 80 say maybe and 15 show up, something’s wrong and they’re being inconsiderate. I don’t mean to say that it’s never OK to say “maybe” as your showing up may be dependent on something that you know about in advance which may be out of your control. I also realize that unexpected legitimate excuses can come up at the last second, but we should start eliminating maybes and converting them to no’s and definite yeses. Unfortunately, I don’t see it happening, not even maybe. Well, at least we can rely on our cars.

+ Atul

Fortuitous Domain Naming - The Noticer and Andy Andrews

A while ago, I had bought the rights to the domain name thenoticer.com because I was considering changing the name of my blog to "The Noticer", (that would be me).  Then I decided against it temporarily, but held on to the domain name.  As good fortune would have it, motivational/inspirational writer/speaker Andy Andrews happened to decide to name his latest book The Noticer.  I had never heard of him but he is a New York Times Best-Selling Author who has also been on PBS.  The nice folks at the publishing company contacted me to see if I wanted to sell the domain, but I thought it would be best to hold onto it and leverage their referral program to help fund my web operations.

I should also mention that the company gave me a copy of every book, (signed by Andy Andrews), CD, and DVD that he has published.  That was really nice of them.  I'm almost done with The Traveler's Gift which is hard to put down due to its mix of poetic language and life lessons.

What's also interesting is that Andy Andrews has started a site called "The Noticer Project", (thenoticerproject.com), which allows people to write notes to the five most influential people in their lives. Those notes will be delivered in the regular postal mail and published on the The Noticer Project website.  If you're interested in buying some of Andy's books or multimedia materials, please click on the ad to the right to buy them.

+ Atul
(The Original Noticer)

Barack Obama: The Beginning of A Monumental New Presidential and Cultural Reality

It is here. It has been more than two months since the historic day when we elected our first African-American president. And now the time has come for the most glorified and needed leader in modern history to take the reigns of the most powerful nation on earth. This event has me excited, hopeful, and cautious all at the same time. I was ecstatic on election night and almost couldn't believe the result after eight years of presidential hell with Bush/Cheney (or should it be Cheney/Bush?). We have elected a leader who we can respect and look forward to. But I worry that the problems of our country and our world are so serious that we may be putting too much faith in Obama as a miracle leader. We should not forget that he is only human. Obama, (although confident), understands better than many of his supporters do, that he needs help from experienced, knowledgeable advisers.

Obama's election was so much more than just the election of a minority candidate in a major country. Three years ago, I said while watching the TV show "24" (which had a black U.S. president,) that it would be 10 years before we had a black president in reality. I've never been so glad to be wrong. Much of the success of the candidacy was Barack himself and the "Yes We Can" message.  Not in a long time have we had a leader with the ability to move his audience to tears. His eloquence and charisma are sometimes hard to believe. As Obama spoke to accept his nomination, I watched celebrities like Jesse Jackson and Oprah Winfrey choke up and journalists in tears.  I find his genuineness and intelligence as his best attributes, but I too was moved by his convention speech.  People of all races, ethnicity, and education levels came together. By being "different", Obama was able to transcend our differences and bring us together. We are all Americans regardless of our background.  Just his unusual name provides added comfort for those of us with non-mainstream names. More importantly, Obama has been able to gather the support even a large portion of those who voted against him and differ from him philosophically.

Obama's election was a product of a well-run campaign team including David Plough and David Axelrod, one that took advantage of many marketing tactics, (which warms this marketer's heart). These included grassroots efforts, internet sites for small private donations, social networking, and a consistent message. But it was the man behind the message, a calm, intelligent leader who kept the ship sailing in the right direction. He never wavered and he stood up to attacks against him and his ideals. It's ironic that in a way, we owe Obama's inauguration to the failed policies of the Bush administration. Bush opened the door for a presidential candidate from the Democratic party. Even people who might have otherwise factored race into their vote decided that we really did need competence and change no matter what the color of the candidate.

His presidency has a broad impact beyond politics. It has instilled hope in countless minority individuals that our country is more open-minded than we may have thought. It has helped undo some of the damage from the xenophobic prejudice that arose after 9/11.  And it means so much to our elder African Americans who withstood so much hatred and mistreatment generations after their ancestors were enslaved. Even if a significant minority of our people is not race neutral, at least we know that those who look past color and ethnicity are the majority. This should make us feel even more proud to be Americans. Despite all our problems and shortcomings, we have become a model nation in a way. Many other so-called progressive countries will not elect non-mainstream ethnic candidates for decades to come. We are fortunate that we have this diversity to begin with, and we are now stronger for being more accepting of it.

But an Obama presidency will not instantly solve all of our problems including wars, the environment, and the economy. There is much to be done and there are no easy answers. Obama is not a king or a dictator who can control every political move.  Even if he could, he does not own the answer key to the test this nation is under. He will need the help of Congress but politics as usual will most likely rear its head.  Additionally, Obama is not perfect. Given all the weight that has been placed on his shoulders, he may encounter some failures, ones that should not weaken our support for him. Given the circumstances, we will have to sacrifice in ways that Americans are not used to. For those of us alive today, like no other time in the history of our nation, we need to remember that we're all in the same boat. "Yes we can" will only ring true if we all truly try.

I wasn't alive when John F. Kennedy entered the Oval Office, but today will be a great day in my life, one that I will hopefully be able to tell my grandchildren about. I wish my father was around to see this as it was his political views and upbringing that have led me to develop the political beliefs I have, the ones that are so well represented by Obama.  Nevertheless, I and millions of others will watch and gain hope and renewed strength to do our part to help our country become great again.

+ Atul