INAUGURATION? OR CORONATION?

Washington DC is essentially shut down for the upcoming coronation, er, inauguration of President-elect Obama.

If you live in Virginia, as I do, and work in DC, you're essentially out of luck getting to work on Tuesday since all (repeat, all) the bridges connecting northern Virginia to DC will be closed on Tuesday. My own company (in Alexandria, not DC) is recommending all employees work at home and implementing VPN access to the company intranet.

I've lived in the Washington area for three inaugurations, attended one, and never before have I seen this level of restriction on movement. I could perhaps understand the restrictions if there were credible threats, but there has been nothing in the news, and the authorities are all saying that they are just trying to "manage traffic efficiently."

It strikes me that the Democrats just want to party, and party-crashers, like the poor slob just trying to get to his day job, are unwelcome.

I hope I'm wrong.

UPDATE: “With Barack Obama’s approval ratings in the 70s and his visage plastered on every shop window and Metro card in Washington, it’s hard to remember that 58 million Americans voted for the other guy.”

CHU View

The view from my CHU (Coalition Housing Unit; a two-room trailer). The concrete barriers, known at T-walls, are roughly 12 feet high and completely surround the trailer.

The T-walls are only 2-3 feet from the trailer, and the only entrance is through the slit, which is protected by another T-wall.

This is the high-dollar district at Camp Victory, as these trailers are "wet" (they have a shared bathroom). Most of the military and civilian contractors have "dry" housing - three rooms per trailer and two persons per room.

BACK FROM IRAQ

Back from my second tour as an analyst at Camp Victory, the bottom line is this: we won; Iraq won; the terrorists lost.

The only remaining question is if it will stay won. If the US opts for a conditions-based, phased withdrawal, it will stay won. If not, I won't go so far as to guarantee chaos, but it would be the way to bet. Iraq is still fragile.

JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT IT WAS SAFE ...

He's baack ...