[五言新绝] Yes we can － 读奥巴马获胜演说而感

[五言新绝] Yes we can － 读奥巴马获胜演说而感

徒然认天命
枉自做英雄
今见奥巴马
当知你我能


（歪打正着 － 这首竟然合律了。）

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Barack Obama's victory speech

Thursday, 6 November 2008

President-elect Barack Obama spoke to the world from his home city ofChicago as he became the first black president of the United States.Here is the full text of his victory speech:

"Hello, Chicago.

"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a placewhere all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of ourfounders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of ourdemocracy, tonight is your answer.

"It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools andchurches in numbers this nation has never seen, by people who waitedthree hours and four hours, many for the first time in their lives,because they believed that this time must be different, that theirvoices could be that difference.

"It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat andRepublican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay,straight, disabled and not disabled, Americans who sent a message tothe world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or acollection of red states and blue states.

"We are, and always will be, the United States of America.

"It's the answer that led those who've been told for so long by so manyto be cynical and fearful and doubtful about what we can achieve to puttheir hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hopeof a better day.

"It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did onthis date in this election at this defining moment, change has come toAmerica.

"A little bit earlier this evening, I received an extraordinarily gracious call from Senator McCain.

"Senator McCain fought long and hard in this campaign. And he's foughteven longer and harder for the country that he loves. He has enduredsacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine. We arebetter off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader.

"I congratulate him; I congratulate Governor (Sarah) Palin for all thatthey've achieved. And I look forward to working with them to renew thisnation's promise in the months ahead.

"I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned fromhis heart, and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on thestreets of Scranton and rode with on the train home to Delaware, thevice president-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

"And I would not be standing here tonight without the unyieldingsupport of my best friend for the last 16 years, the rock of ourfamily, the love of my life, the nation's next first lady MichelleObama.

"Sasha and Malia I love you both more than you can imagine. And youhave earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the new White House.

"And while she's no longer with us, I know my grandmother's watching,along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight. Iknow that my debt to them is beyond measure.

"To my sister Maya, my sister Alma, all my other brothers and sisters,thank you so much for all the support that you've given me. I amgrateful to them.

"And to my campaign manager, David Plouffe, the unsung hero of thiscampaign, who built the best - the best political campaign, I think, inthe history of the United States of America.

"To my chief strategist David Axelrod who's been a partner with meevery step of the way. To the best campaign team ever assembled in thehistory of politics, you made this happen and I am forever grateful forwhat you've sacrificed to get it done.

"But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to. It belongs to you. It belongs to you.

"I was never the likeliest candidate for this office.

"We didn't start with much money or many endorsements.

"Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington. It began inthe backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and thefront porches of Charleston.

"It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give 5 and 10 and 20 to the cause.

"It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of theirgeneration's apathy, who left their homes and their families for jobsthat offered little pay and less sleep.

"It drew strength from the not-so-young people who braved the bittercold and scorching heat to knock on doors of perfect strangers, andfrom the millions of Americans who volunteered and organised and provedthat more than two centuries later a government of the people, by thepeople, and for the people has not perished from the Earth.

"This is your victory.

"And I know you didn't do this just to win an election. And I know you didn't do it for me.

"You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that liesahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges thattomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, aplanet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century.

"Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americanswaking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan torisk their lives for us.

"There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after the childrenfall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage or pay theirdoctors' bills or save enough for their child's college education.

"There's new energy to harness, new jobs to be created, new schools to build, and threats to meet, alliances to repair.

"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not getthere in one year or even in one term. But, America, I have never beenmore hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there.

"I promise you, we as a people will get there.

"There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won'tagree with every decision or policy I make as president. And we knowthe government can't solve every problem.

"But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. Iwill listen to you, especially when we disagree. And, above all, I willask you to join in the work of remaking this nation, the only way it'sbeen done in America for 221 years - block by block, brick by brick,calloused hand by calloused hand.

"What began 21 months ago in the depths of winter cannot end on this autumn night.

"This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chancefor us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to theway things were.

"It can't happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.

"So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, whereeach of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not onlyourselves but each other.

"Let us remember that, if this financial crisis taught us anything,it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Streetsuffers.

"In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let'sresist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship andpettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.

"Let's remember that it was a man from this state who first carried thebanner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded onthe values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity.

"Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party haswon a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility anddetermination to heal the divides that have held back our progress.

"As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, we are notenemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must notbreak our bonds of affection.

"And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may nothave won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help.And I will be your president, too.

"And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, fromparliaments and palaces, to those who are huddled around radios in theforgotten corners of the world, our stories are singular, but ourdestiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand.

"To those - to those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you.To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all thosewho have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright: Tonight weproved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not fromthe might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduringpower of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyieldinghope.

"That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our unioncan be perfected. What we've already achieved gives us hope for what wecan and must achieve tomorrow.

"This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told forgenerations. But one that's on my mind tonight's about a woman who casther ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others whostood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for onething: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

"She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were nocars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn'tvote for two reasons - because she was a woman and because of thecolour of her skin.

"And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her centuryin America - the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress;the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed onwith that American creed: Yes we can.

"At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed,she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot.Yes we can.

"When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across theland, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, anew sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

"When the bombs fell on our harbour and tyranny threatened the world,she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracywas saved. Yes we can.

"She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, abridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that 'WeShall Overcome'. Yes we can.

"A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination.

"And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen,and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the bestof times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change.

"Yes we can.

"America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is somuch more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our childrenshould live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so luckyto live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? Whatprogress will we have made?

"This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.

"This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors ofopportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the causeof peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamentaltruth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope.And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell usthat we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums upthe spirit of a people: Yes, we can.

"Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America."