Obama's Inaugural Address Shows Concern for the Planet

The new president gave attention not only to the social and economic problems facing America, but also to the crisis facing the planet.

"That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood," he said.

President Barack Obama delivers his inaugural address. (Photo by Denis Lam)

"Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet."

President Obama reiterated promises he made during his two-year long campaign and during the transition since his election on November 4, 2008 to remake America by securing clean, renewable energy as the means to economic and political security.

"The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth," President Obama said today.

"We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together," he said. "We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost."

"We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age," Obama said. "All this we can do. And all this we will do."

America's new leader used his inaugural address to tell the world he intends to join with other nations to combat global warming, saying, "With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet."

President Obama let developing countries know that their need for food and water and education will be remembered, and he pledged to make wise use of the planet's natural resources.

"To the people of poor nations," he said, "we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect."

"For the world has changed," said President Obama, "and we must change with it."

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2009. All rights reserved.