What is the reason we are not having the inauguration day events today?

[RB TexLa]

What is so much better about Monday than Sunday? I understand it's not the first time, but what reason is there for waiting?

[cherokeeprogressive]

1. Yeah, I'm pretty sure you know. n/t

[RB TexLa]

3. I'm pretty sure it does not make sense to me.

[cherokeeprogressive]

6. Whether or not it makes sense to you; I'm pretty sure you know the reason the official party

is posponed until Monday, amiright?

[RB TexLa]

8. No I don't. That is why I asked. But I guess I should have checked with you as you seem to know

what others do and do not know better than then do.

[cherokeeprogressive]

13. LOL. Otay, you don't now.

I can't help you then.

[RB TexLa]

22. Then move on to the next thread to tell them you know more about what they do and don't know.

I'm sure you have a lot more sanctimonious crap to puke on people. How could anyone make a post without first checking with you to tell them what they do and do not know. Baffling. They should all know better shouldn't they? I'm sure you'll tell them.

[MoonRiver]

44. I don't know either. And apparently neither do you!

[cherokeeprogressive]

62. Well let's see... in the last month and a half I've heard these two words AD NAUSEUM:

Historical, and precedent. Just about anyone who has read a newspaper, watched local or national news, or logged onto the internet has either read or heard those two words, in that order. You haven't?

That's really all there is to it. I thought everyone knew that.

[AgingAmerican]

65. Why so condescending?

Holy sanctimony Batman!

[RB TexLa]

79. Don't ever even begin to think you know what you know or don't know better than they do

They will tell you that you do not. And quick.

[kestrel91316]

105. "They"? As in "those Democrats"??? Very telling way of putting it.

[RB TexLa]

107. The poster who told me I was unable to determine what I do and do not know.

[bluedigger]

2. NFL playoffs.

Go Pats!

[Journeyman]

14. 'Tis true. What President wants the headlines to read: "Superbowl Set! (So & So Inaugurated)". . .

This is why Reagan was privately sworn in for his second term on Sunday. That year, the Superbowl itself was played on Inauguration Day, and Reagan undoubtedly did not want to be a footnote in the news to the 49ers win.

[onenote]

37. Wrong. But thanks for playing.

Unless of course the football playoffs were a bigger deal than I think they were in 1821 (the first year that inauguration day fell on a Sunday and the public ceremony was moved to Monday).

It has nothing to do with the playoffs, but I suspect you knew that and just thought your post was humorous.

[NutmegYankee]

15. Hell Yeah!

[maryellen99]

28. remember how nasty the ODS sufferers got

When they interrupted Sunday Night Football for the President's speech at the Newtown memorial service? This would have been ten times worse.

Heck two of our local affiliates didn't even break in for the oath of office they decided to show infomercials instead

I'm getting real tired of the disrespect shown

[bluedigger]

45. ODS?

I confess I switched channels and followed the game.

[maryellen99]

56. Obama Derangement Syndrome nt

[slackmaster]

4. The real inauguration happened today as required by the 20th Amendment

Monday's ceremonies are, well, just ceremonies.

The reason for not holding it on a Sunday is that a lot of people are observant Christians, and would not be able to attend due to religious obligations.

I think holding it on the Martin Luther King holiday is a great idea.

[RB TexLa]

5. People meet their religious obligations and do other things most every Sunday

That is laughable, at best.

[slackmaster]

7. I think the decision not to hold the public ceremony today was made by the President

Let him know how you feel about it, if it's important enough to you.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

17. No, it is long standing tradition...

***From the years 1793 to 1933, the addresses were given on March 4 with only four exceptions. Because March 4 fell on a Sunday in each of their respective inaugural years, Monroe, Taylor, Hayes and Wilson each gave an address on Monday, March 5. Since 1937, addresses have been given on January 20 with only two exceptions (other than following a premature end to the presidential term). Presidents Eisenhower and Reagan each gave an address on Monday, January 21. The next inauguration day that will fall on a Sunday is January 20, 2013.*** From our friends at Wiki

[slackmaster]

25. Yes, and it's still the President's prerogative to decide when to hold a public ceremony

And whether or not to hold one at all.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_inauguration_of_Lyndon_B._Johnson

[Sekhmets Daughter]

36. I apologize...

I read your post too quickly and missed the 'public'

[gateley]

27. Yes -- I hear someone say "at least since Eisenhower..." you've cited even more instances. :)

[NYC Liberal]

96. Interesting story: Hayes was actually sworn in a day early.

This was after the highly controversial election in 1876 against Tilden when a Congressional commission resolved the dispute over a number of electoral votes and gave Hayes all of them, allowing him to win by one vote.

Monroe and Taylor were actually sworn in for the first time a day late when their inaugurations fell on a Sunday. They didn't even take the oath privately; they simply waited. This was the tradition.

So for Hayes, the plan was to do the same thing. However, there were rumors going around that Tilden was planning to take the oath, sworn in by a judge on that Sunday and declare himself president before Hayes could take the oath.

This was not long after the Civil War, so Grant (who was leaving office) and others were quite afraid of what might happen if this occurred. So Hayes was invited to the White House a day early, on Saturday March 3, and took the oath then -- in secret. He took it again in the public ceremony on the following Monday.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

101. Can you imagine what the histoey books would have to say about Tilden had he succeeded?

[Rex]

46. So someone tells you the answer and you are rude.

How sad.

[kestrel91316]

69. The Christian Jihadists would take it as a frontal attack on

their religion. Furthermore, the symbolism of doing it on MLK's birthday (and a federal holiday) is not lost on anyone who has actually been paying attention to anything since forever.

[WinkyDink]

91. "Religious obligations"?! Not for modern American Christians.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

9. Tradition.

Sundays are reserved for church. By law the Prez must be sworn in on Jan 20th...the sabbath is holy don'tcha know, so no celebrations until tomorrow.

[customerserviceguy]

55. In this case, I don't really care

But it's an illustration of how religion really does sometimes screw things up for other people. In Bergen County, NJ, there's no non-grocery or non-restaurant shopping allowed to be open. It would suck to be an orthodox Jew, and not have either Saturday or Sunday to get what you need on the weekend.

Also, I had to wait until noon Sunday to buy a few six-packs of locally produced beer at a supermarket in North Carolina that I wasn't going to drink until I got back to NY. A perfectly legal product, being purchased by a sober individual who was of age to buy it, and because of religion, was forced to wait for an arbitrary period roughly corresponding to the time needed to worship an invisible skyfather.

I remember the Inaugural Address from four years ago when the President included nonbelievers in his speech. It would have been a good time to break the tradition now, but he passed on it. It's funny when you consider that most all of the rest of the Western world holds elections on Sundays, when people have all day to get out and vote.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

77. I didn't realize NJ still had Blue Laws on the books.

Orthodox Jews in Bergen Cty. visit Canal St. on Sundays.

I am always entertained by the so-called Christians who leave church to go out to brunch and then the Mall or the game. Whenever one starts on their nonsense I ask them what they did last Sunday.

[customerserviceguy]

97. Just this one county, as far as I know

It's weird to drive past a large mall on Sunday, and see zero cars in the parking lot, except around the restaurants.

I don't have any problem with religious people going out and living a normal life after getting through their piety sessions. I wish they didn't have a problem with me wanting to get a drink on Sunday morning if that's what I want to do.

Oh, one thing they do have in Jersey, no alcohol sales to go after 10PM, and yes, that includes Friday and Saturday night. You can potentially get overserved at a bar or club after that time, but if you simply get off work late, and want to take something home to safely consume it there, you're SOL.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

102. I lived in NJ for 16 years...

1971 - 1987. Then moved to FL....one thing I really never got used to was that you would go into a gas station and see people buying beer and then on the counter were these little paper bags they could take to put the beer in and drink in the car (or truck) on the way home. Do you still have to have an attendant pump your gasoline, or do they have self-service there now? I'm used to it now, but I really hated pumping my own gas when I moved here.

[customerserviceguy]

108. Yep, still no self serve

In NJ or in Oregon, either. But gasoline is still way cheaper in NJ than in NY, so I fill up on my way home from work.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

110. Taxes...

When I moved to FL, 25.5 years ago, there was one gas station that offered service and they charged 10 cents a gallon more...Today I don't know of a station that pumps the gas for you. While I eventually got used to pumping my own gasoline, I still don't like it and it can be nerve wracking when some fool is pumping gas with a lit cigarette hanging from his/her mouth.

[jberryhill]

85. While, on the one hand, civil observance of private sabbaths is problematic...

...there is no doubt that had it not been for sabbath traditions, the norm would be to work everyone every day all week.

[customerserviceguy]

98. Ok, perhaps it served a useful purpose at one time

It's time to chuck the collateral damage of it. Besides that sabbath thing existed for millennia before we had laws regarding how many hours/days people could be forced to work without overtime. I think it was just there for the convenience of those making money off of religion.

[jberryhill]

99. It's the other way around

Sabbath observances are inconvenient for those who make money off of just about anything.

[customerserviceguy]

109. In my example at the NC grocery store

The folks who were working there were still working there whether they were allowed to sell me beer before noon or not.

Also, for people who need a part-time job to supplement their full time job, being able to work on Saturdays and Sundays is something desirable.

[dsc]

10. tradition

the only one who could have broken tradition and gotten away with it was Reagan. The religious right would have gone into a hissy fit of tsunamic proportions if Obama had dared be publicly sworn in today.

[Journeyman]

26. Reagan didn't. He was sworn in privately for his second term with a public event the next day. . .

It was Super Bowl Sunday as well, and he probably didn't want his event eclipsed in the news by the 49ers win.

The precedent, by the way, for holding private inaugurals when the 20th falls on a Sunday was set by Eisenhower on the occasion of his second, same as Reagan's second, and now Obama's. When and if we'll ever see a challenge to this will be when a President's first term begins on a Sunday. But even then, I doubt anyone would ever challenge it. Why get off on such a rocky start by challenging the people's sensibilities. Tradition, doncha know.

[dsc]

30. the tradition pre dates Ike

March 4th fell on Sunday before. I didn't say Reagan did it, I said he could have gotten away with doing it.

[onenote]

41. What difference does it make whether its a first or second term?

Two of the instances in which the public inauguration was moved because it fell on a Sunday were first term inaugurals.

[maryellen99]

94. Who else also remembers with Reagan's second one

That it was too cold to have the ceremony and parade outdoors? They moved the ceremony into the Capital Rotunda and they had the parade indoors- they marched around an arena I think. I only remember this because it was -15 to -20 actual temp and was home from school that day.

[amandabeech]

104. There is no activity in DC at those sub-zero temps. NONE. NADA.

A lot of the houses and commercial buildings are not equipped with furnaces strong enough or construction tight enough for those temps. I remember freezing my buns off in a nice, suburban house built in the '50s when the temp went to zero.

This isn't Michigan, in so many ways.

signed, Michigan Native in Exile

[blogslut]

11. Well, in case you've forgotten...

A majority of Americans follow the christian faith and Sunday is considered a day of rest and churchy stuff by said followers. To me and you this might seem strange and silly but I promise, had the inaugural committee decided to hold festivities today, well, the outrage would have been outrageous.

[WolverineDG]

31. Well, I'm a Christian & I think it's weird not to have the festivities on Sunday

considering that no one whines about all the ruckus that happens on Super Bowl Sunday.

As for the "outrage" you know & I know it would come from the usual suspects on the right.

[blogslut]

38. Football = God

[onenote]

42. There was football in 1821?

That was the first year the public ceremonies were moved because inauguration day fell on a Sunday.

[blogslut]

52. Okay. I'm off to the lounge.

You kids have fun with this thread.

[WolverineDG]

86. In Texas, yeah

But the argument against having the ceremonies on a Sunday are pretty weak, considering all the other festivities that take place.

[muriel_volestrangler]

33. That doesn't stop people celebrating Independence Day on a Sunday

eg http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-independence-day-celebration

[blogslut]

35. Fireworks and BBQ > God

[Capt. Obvious]

12. This thread is going places

I'll check back later.

[nadinbrzezinski]

16. Popcorn anyone?

[cantbeserious]

18. Sworn In On MLK Birthday - Tomorrow - Symbolic - FrightWing Heads Will Explode

eom

[NutmegYankee]

21. That's the most awesome part.

The public swearing in of a black President on MLK's Birthday! The symbolism alone.

[jberryhill]

76. MLK's birthday is January 15th

The national holiday honoring Dr. King is the 21st, but that is not his birthday.

[NutmegYankee]

78. Oh, I didn't know that.

Is the holiday locked to the Monday?

[jberryhill]

83. Yes

Because, no matter when Armistice Day or what-have-you actually happened, we like three-day weekends.

It's amazing how wrapped up people get into trying to rationalize what are, at bottom, symbolic civil rituals. If one has no use for ritualistic behavior, that's fine, but every human society since cave dwellers has had them. Symbolic ritual is part of human social behavior. That bothers people who harbor suspicions of things like emotions.

[MotherPetrie]

29. That is pretty awesome

[jberryhill]

75. MLK's birthday is NOT tomorrow

MLK was born on January 15th.

If the OP wants to be snippy about things, he might as well ask why we aren't observing "MLK's birthday" on the 15th.

But the OP is really on about something else.

[cantbeserious]

87. We Celebrate MLK's Birthday Tomorrow - Still Symbolic - Heads Will Be Exploding

eom

[jberryhill]

88. Yes, however....

One might just as well complain that we do not observe it on Sunday.

I support government controls on exploding heads.

[WilliamPitt]

19. My cat's breath smells like cat food.

[SheilaT]

20. Because it's a Sunday, and federal employees always get

Inauguration Day off, so if it falls on a Saturday or Sunday it gets shifted.

I'm being only slightly sarcastic here. As someone who has always worked shift work, I get annoyed with office workers who somehow don't really understand that actual people work evenings and weekends and holidays, and those people are on the job at those times, and probably never get an extra day off in place of their holiday work. I never did.

In my opinion, there's no reason why the whole Inaugural can't be held on the weekend, and everyone go to work as usual on Monday, but I'm not in charge. I'm actually even more surprised that since tomorrow is Martin Luther King Day, that the Inauguration wasn't pushed back to Tuesday, giving the federal government a full four day weekend.

But they don't consult me, and so it will be tomorrow.

[NutmegYankee]

23. Only federal employees in the DC area.

If you work outside DC, you still have to go to work.

[GoCubsGo]

58. Nope, MLK Day, which is also tomorrow, is a federal holiday.

Just about any employee who gets federal holidays off will be off tomorrow. That includes federal employees everywhere. It doesn't matter where they live. Only those in "essential" positions like air traffic controllers, park police, and doctors and nurses at VA hospitals will be working tomorrow. And, they'll get holiday pay.

[NutmegYankee]

60. You misunderstood my point.

Inauguration day is usually not on MLK Day, and DC civil servants get the day off to ease the burden on traffic and transit. But civil servants outside of DC still have to work. For instance, January 20th 2005 was a day off for DC civil servants.

[GoCubsGo]

61. Yes, I guess I did.

I was thinking in terms of this year only. My bad. What you say is true in every other year where a usual federal holiday is involved.

[jberryhill]

84. Well... I should have said....

I failed to adequately express my point.

My bad.

[SheilaT]

89. Actually, I knew that and should have said it.

I lived and worked in the DC area for a number of years.

[maryellen99]

24. wasnt bushs first inauguration held on a Saturday nt?

[onenote]

50. Yes. January 20, 2001 was a Saturday

If January 20, 2001 had been a Sunday, bush would have been sworn in privately that day and publicly on the next day (Monday).

[MotherPetrie]

39. Inaugural addresses have always been given on a Monday if the inauguration is on a Sunday.

Even Ronald Reagan did that.

When presidents were inaugurated on March 4 and March 4 was a Sunday, they gave their addresses on March 5.

It has zip to do with the convenience of Federal workers and everything to do with keeping DC streets and transportation systems clear of Federal employee congestion at a time when hundreds of thousands of people are pouring into the city. Federal employees who normally wouldn't be scheduled to work tomorrow, don't get another day off.

[Nye Bevan]

32. What's with all the snarky cryptic replies in this thread?

I was wondering the same thing.

[quinnox]

34. maybe the whole week will be set aside for inaugeration

festivities.

I don't get all the hostility to the question either.

[rightsideout]

40. Because today is nice

And tomorrow it's going to be really cold in DC. Like the 20s and 30s. Of course it has to be on the least favorable days, weather wise.

We're heading out of DC to the ski slopes. Too crowded here on inauguration day.

[Recursion]

43. US Law (nt)

[Beacool]

47. I assume because tomorrow is MLK's Day.

The symbolism of the day, etc.

Panem et circenses...........

[onenote]

49. Nope. Its simply tradition.

There have been six other occasions when the Constitutionally-set date for swearing in a president has occurred on a Sunday and the public ceremony has been moved. All six occurred before there was a Martin Luther King, Jr. federal holiday.

[Beacool]

51. Well, if by law the president has to be sworn on the 20th, why wait until Monday?

A bit of trivia. Obama will be the only president, with the exception of FDR, to be sworn four times. Twice in 2009 because Roberts flubbed a line and he repeated the swearing in the following day at the WH, and now because he has to be sworn in on the 20th. Therefore, tomorrow is only for show.

[onenote]

54. As you point out, they didn't "wait until Monday". The President was sworn in today.

As is previous occasions, the events to be held tomorrow are not Constitutionally mandated, but are "for show" -- but there is nothing wrong with that.

[jberryhill]

68. There is NO requirement that the president be sworn on the 20th

The 20th Amendment provides that the terms END on the 20th.

Article II requires the oath to be taken BEFORE entering on execution of the office.

The oath could have been taken last week, and that would be fine.

[Beacool]

74. Then why do it again tomorrow?

Not that it matters to me. I don't usually watch these ceremonies anyway. In the past I had to work on that Monday.

[jberryhill]

81. Because it is a civil ritual

What society does not have rituals?

If you are looking for some "rational" reason for rituals, then you are going to come up empty-handed, other than to remember that when you are trying to manage a society, rituals, while nothing more than symbolic gestures, are part of the glue that makes a society, due to the way that human brain structures have evolved.

If we wanted to have a true "inauguration", then we would take the ritual to its roots, cut up some birds, and have the high priests examine their livers or watch the way they are flying:



Again, there is no requirement that the president take the oath on the 20th anyway. The terms end on the 20th (20th Amd.), and the oath is simply to be taken "before" entering office (Art. II, Sec. 1). He could have taken last week, as far as the requirements are concerned.

But - some people are "stuck on stupid" and believe it has to be done on the 20th, so we accommodate them. Others are stuck on a different variety of stupid in relation to Sundays, so we accommodate them too. Yet a third variety of "stuck on stupid" is offended that we accommodate varieties of stupid other than their own.

So there you have it. You can't make everyone happy.

And, because "you can't make everyone happy" we come full circle to the purpose of ritual in society. Yes, rituals make no sense, but they define who "we" are, what is our tribe, and are gestures which "we" make.

[onenote]

90. Historically, the peaceful transfer of power was the exception not the norm

One of the things that made the American "experiment" so special is that it contemplated a transfer of power without a lot of head being cut off and put on poles. So it was particularly important to the founders that the transfer occur as a public event.

[onenote]

48. The short simple and correct answer: Tradition.

The first time inauguration day (i.e., the date specified in the Constitution) fell on a Sunday was 1821, at the start of James Monroe's second term. He decided to postpone the public ceremonies until the next day. When one of the founding fathers does something like that, it has a tendency to be followed in subsequent years. So when it happened again in 1849, 1877, 1917, 1956 and 1985, the precedent set by Monroe was followed, both by repubs (e.g., Ike, Reagan) and Democrats (e.g., Wilson).

[jberryhill]

53. The "real" reason is that it is a federal holiday in DC...

...and like most federal holiday, unlike Thanksgiving, Christmas or Independence Day, moves to Monday if it falls on a Saturday or Sunday.

Oddly, it is the only geographically-limited federal holiday.

[onenote]

57. I stand corrected - you are right as to the legal reason

5 United States Code Section 6103 lists federal holidays, it also specifies that inauguration day is a federal holiday for DC-area government employees and specifically provides that when January 20 falls on a Sunday, "the next succeeding day selected for the public observance of the inauguration of the President is a legal public holiday for the purpose of this subsection"

Of course, the tradition of moving the observance of inauguration day pre-dates the statutory provision.

[jberryhill]

72. Which means....

Federal workers on DC got one less holiday than usual.

One might as well ask why we are observing MLK's birthday on the 21st, as he was born on the 15th.

[GoCubsGo]

59. It's a federal holiday everywhere.

The holiday is Martin Luther King Day, not the inauguration.

[onenote]

63. Yes, but that has nothing to do with why inaugural ceremonies are moved to Monday

Even before the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday was established in the mid-1980s, it was both tradition, and then federal law, that when Inauguration day falls on a Sunday, the subsequent weekday when the public inauguration is observed is a holiday for DC-area government employees.

[jberryhill]

66. Right, but...

That caused an additional problem, since DC federal employees get one less holiday than they would otherwise have had, given the coincidence. Note the memo from the OPM holiday list this year:

http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/snow-dismissal-procedures/federal-holidays/#url=2013

[jberryhill]

64. Yes, that is correct this year

However, on those instances where these two dates do not coincide, it remains a federal holiday in the District of Columbia.

Because federal law states that Inauguration Day is a federal holiday in DC, the Office of Personnel Management had to include a footnote to this year's holiday schedule as follows:

http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/snow-dismissal-procedures/federal-holidays/#url=2013

This year, the Inauguration Day holiday falls on Monday, January 21, 2013, which is also the legal public holiday for the Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. (See 5 U.S.C. 6103(c).) For Federal employees who work in the District of Columbia, Montgomery or Prince George's Counties in Maryland, Arlington or Fairfax Counties in Virginia, or the cities of Alexandria or Fairfax in Virginia, Inauguration Day is observed concurrently with the Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. Federal employees in these areas are not entitled to an in-lieu-of holiday for Inauguration Day.

I highlighted the last line, as there was some question among federal employees in DC and federal office in the DC area, about whether they would receive an additional day due to the fact that two federal holidays coincided this year.

[Ikonoklast]

67. Doing it just to piss you off.

And it seemed to work.

[Brickbat]

71. This answer, amazingly enough, is an excellent response to almost all of the OP's OPs.

In any case, I know it's the first thing that comes to my mind whenever I see a question from him.

[Ikonoklast]

95. That is pretty much my stock response to the OP's posted by that user.

I've used it before, as it is appropriate.

The Outrage Brigade must be Outraged.

[Brickbat]

100. Beyond outrage.

It moves under the bridge, I think.

[jberryhill]

70. To avoid angering the gods

Happy now?

The root term of "inauguration" comes from augury - the Roman custom of discerning the intent of the gods by slicing open a pigeon and looking at its entrails.

Doing so on Sunday - the day of the sun god - is bad ju-ju.

[gollygee]

73. What difference does it make?

If this is how it has been done when the 20th is on a Sunday, then whatever. It just doesn't really matter. If people like it on Monday better, then fine.

[Deep13]

80. Christian sabbath? nt

[Enrique]

82. people don't know

so they get mad at you for asking.

[WinkyDink]

92. You know, I actually DID wonder. But nobody here answered, so Google for me!

Et voila'!

http://www.inaugural.senate.gov/about/jan-21

(Thank you, self.)

[MiniMe]

93. If inauguration day was on a Sunday, a lot of people would miss a holiday

[Atman]

106. I want those 15 minutes of my life back.

It would have been productive to smell Will Pitt's cat's breath.

And yet, as when passing a train wreck, I had to look. Hasn't anyone here ever heard of Google?