The Pink Bat

Somehow I discovered this delightful little movie about finding solutions or innovations by thinking about problems or challenges in alternative ways.

In my experience, when I stop focusing on a challenge I'm having or on a question I'm unable to answer and reframe it, without failure, I always find the solution quickly.

I hope the movie resonates with you as much as it did for me.

Change The World

With all that's going on in the world these days (see Egypt, Libya, Wisconsin, et al), "Change the World" by Eric Clapton seems the best way to bring in March and the meteorological beginning of Spring.

My friend Cindee posted the video below on Facebook tonight (yes, I know I'm letting my friends do all the heavy lifting for LMS content right now, but I promise LMS will be completely original on Thursday morning) and it so inspired me that I had to share it with you. Take the time to not only listen to the music, but to watch the video and read the lyrics that go along with it. I'm pretty certain you'll feel inspired too.

And if Eric Clapton doesn't inspire you, take the words of Margaret Mead to heart. "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

That Hopey, Changey Thing . . .

Here's what it looks like . . .


Once again, this isn't the health care reform bill I would have liked, but it's a start.

And to a certain ex-governor of Alaska, that hopey, changey thing is working out pretty good. Thanks for your concern.

Transparency in Government! Hooray President-elect Obama!

This is fantastic! I'm not sure it's possible for me to love President-elect Obama or this idea more! Thank you, President-elect Obama!

From The Washington Post

The YouTube Presidency

By Jose Antonio Vargas

The White House has gone YouTube.

Today, President-elect Obama will record the weekly Democratic address not just on radio but also on video -- a first. The address, typically four minutes long, will be turned into a YouTube video and posted on Obama's transition site, Change.gov, once the radio address is made public on Saturday morning.

The address will be taped at the transition office in Chicago today.

"This is just one of many ways that he will communicate directly with the American people and make the White House and the political process more transparent," spokeswoman Jen Psaki told us last night.

In addition to regularly videotaping the radio address, officials at the transition office say the Obama White House will also conduct online Q&As and video interviews. The goal, officials say, is to put a face on government. In the following weeks, for example, senior members of the transition team, various policy experts and choices for the Cabinet, among others, will record videos for Change.gov.

Yesterday, transition co-chairman Valerie Jarrett recorded a two-minute video that summarized the goings-on in the past week. "President-elect Obama adopted the most sweeping and strict ethics rules that have ever been in place in the course of a transition," said a bespectacled Jarrett, looking directly at the camera in a video that's yet to be posted.
President Bush, too, has updated WhiteHouse.gov, which offers RSS feeds, podcasts and videos of press briefings. The site's Ask the White House page has featured regular online chats dating back to 2003, and President Bush hosted one in January after a Middle Eastern trip.

But online political observers say President-elect Obama's innovative, online-fueled campaign will likely evolve into a new level of online communication between the public and the White House--the Internet-era version of President Franklin Roosevelt's famous "fireside chats" between 1933 and 1944,

"The Obama team has written the playbook on how to use YouTube for political campaigns. Not only have they achieved impressive mass -- uploading over 1800 videos that have been viewed over 110 million times total -- but they've also used video to cultivate a sense of community amongst supporters," said Steve Grove, head of news and politics at YouTube. "Obama told us in a YouTube interview last year that he plans to have 'fireside chats' on video, and we expect his administration will launch a White House YouTube channel very soon after taking office."

Added Ellen Miller of the Sunlight Foundation, a D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for government transparency: "We're living, after all, in the Internet era. This is an individualized version of the 'fireside chats.' It's not delivered between 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. but whenever anyone wants to see it. I don't know if it necessarily creates transparency -- it's still a controlled, one-way message. But it creates the aura of a much more accessible presidency."

So what's next from the Obama White House?

A behind-the-scenes online video exclusive of the State of the Union Address? A text message reminding us to turn in our taxes? Who knows...

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The emphasis above is mine.

Two of my beliefs are that people support that which they help create and that no one likes change. They don't always have to agree with the final decisions, but as long as they're a part of the process and understand how decisions are made, they have an easier time supporting it. I always think about that song from Mary Poppins "A Spoonful of Sugar" when I think about change and transparency. This step to communicate openly and regularly (and I believe honestly) with the American public will go a long way towards keeping all the goodwill he's built up.

In Case You've Already Forgotten the Significance of This Week

There are almost no words to describe my feelings for this week. In fact, I think it's only hitting me today. I happened to catch President-Elect Obama's first press conference today and I cried watching it. He's so presidential and so ready. He was somber and serious. He understands what lies ahead. And despite all the challenges, he still inspires. He still knows how to empathize with us.

I found this Daily Kos video over on Americablog tonight. It's worth the ten minutes.



Obviously we've got quite a lot to do as a country. In the months ahead, we'll still have to deal with two wars and a badly hurt if not crippled economy. There will be times we are tempted to do and say divisive things, times when we may not agree with President Obama, times when people say or do things to get us riled up, and possibly things will get worse before they get better. I hope that when we are tempted do engage in the "them vs. us" rhetoric of the past that we will remember that what got us President Barack Obama was the ability to set our aside our differences and come together. We will always have more that unites us than divides us. And during those times we are feeling discouraged, I hope we'll think back to how we feel this week and hold onto that.

Change.gov Office of the President-Elect

It truly is a new day in America.

Can you imagine any other President who wanted our input? Forget the fact that 8 years ago the internet was still in its infancy and Web 2.0 didn't exist. Just think about this. No one else that comes to my mind has ever asked for our opinions and ideas regardless of party affiliation or money (or lack of money) donated. WOW.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden work for us and they know it.

I encourage you to visit Change.gov and tell your story. Ask your questions. Share your ideas. This is Change We Believed In.