Roll your eyes if I am being too starry-eyed about Republican government and some of its associated smells and bells, but in response to all those who want the inaugural balls and things cancelled because of a) the tsunamis b) the war c) Kerry lost: Though it has been done, I’m not sure it is all for the winner to cancel. The inaugural celebration is about more than who won and who lost (though, yes, I’d be increasingly bitter if Bush lost as Jan 20 approached), it’s about the peaceful transfer of power/representative government here. It’s about celebrating the system even more than the win. The show should go on (though I could do without the Kid Rock part), and we should all appreciate that, John Conyers & co.’s claims to the contrary, the whole process generally keeps working. (And we may get 8 years of Bill Clinton now and again, but we move on.)