Excitement, caution, hope, pride. Skipping class tuesday to watch Barry inaugurated. Not too excited to watch Rick Warren, but in the name of unity, I will tolerate him for a few minutes or so.

Farewell Mr.Bush. Thanks for the last eight?

Did Barack Obama just trick every single person in the country?

It would seem on the surface that President-elect Obama stirred up his first controversy with his supporters this week, after announcing that Rick Warren, pastor of the Sattleback Church and arch-villain of gay marriage in California, will be giving the opening prayer at Obama’s inauguration on January 20th. Criticism ranged from Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) calling the move a “mistake” to a Time Magazine columnist stating, “Obama has proved himself repeatedly to be a very tolerant, very rational-sounding sort of bigot.”

But let’s take a step back for a minute and take everyone’s strong opinions about Warren out of the equation. Policy-wise, his prayer before the swearing-in is meaningless . He is not part of the Obama administration in any capacity, and in fact, Obama is stridently against Warren’s views on gays. Not to mention, Warren certainly will not being saying anything even coming close to the subject at the inauguration.

Selecting Warren was simply, in Vice President-elect Joe Biden’s words, “a showing of unity,” further inoculating Obama from any criticism from Republicans that he never bucks the party line. Liberals might be frustrated, but they aren’t going anywhere, and as a bonus, every conservative evangelical in the country will smile and nod when hearing all this, not realizing Obama never actually changed his position at all. As a pure political move, it makes perfect sense.

Much more critical, though, is the fact that the criticism leveled at Obama is only vaguely directed at him. The real venom and sting has been reserved for Warren’s words and deeds over the last few years, from which the preacher has avoided taking any flack for at all. The beating Warren is taking in the national news this past week is much larger than it would have been had he been left out of the January 20^th lineup, regardless of his infamy in California. For the past week, the press has been digging up all the ridiculous things he’s said over the years, such as comparing gays and lesbians to pedophiles. As a consequence, he is now forced to go on TV and give interviews and press conferences emphasizing how he “loves gay people,” and “has many gay friends,” effectively killing the message of the most famous anti- gay marriage messenger in the country.

Essentially, Obama’s imaginary insult to the Left caused Rick Warren to completely change his tone about the issue, thereby advancing the Left’s cause, while making sure to pick up some Conservative votes along the way and never actually changing his position on anything.

And to think — he’s not even president yet.

This past November, Americans voted a man who emits such a powerful aura of self-confidence and intelligence their new president. Barack Obama.

He is, without a doubt, about to be the coolest damn president ever.

The guy has a SERIOUS job ahead of him, that goes without saying. Putting aside what he has to do to help the economy and all that jazz, when it comes to direct diplomacy, he has the upper-hand.

I can honestly see why he has no reservations about speaking without preconditions to some of the world’s most powerful leaders. He knows he can do it. He believes in himself, and while I don’t know him personally (though I wish, like most people, that I did) I know his belief in himself is astonishingly high. No one would question that. Look at what he just accomplished.

He won the presidential election by beating the old white guy, in a nation run by old white guys.

And while I do have a man-crush on this guy (any male voting American who bought a t-shirt with his face on it can’t deny that, though many will), my judgement regarding his capabilities are not clouded.

I’m a good voter, I didn’t get caught up in the hype and just vote for him. I studied the two campaigns, watched all the debates, read the articles, read the history and came to, what I believe to be, a great decision.

I can’t wait for January 20 (although I’m not wild about his choosing Rick Warren to give the invocation).  And like many people around the world, I’ll be watching on the edge of my seat. Watching the most historic election in the history of the United States come to an end, and hopefully, watching one of the greatest presidencies in the history of the world begin.

Warren backed the recent California ban on gay marriage, doesn’t believe in evolution and once publicly told a Jewish woman she would go to hell because she isn’t Christian.

“Choosing a man like Rick Warren to deliver the invocation isn’t just a slap in the face to gay supporters, but a slap in the face to several of Obama’s supporters,” said a gay Obama supporter who requested to remain anonymous. “The choice only satisfies the right-wing. It’s like Obama is saying ’sorry for beating McCain guys, here’s your consolation prize.”

Gays have been the most public of the outraged American population; several organizations have organized protests and sent letters urging Obama to reconsider his decision.

“Your invitation to Reverend Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at your inauguration is a genuine blow to LGBT Americans,” reads a letter to the President-elect from the Human Rights Campaign. “You have tarnished the view that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Americans have a place at your table.”

Obama’s decision to invite Warren, a man who is already such a powerful pastor and has been deemed by many as America’s “unofficial pastor,” may come at the expense of several important groups in the U.S., including many politically knowledgeable religious minorities and gays.

Knowing that many liberals see the choice as utterly insulting, Warren defended himself in a recent speech at his Saddleback Church in Southern California.

“You don’t have to see eye to eye to walk hand in hand,” Warren told the crowd, according to Fox News.

In defense over allegations that he is homophobic, he cited his relationship with gay rights activist Melissa Etheridge, saying he is a fan of her music and that the two enjoyed a great conversation one evening.

However, in an interview with BeliefNet, a spiritual site owned by Fox, he likened redefining marriage to include gays to incest, child abuse and polygamy. In the same interview he told BeliefNet that he has “many gay friends. I’ve eaten dinner in gay homes.”

“Every step Warren takes forward, he falls back twice,” said Jason Howell, a conservative who voted for McCain. “He says something to better his public image, then starts talking about gay homes.  He does work in Africa fighting HIV/AIDS, but teaches abstinence and prayer instead of sex education to a society where rape is a common cause of the disease. He always says things to satisfy those he’s speaking to, and we can expect the same pabulum in his invocation speech.”

Whether Warren spews pabulum or not, he will deliver the speech as millions around the world watch one of the most historic presidential campaigns come to an official end. Unfortunately, for many, the pastor’s preaching will mar this historic day.

However while countless Americans are insulted, some believe Obama’s willingness to have a man with whom he disagrees on many issues at his inauguration shows his commitment to unifying the country and sets an example all Americans should follow.

“You can look at it that way too. Just because he chose Warren doesn’t mean he supports Warren’s ideology,” said the anonymous Obama supporter. “He’s getting people from all ends of the political spectrum to join in his celebration.”

“He is reaching across the aisle. Warren and Obama disagree on a lot of things, but so do a lot of Americans,” said Howell. “But that doesn’t mean they all aren’t happy about change.”

As is the case with many political decisions that involve religion, this is wrought with controversy. However while analyzing this selection is of grave importance to several liberals, Howell believes January 20 should be about something else.

“The day is about Obama and his historical inauguration not about Warren’s political views. People shouldn’t let that overshadow an accomplishment by a man so deserving of all the success he has received in life.”