I just love Jeffrey Sachs’ essay in this month’s GOOD magazine.

Oh how fiercely I hope that the Obama generation is, as he says, up to the task! How full I am of both hope and fear about the state of the world.

I’ve always thought the Reagan parallel to Obama is as utterly inaccurate as the JFK parallel is apt (complete with intelligent, glamorous, independent wife). Sachs seems to agree with me, laying much of the blame for the current situation at Reagan’s feet (as does Friedman in Hot, Flat, and Crowded) and referencing this quotation from JFK’s inaugural address:

“I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it—and the glow from that fire can truly light the world.”

Those words echo loudly today. Read the piece. It’s worth it. Also, as an aside, I had a shiver of anticipation for Obama’s inaugural address (on Whit’s birthday) – it is sure to be an outstanding piece of oratory.