All the talk about the inauguration tomorrow got my political science nerd juices flowing. I decided to look and see what other countries in addition  to the United States have Presidential inauguration ceremonies. Want to guess how many? Out of 193 recognized sovereign states in the world, 13 of them have inaugurations. 13! And of those, (as far as I can tell) all began after the United States. The inauguration to me has always been somewhat special because of the peaceful transfer of power that takes place. In many of the other 192 countries of the world, a change of government means at minimum a period of political instability, and often that a coup has just taken place. The Presidential inauguration represents the crowning achievement of the American political system. While the people have changed and there has been some maturation of the system as it grows, the fact that every four years we swear in a new executive to lead the country and NO ONE DIES is pretty remarkable. No matter your political leanings, you have to admit that’s pretty dang cool.

Happy Inauguration Day!

Filed under: life by Jonathan