Text of President Barack Obamas inaugural address on Tuesday, as prepared for delivery and released by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.
Barack Obama takes the Oath of Office as the 44th President of the United States as he is sworn in by US Chief Justice John Roberts with his wife Michelle by his side during the inauguration ceremony in Washington, January 20, 2009. Obama became the first African-American president in US history. [Agencies]
OBAMA: My fellow citizens:
I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.
Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land, a nagging fear that Americas decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America, they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted -- for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.
For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
我的同胞們，
今天我站在這里，看到眼前面臨的重大任務，深感卑微。我感謝你們對我的信任，也知道先輩們為了這個國家所作的犧牲。我要感謝布什總統為國家做出的貢獻，以及感謝他在兩屆政府過渡期間給與的慷慨協作。
迄今為止，已經有44個美國總統宣誓就職。總統的宣誓有時面對的是國家的和平繁榮，但通常面臨的是烏云密布的緊張形勢。在緊張的形勢中，支持美國前進的不僅僅是領導人的能力和遠見，也在于美國人民對國家先驅者理想的信仰，以及對美國立國文件的忠誠。
前輩們如此，我們這一代美國人也要如此。
現在我們都深知，我們身處危機之中。我們的國家在戰斗，對手是影響深遠的暴力和憎恨;國家的經濟也受到嚴重的削弱，原因雖有一些人的貪婪和不負責任，但更為重要的是我們作為一個整體在一些重大問題上決策失誤，同時也未能做好應對新時代的準備。
我們的人民正在失去家園，失去工作，很多且要倒閉。社會的醫療過于昂貴、學校教育讓許多人失望，而且每天都會有新的證據顯示，我們利用能源的方式助長了我們的敵對勢力，同時也威脅著我們的星球。
統計數據的指標傳達著危機的消息。危機難以測量，但更難以測量的是其對美國人國家自信的侵蝕——現在一種認為美國衰落不可避免，我們的下一代必須低調的言論正在吞噬著人們的自信。
今天我要說，我們的確面臨著很多嚴峻的挑戰，而且在短期內不大可能輕易解決。但是我們要相信，我們一定會度過難關。
今天，我們在這里齊聚一堂，因為我們戰勝恐懼選擇了希望，摒棄了沖突和矛盾而選擇了團結。
今天，我們宣布要為無謂的摩擦、不實的承諾和指責畫上句號，我們要打破牽制美國政治發展的若干陳舊教條。
美國仍是一個年輕的國家，借用《圣經》的話說，放棄幼稚的時代已經到來了。重拾堅韌精神的時代已經到來，我們要為歷史作出更好的選擇，我們要秉承歷史賦予的寶貴權利，秉承那種代代相傳的高貴理念：上帝賦予我們每個人以平等和自由，以及每個人盡全力去追求幸福的機會。
在重申我們國家偉大之處的同時，我們深知偉大從來不是上天賜予的，偉大需要努力贏得。(我們的民族一路走來)，這旅途之中從未有過捷徑或者妥協，這旅途也不適合膽怯之人、或者愛安逸勝過愛工作之人、或者單單追求名利之人。這條路是勇于承擔風險者之路，是實干家、創造者之路。這其中有一些人名留青史，但是更多的人卻在默默無聞地工作著。正是這些人帶領我們走過了漫長崎嶇的旅行，帶領我們走向富強和自由。
為了我們，先輩們帶著微薄的細軟，橫渡大洋，尋找新生活;為了我們，先輩們忍辱負重，用血汗澆鑄工廠;為了我們，先輩們在荒蕪的西部大地辛勤耕作，定居他鄉;為了我們，先輩們奔赴(獨立戰爭中的)康科德城和葛底斯堡、(二戰中的)諾曼底、(越戰中的)Khe Sahn，他們征戰、死去。
