Today, approximately 2 million people covered the national mall to attend the inauguration of this nation’s 44th president, Barack Obama. There is so much to be proud of today and so much to inspire. Whether the crowds were there to view a scene of new hope, the making of history, a portion of MLK’s dream finally fulfilled, or the exit of perhaps the most unpopular president in the nation’s history; 1.4 million people braved the cold and the crowd for the chance at a glimpse at this historic moment.

Seeing the Mall completely filled with people, in a way I have never seen, reminded me of some of the great moments in history when individuals have stood up against injustice and fought for right. It also reminded me of a book I read in first grade called “How Much is a Million.” The answer is of course a lot. We often forget in this global world the immense size of the numbers we discuss on a daily basis. Some of the fun facts in the book are:

• If you counted to a million out loud it would take 23 days
• A fish bowl that could hold a million goldfish would be large enough to hold a whale
• If a million children stood on each other’s shoulders they would reach higher than airplanes can fly.

But the numbers of inspired people don’t end at two million. Throughout the world, even greater numbers stopped to celebrate and view this moment on their televisions and computers. I was placed on a waiting list to see CNN’s live feed of the inauguration 20 minutes before noon EST. Facebook messages of friends and acquaintances stated their pride, happiness, and hope on this day.

There has been such a disdain of government in the United States over the past 30 years that we should reflect on the meaning of these large numbers. If we can harness this hope and pride in the nation we can achieve just about anything. If government and other forces can mobilize these millions of people beyond the events of today; injustice, oppression, poverty, and disease can all be fought.

One thing I have always admired about President Obama is his constant belief that naysayers are wrong when they say we can’t achieve greatness. Today I believe him. The American people (and all people throughout the world) can do great things and our government can facilitate us in achieving that greatness. This is a subject I hope to explore more throughout my academic career; how can government assist individuals in creating the great society they envision? We now have enough inspired individuals in this country that if we made a human tower we could reach far into space. Think of what else we can reach if all 300 million of us work together.