Of the self-immolators during the Vietnam War, Denise Levertov said¹:
     We need them.
     Brands that flare to show us
     The dark we are in,
     To keep us moving in it.

That was forty years ago. Another war now blinds us, illuminated not by human torches but by the soft screens of cell phones, iPods, GameBoys, Blackberries, and laptops. And that is faint light. 

Mr. President-Elect, we are so tired of bad leadership, of lies and obfuscations, of smoke where light is needed, that we have almost forgotten what it is like to have a real leader. So the first thing you can do is truly lead, by word and action. Provide inspiration and vision, but also know how to get to the vision, and then lead us there. Pull us along, if necessary. 

You have two great tasks: dig us out of the economic hole we're in, and convert our economy and our day-to-day life to that which is sustainable. You can accomplish the two together. Get people working on near-term solutions -- everything from bioenergy to safe streets for cyclists. Give people jobs to ride their bicycles and efficient cars to. Rebuild cities and suburbs on sustainable models.

You can accomplish so much with the people behind you. Don't squander this chance. 

¹From "An interim," in Denise Levertov, Poems 1968-1972. New York: New Directions, 1987. ISBN 0-8112-1005-7.