Inauguration: Why celebrate?

Brian Carso, an inauguration historian at Misericordia University, said people are drawn to the spectacle of the Inauguration and the celebration of their candidate’s victory. This year, Democrats will be celebrating the end of eight years of the Republican Bush administration, as well as a big moment in America’s 300-year long effort to deal with race.

Clinical psychologist Bonnie Jacobson adds a psychological perspective. She says people look to groups to reinforce moods. Being at the inauguration heightens attendees' excitement and happiness.

Carso was among the crowds at the senior President Bush’s 1989 Inauguration and an invited guest for the younger Bush’s 2001 Inauguration and said both experiences were valuable. “The peaceful transferal of power is more an exception [in the world] than the rule, and it’s something to celebrate,” said Carso.