As of 2 p.m. on Wednesday the activities of Inaugural Day appeared to be going smooth and hopefully all will remain civil and calm throughout the night and the days ahead.

            It was announced that President Biden would sign over a dozen executive actions in his first hours in office.

            Among them is immediately halting the travel ban on countries with heightened terror concerns, as well as construction of the border wall.

            Of the executive actions, 15 will be Executive Orders and are legally binding and two will be Executive Actions which are more often symbolic efforts to enact change.

            The travel ban restricted issuance of visas to individuals from many Muslim and African countries.  Regarding the border wall, the president will direct an immediate pause in wall construction projects to allow a close review of the legal basis for the funding.  It will also review the contract methods being used and determine the best ways to redirect funds diverted to fund wall construction.

            The actions will also include rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization.

            He will also sign orders extending moratoriums on evictions and foreclosures, and deferrals on student loan payments.

            The Keystone XL oil pipeline will come to a halt under his pen and non-citizens in the US will now be counted in the US census.  Look for him to sign an order strengthening workplace discrimination protections based on sex and gender.  In addition he will ask Congress to grant permanent status to Dreamers as part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

            Yes, there will be controversies.  Some people will approve of all of the President's initial actions, some will approve of some them, and some will approve of none of them.

            There are times that we must agree to disagree and work within the proper, legal system to affect change.  You can voice your opinion (in a civil manner), lobby your elected officials, organize and peacefully protest, and present your argument and have it supported by facts.

            When all else fails, as citizens of the United States, we have the ballot box.

            It is up to each of us to remember who we are and where we came from.  Don't be afraid to reach out to help someone who feels that violence is the answer.  It isn't.

            Ben Franklin's words "We may give advice, but we cannot give conduct.  However, remember this, those that cannot be counseled cannot be helped" are sound.

            For the sake of the United States of America, try anyway.