«SHOPPING IS MORE AMERICAN THAN THINKING»

Since the election, several spaces at Berkeley's Ashby BART Station flea market, for example, are filled with Obama earrings, clocks, framed pictures of the first family-to-be and the ubiquitous commemorative ceramic plates.The official online inauguration store - not to be confused with the Obama campaign store - opened Thursday with designer T-shirts and totes from Zac Posen, Tory Burch, Alexander Wang and others in addition to the usual commemorative buttons, coins, photos and cuff links.The phenomenon has gone global. In France, a businessman has created bubble-gum-flavored Obama soda in a red and blue can emblazoned with the "Yes We Can" motto. And the Times of London recently reported that an inflatable Nativity scene featuring the Obama family was a holiday best-seller in Naples, Italy.