When browsing through my favourite American blogs I noticed some of them make a big deal about the news that fewer than previously expected will attend Barack Obama’s inauguration. So I thought the new projection hinted likely embarrassment on 20 January—until I read this in Washington Post:

Officials are casting doubt on an early projection that 4 million to 5 million people could jam downtown Washington on Inauguration Day, saying it is more likely that the crowd will be about half that size.