By Bryan Cain-Jackson
In January 1968, Senator and Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy spoke in his belief that our country would evolve to elect its first black President in 40 years.
Kennedy was not too far off in his estimation of time. For at the end of 2008, Barack Obama was elected the new leader of the free world.
All the time leading up to this event saw people in excitement. Obama said it was time for a change. Not only would there be a change in our leader, but a difference in the way leadership at the top was exercising thought. Obama and his administration were bent upon thinking outside the box, something this country has been in dire need of for quite some time.
We were promised many changes. The greatest promise was to finally see an end come to the United States presence in the Middle East. This of course has yet to happen since we seem to see that presence increase in some ways.
Was it really these promises that had America so hyped about our new leader? Did we get so caught up in the novelty of finally having diversity in The White House that we forgot to examine the intellectual prowess of the man in question?
I believe it is a yes answer to both of these questions, however, we lucked out. Not only did we get an intelligent President, he can use big words and speaks clearly and concisely.
President Obama has established his strength in addressing the nation. He has spoken too bluntly for some and not bluntly enough for others. Has he made blunders and broken promises? Of course, what President hasn’t? We need only look back at the last decade where we witnessed one man’s endless pursuit of oil. How about the President Nixon scandal at Watergate? Looking back a little further sees President John F. Kennedy and his infamous decisions that led to the Bay of Pigs. The point to be taken here is that no administration is free of its blunders. Why? Need we remind ourselves that no one is perfect?
The current administration has delivered on its promises for changes. Think about it. We’ve seen more thinking outside the box in the last three years than we have in the last four presidential administrations. Of course there is not so much flexibility in all thoughts presented to the House of Representatives. This is where some of those promises for change may never meet the light of day.
The reasons I believe many of these ideas have failed is because of the criticism from the opposing parties. If the public is showered with negative thoughts on an idea for a potential change it will obviously create a media upheaval. The media will be all over the thoughts and opinions of the Republicans, The GOP, and now the Tea Party. These opinions create a stir amongst “Joe and Joanne Voter.” People become frightened into seeing only the negative in the situation and not the positive.
We must all learn to think and speak with our own voices. Stop being followers. Who gives a damn about the Democrats, the Republicans, the GOP, and the Tea Party. Partisan politics are only working to further divide this country, it should be about independence. We vote to have a voice, but we don’t use it because we are too busy listening to everyone else’s. Since we’re doing that, why not listen to me? *Laughs* Just kidding!
Seriously, my friends, I firmly believe we should be looking at the glass half full rather than half empty. We have a leader that is not afraid to get his hands dirty in the mess that he has inherited in the form of our nation’s economy. That mess is due to ever growing greed and overspending on conflicts in other countries that prove almost as senseless as the Vietnam War.
We like our leaders, are a nation that is still learning from its mistakes. President Barack Obama represents equally both the hype and the hope. We are given to the hype courtesy of the media, and his thinking gives us some hope that maybe this is indeed the beginning of change. To embrace our President for the intentions of his efforts rather than to criticize him for undesired results will always make sense.
What do you think? Let’s see you post your thoughts.
I would like to acknowledge E. Dubb for his special contributions to makingSENSE. You’re the man!
I have mixed feelings about the current President.
ReplyDeleteHe promised to get the troops out of Iraq within six months after taking office.
He promised to close Guantanamo.
He was pathetically ineffective during the BP oil leak; it was humiliating to see those photos of him swimming in the Gulf of Mexico like a poster boy for how "clean" the water was after the "miraculous" clean up efforts.
He's in favor of child soldiers in Africa, suspending the Child Soldiers Prevention Act--signed into law by the President who, in Kanye West's words, "doesn't care about black people."--exempting Yemen, the Sudan, Chad,& the Congo. The U.S. will continue to send military aid to these countries who employ child soldiers. This alone has cost Obama my vote the next time out.
On a less-hideous note:
He no longer speaks with the same drive and convincing passion that got him elected; he's dangerously close to John Kerry monotone territory.
He doesn't rally the Democrats like the party leader he's supposed to be; meanwhile, the Republicans get stronger and more unified.
He's proving to be just as weak as Jimmy Carter, though barring a major disaster, he will most likely be re-elected, but only because the prospect of a "President Palin" frightens the country more than anything else--I hope.
I couldn't agree with you more. It seems that he is a President you want to rally for but cannot agree with everything that he does. I think that the situation he is could be the cause of the newly found lack of confidence in his tone. It will take at least three terms with any President to strengthen our current weakness. There is no sense of unity in our political infrastructure, as long as this is the case we will continue to see our resolve weakened. The Republicans and the Democrats need to get on the same page if we are to see a true change. Instead I feel like we are watching kids battle it out in the bark box at recess time.
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