So (nearly) everyone is all excited and happy and crying that Obama will be the next President of the USA. And indeed it is great; great that a man with some native African DNA in his make-up is going to be president of the most powerful country in the world. It is a clear sign of how far things have come since the times of Kunta Kinte, and the toe-chopping white slave-masters. But what now for the prince of charisma? What master plan will he unleash to set the world straight? What will happen once the "I have a dream..." speeches stop, and he has to knuckle down to actual diplomacy and national problems?
You see, no matter how much you want to bang him, ladies, Barrack Obama is a politician and therefore will ultimately fail. We've seen it all before: Tony Blair, heralded as the Labor Saviour when elected to power in Britain in the 1990's... ended up being called a war monger and pooch poodle to GW Bush. His successor, one Mr. Gorden Browne, was thought to be someone who would turn around the opinions of the current Labor government. He has in fact only made things worse. In Ireland, Bertie Ahern, once seen as the man of the people, he who could do no wrong, the “Teflon-Taoisach” surrounded by his "smokes & daggers", is now slowly being shown up for what he really was and is: a criminal. Again like in the UK, high hopes were had for a fresh start with Brian Cowen, and again, we are left wondering are we in the frying pan or the fire. Even Hitler when elected in Germany, was seen in the same light as Obama is today.
So thats why I don't share in this jubilation over a man being elected to the White House across the ocean. I acknowledge what he signifies and it is truly great, but I still only give him a year before people call for his head. If I'm wrong, and he makes it through 8 years with the people calling for more, then my humility will be the least of everyones concerns. For without a doubt, if we see this man stay true to his word and conviction, then we will have lived through an era in which we can safely say, that we have witnessed one of the greatest politician's ever to have governed anywhere in the world.
5 comments:
I sincerely hope you're wrong, but fear that you're right. Perhaps democracy itself makes it very difficult for immediate change. Not that I'm against democracy but it is slow.
Strangely enough, you're post is the second post in my RSS reader saying essentially this. In the end he's a poltician, and experienced enough to know what he's getting into.
Perhaps his biggest asset isn't his polticial will, but that he's brings a message of hope in a time of crisis?
I don't know really.
History shows that charismatic leaders are invariably always elected in times of crisis, and then pushed out very quickly when it's all done with. Churchill is a perfect example.
What Obama has is charisma and perfect communication skills. He also seems to have a very good sense of social justice. I have great hope for his tenure but he has a fuckin' big mountain to climb. He may not even be able to sort things out if he's lucky enough to get two terms.
But, as has been shown recently in the financial crisis, confidence is one heck of a powerful thing and this guy seems to exude it in bucketloads. And it's very infectious. If you can't make bad things good, you can make bad things seem not so bad and that's what he needs to do first of all.
Above all, I am stunned and incredibly proud of our American cousins for having the bollox to vote for him in such vast numbers. that alone is worth it. If Obama inspires more participation in politics, especially from ethnic minorities, that would be a perfect legacy, no matter what happens.
It's just so good to know that the corrupt Republicans are on their way out and America and the rest of the world can start over again.
I'm giving obama one year.
what a pointless fuckin comment
Cleo: Democracy is slow alright, nothing like a dictatorship to get things going :)
nitro2k01: Even if hope is the only thing that Obama brings, it will be an awful lot more than anything Bush has brought.
Failed Muso: Churchill was great if you were British but if you were anyway foreign, say Irish or Indian, he was a bit of a cunt really.
Speaking of being stunned, I wasn't at all surprised Obama got in. What stunned me was Bush's re-election 4 years ago.
Dan: Thanks for a perfect example of recursive commenting ;)
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