Maybe it’s time for me to take off the kid gloves again. Maybe it’s time for me to start going after the many mistakes that Barack Obama makes; mistakes which some in mainstream media (and also in alternative media) tend to be lenient about. The campaign is over now, so those of us who didn’t want to negatively impact on his chances for victory can return from that hiatus from objectivity. He won.
I am quite perplexed by the many problems that Barack Obama often seems to create for himself: there is a pattern here. And because the media tends to be relatively lenient it doesn’t mean that he will forever get away from full scrutiny. Many times I have wondered if Obama really understands what he is getting into. Has this always been about raw personal political ambition? Is this about some death-wish for martyrdom? Or is this truly about “change”?
We don’t need just another ordinary American president right now: we don’t. We need an exceptional one: like yesterday. Barack Obama is inspirational, and that’s great; he gives many of us hope, and that too is great; since inspiration and hope often brings outstanding outcomes. But that’s not a given; we have got a long way to go.
Look; to many (myself included); re-cycling ex-officials and workers from the Bill Clinton administration is not quite our idea of change. Floating Hillary Clinton’s name for Secretary of State, when Bill Richardson offers him a chance to appoint the first Hispanic in the role, is nothing short of ludicrous. Especially after the many things the Clintons said about his foreign policy ideas during the primary. How do you square this? Are we still at politics as usual? Is this the change we can believe in? Or is “change” only a word? You know: “just words”? Words that gets you to the White House? And then what: same old same old?
Surrounding yourself with old white men, who have all contributed to screwing up the world as we now know it, isn’t change we can believe in; it isn’t. If we are all going to hell in a basket, shouldn’t we all contribute? You know; like women of all races; Blacks; Hispanics; people of mixed races, nationalities and/or ethnicities; Chinese, Asians, Indians, etcetera. Aren’t we all vested? Or is it that Barack believes only white men can solve the problems they keep creating for all of the rest of us in the world? This isn’t bout inclusion, new opportunities and empowerment is it? This isn’t about inputs from different perspectives; isn’t it? You could have fooled me!
Obama’s failure to adequately deal with the economic crisis during the campaign (though he was far superior to John McCain in this regard) and even now, is something that many have been viewing with some trepidation. There are many aspects to Barack’s economic positions that seem dubious; it is obvious that he needs help (and good advice) here. And if he is intent on bringing in people who ran against him in the primary and general elections: what about Ralph Nader? Ralph Nader should be offered a role as economic adviser: immediately.
Somebody needs to tell Barack Obama that we don’t need another skillful, scheming, conniving, cunning politician. We need someone we can believe in. We need someone who we can believe is committed to real change; not short-change; not small-change.
Obama has come to office with more universal goodwill than any president in the history of this country. Near all of us wish him well. Many of us (myself included) did good grunt work for him on many levels -without wanting, asking for, or receiving a dime. Many of us (myself included) contributed hard earned money to his effort. Many of us prayed for his health and safety, and experienced butterflies in our stomachs whenever he waded into a crowd. I know he isn’t a messiah, but I strongly believe that his election to this office was what this country -and the rest of the world- needed; for a plethora of good reasons. And yet, no matter what the outcome of this dream journey I will have no regrets. However this doesn’t mean that BO gets a free pass from me when he does something(s) I disagree with. On the contrary: “from whom much is given, much is expected”.
Recently he described himself as a “mutt” in referring to his mixed racial background; he needs to apologize to all people who are mulattoes. The word “mutt” has too many negative connotations. It was self-deprecating; but it was also a put down to many. It leads to another thing he needs to address now: his self-identity. It is obvious that he still wrestles with a few demons. One is “the missing-father” syndrome; another is obviously his racial identity. This is the same person who used “Barry” as his first name, instead of Barack. And he did this for many many years.
Look; let me say this for the umpteenth time: Barack Obama is not black. Barack Obama is not white. He is neither white nor black. He is both black and white. A black man who mates with a white woman (as was in the case of Obama’s parents) cannot breed a black child. The offspring will be mixed. The offspring will be mulatto (dictionary term). This is a scientific fact. This is the genetic reality. Barack Obama needs to start expressing that reality: vocally.
That’s why the census people have came up with the category called “mixed”. It was due; it was commonsensical. There are millions all over the world who fit this category. Barack Obama needs to apologize to all of them. They aren’t mutts; they are no less human than anyone else. There isn’t a single thing wrong with them. Copulation is a fact of life; and like love, it transcends race, ethnicity, nationality, religion and the like.
Look; this is the same guy, who on the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I have a Dream” speech, delivered one hellified historic acceptance address at the Dems convention. In this speech to the convention, Obama failed (or refused) to even mention one of the biggest problems in contemporary American society: the plight of the black male in the USA. With over one and a quarter million black men imprisoned today, this was a shameful omission. At no time in American history have you ever found five percent of a racial demographic incarcerated. I don’t think it has ever happened anywhere in the world; ever. Well; maybe historians could argue the Nazi/ Jewish holocaust.
This is the same man (Barack Obama) who when confronted with the specter of Rev. Jeremiah Wright, at a crucial juncture during the primary, skillfully delivered a brilliant -yet meaningless- speech about race; a speech that totally eviscerated the opposition’s hit-men. Barack Obama is a stunning orator; in fact he is a brilliant orator; but we have had brilliant, talented and gifted orators before. Have we so quickly forgotten Mario Cuomo?
Barack Obama’s Philadelphia speech on ‘race’ was meaningless only because it wasn’t totally genuine: there has been no follow-up. There has been no real “conversation on race” as he called for. It was brilliant in its tactical dispensation, but it was short on practical results. He has never dared to thread down this road again.
As we watch him assemble his cabinet, I could only hope that it ends up reflecting the rainbow world we all live in. If it doesn’t, I -for one- will be rather disappointed.
Stay tuned-in folks.