And yet, where are we now?
As the first black candidate for president, he was for very many people symbolic of the great advance beyond race prejudice that has been the hallmark of most Western societies. Thus his world popularity.
And yet, where are we now?
As the first black candidate for president, he was for very many people symbolic of the great advance beyond race prejudice that has been the hallmark of most Western societies. Thus his world popularity.
Rex’s commentary needs a consumer warning, “The last two paragraphs are not necessarily representative of the Canadian Liberal Leader.”
Wed all better hope the GOP have the common sense to nominate Rand Paul or we, and the US are screwed.
Would that be the same Rand Paul who thinks the US can “grow” its way out of the financial dilemma they’ve spent themselves into? Better hope not! They’re $crewed . . . and Canuckistan along with them since we’re tied to their coat tails.
Well of course when you are running the NSA “Uber-Stasi” program he may well have entitled his speech “People of East Berlin Erect A Wall!”
Who is going to come out and cheer for the electronic version of the Iron Curtain?
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
Here’s something to consider in relation to “The Great Mistake” and his election:
http://blogs.wsj.com/peggynoonan/
I think that Ms. Noonan has a very valid point.
Of course the Liberal left expected miracles and wonders from Obamba, he is black after all.
Blackness was the only credentials they needed.
*
“…the first black candidate for president…”
you mean mulatto, right? epidermis aside, culturally this guy has more in common with the infamous mayor daley than, say… eldridge cleaver.
*
Ms. Noonan is absolutely right and her comments should scare the hell out of all Americans and for the rest of us living in democracies because if it can happen in America it can also happen here. A new motto for all voters should be, “we voted for them but don’t ever put your trust in them.”
The Foulness is among many other loathsome things, a race hustler.
Ms. Noonan’s point is well taken; but the Republicans aren’t taking it. Ann Coulter wondered in a recent
column whether the Republicans weren’t too stupid to take power in the US. They certainly do give
a good impression of taking lessons from the Progressive Conservatives in Ontario. Tim Hudak is so stunned that he might even run for office down there.
The first thing we learned … was that the Obama campaign was operating with a huge edge in its technological operation … The second thing we learned … is that … the president’s fiercest foes, in the Tea Party, were being thwarted, diverted and stopped.
The third thing we will learn is that the Republican Party Establishment assisted the Obama campaign in suppressing Tea Party activity. Actually, we already know that TP complaints about the denial-by-delay tactics of the IRS went unanswered by Republicans with the power to publicize and investigate. The RP Establishment would rather lose elections than share power within the party.
Murphy:
Simply stated, the remarkable charisma of Barack Obama has fled. Fled, mainly because it was in large measure artificial from the beginning, embedded in external circumstances and fuelled in large measure by the media hyperdrive that attended his campaign. …
And, then, stating the obvious, I would have thought:
… Unless charisma, as I think it was in the case of Mr. Reagan, or Mrs. Thatcher, or Pope John Paul II, is a function of character, an intrinsic or internal quality of the person, [emphasis mine] as opposed to a quality of the moment or a press-fevered narrative, it will fade as swiftly and inexplicably as it rises.
Note: All three, Regan, Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II, were Christians, who lived, breathed, and practised their faith which, IMO, was the bedrock of the “intrinsic … internal quality” underlying their charisma.
The Obamanation is a phantom, a cipher for his handlers, and the MSM were — and still are — gullible and ga-ga-stupid enough to fall for the chimera of substance. Those of us who saw through Obozo from the very beginning are just shaking our heads. What’s the point in saying “‘told ya so?”
The U.S.A. is melting, melting, right before our eyes.
Thankfully,batb,all those kids from last years “occupy” movement are now gainfully employed due to the good management of the current administration,so we can expect a nice dull Summer,unless Global Warming runs rampant again and there are forest fires and droughts.
As to charisma being a function of character,absolutely, but how could Obama possibly have attained any character,he was pandered to as a “special” person his entire life.
I know the MSM and various showbiz personalities projected all their hopes and dreams on to one undeserving character, but I had hoped the grownups,the people who know there are no Santas,would see through the Kenyan’s facade.
I was wrong.
They swarmed to candidate Barack, at least 200,000 strong, drawn by the great force of his charisma
Wasn’t there a pop music performance involved to help draw the crowd in Berlin? That was a tactic frequently used by BHO’s campaign to generate large crowds of “supporters”. Like everything else about BHO, his “charisma” was more political narrative than reality.
As the first black candidate for president
There have been many black candidates for POTUS, e.g. Shirley Chisholm, Jesse Jackson, Alan Keyes. BHO was the first nominee for either the DP or RP.
he was for very many people symbolic of the great advance beyond race prejudice that has been the hallmark of most Western societies.
Wait, is “race prejudice” or “the great advance beyond race prejudice” supposedly “the hallmark of of most Western societies”? Asserting the former is appallingly ignorant; asserting the latter is presumptuous. Many, perhaps most people would rate popularly elected government, the importance of capitalist institutions, the advances made possible by the creation of the modern scientific method or the immense wealth creating power of Western societies as more important as hallmarks than anything having to do with race.
On second thought, self-flagellation seems to have become the real hallmark over the last 50 years.
Mr. Obama … was himself aware of people taking him as a (this is his phrase) “blank slate,” projecting their aspirations and ideals onto him.
A tactic copied from WJC. “Change” became “Hope and Change”. In both cases, Dem partisans in the Media allowed the candidates to project only vague aspirations without grilling them about specifics. “What do you really mean by fundamental transformation, Mr. Obama? America has worked pretty well for more than 200 years and most people are fearful of radical change. Why do you want to fundamentally alter something that, although imperfect, has made the USA the envy of much of the world?”
the inevitable grind of politics has dissipated most of the atmosphere and aura that propelled his rise
BHO was elected not because he was charismatic, not because he was historic, not because he deceived voters, not because McCain ran a lousy campaign, not because Palin was on the ticket, not because BHO’s campaign had any special acumen, not because of media favoritism, not because voters are stupid or uninformed, but because the Bush administration took deliberate action which resulted in the entirely predictable stock market crash and subsequent voter panic just weeks before the election. The election of BHO was made so predictable by Hank Paulson’s press conference statement about the impending collapse of the US financial system that one need not be a conspiracy theorist to believe that GWB was deliberately trying to get BHO elected, especially when one considers the Bush clan’s obsession with affirmative action appointments and noblesse oblige.
robw, Psalm 146 states, “Put not your trust in Princes”. A line which has been quoted repeatedly over the past 2000 years. Machiavelli in his seminal work “The Prince” demonstrated precisely why that was so. Leaders always betray their followers; it’s the corrupting nature of politics. The only question is by how much.
Eristic, Obama is the first black candidate to win a party’s nomination for President and appear on a national ballot. The also-rans at party conventions are irrelevant; it’s who the public has to choose from is the only thing that matters.
But you really need to think again about your last paragraph. To imagine that the 2008 stock market crash is the result of Bush’s affirmative action programs is truly delusional. There’s a couple of little things like housing bubbles and asset-backed commercial paper that existed entirely separate from the things you cite. And they had a great deal more to do with it.
Where are we now?
Ask Paula Deen.
cgh, you need to read my post more carefully. I was correcting an inaccuracy in Murphy’s column wrt BHO as candidate. Incidentally, who do you think chooses the nominees in American politics anyway? Chisholm, Jackson and Keyes all had their supporters and were among the choices in the party primaries. In that sense, the public is involved.
the 2008 stock market crash is the result of Bush’s affirmative action programs
I didn’t write that. What I was suggesting was that the Bush clan is so enamored of “giving a brother a break” and so desperate to be given credit for it that the Bushes and supporters frequently tout the larger number of non-whites and women in the GHWB admin than in the Clinton admin and the high-ranking posts to which GWB appointed blacks, not to mention the Clinton-Bush charity to help non-whites in foreign countries and the great big chunk of US tax dollars that GWB mailed off to African countries ostensibly to combat AIDS (I hope it did some good although I’m doubtful). The Bushes have completely bought into liberal identity politics and support the patronizing and destructive government programs that are allegedly set up to help those who are “incapable” of helping themselves. Why is it a stretch to suppose that Bush endorsed Paulson’s press conference, knowing that Paulson’s statements would cause a stock market crash weeks before the election and at a time when Obama was polling behind McCain, in order to ensure the election of the first black POTUS? Talk about “giving a brother a break”. There is no bigger break than that to give. The only other explanations are that Bush was too stupid or foolish to understand that Paulson’s statements would cause a stock market crash, hard to credit since Bush is supposedly savvy about business and he is surrounded by advisers who understand the political effects of statements such as those made by Paulson or Bush was such a crony capitalist that he wanted to be sure that the financial institutions which were deep into the housing bubble weren’t going to suffer any harsh consequences for their involvement.
For those who don’t remember, Hank Paulson held a press conference in the weeks before the election. Treasury Secretary Paulson clearly wasn’t going rogue since GWB was placed prominently in the view of the cameras just above Paulson’s shoulder, a position obviously chosen to suggest Bush’s endorsement of Paulson’s statements. I don’t have an exact quote, but Paulson’s statements amounted to ‘If Congress doesn’t give me $1 trillion within the next 48 hours to use as I see fit, then the entire financial system of the US is going to collapse.’ Anyone with half a brain would know that that kind of statement from the Treasury Secretary would cause a huge stock market crash and anyone with half a brain would know that such a massive loss in investment value would cause the electorate to reflexively vote out the ruling party (Yes, I know the Dems held Congress, but the visibility of the Prez makes his party the target).
Keep in mind that if Bush really believed that a bailout was essential, then the whole affair could have been handled behind closed doors in a low-key way. Instead, the Bush admin chose to handle the matter with a fireworks display accompanied by a 1,000 piece marching band. Sure, there were problems with the financial sector, but the crash was caused by the Bush admin’s actions. If you don’t believe me, just look at the timeline. The crash was a direct response to the crisis mentality that Paulson created.
It sickens me the way some people refuse to place the blame where it justly lies, right in Bush’s lap.
Ah … the pangs of the chronically stupid.
You’re no better than Obama, seeing everything in terms of race politics.
And your explanation of 2008 is simply wrong. The banking system was just hours away from a complete collapse. It had already completely froze the entire system of inter-bank loans and the US system was just hours away from a complete collapse caused by a failure of confidence. The ONLY way to deal with that is a very loud public shout from the government that it will back the banks no matter what. And in doing so demonstrate obviously and vigorously that you are prepared to drown the banks with more than enough cash to cover any scale of withdrawals.
You don’t deal with a crisis of confidence by quiet maneuvres in the back room. It has to be right out in front where the public can’t miss it. I’ll say it again; it was a crisis of confidence. That means you clobber it, noisily, with extreme overkill and with extreme prejudice.
Now we can debate whether bailing out the banksters was the right thing to do. Many here claim it wasn’t, but that’s another debate. But if you are going to bail them out, then the way that Bush and Paulson went about it was the only way to go.
Your affirmative action hypothesis is about as far misplaced as the 9/11 Truthers.
BO, poster boy for The Bell Curve.
You’re no better than Obama, seeing everything in terms of race politics.
Seriously? Obama is the source of race politics and I am no better than he? I detest Obama. He is a Marxist who is trying to promote the economic collapse of the US by creating uncertainty, jacking up govt spending, encouraging racialism and using environmentalism as an excuse to strangle America’s access to energy resources. I think maybe you are a blind partisan who can’t see past your party loyalty.
The banking system was just hours away from a complete collapse.
Paulson got his $1 trillion dollar slush fund passed through congress within 48 hrs., then Obama let it sit on his desk for several days. The money itself wasn’t dispersed for weeks. The evidence suggests that the banking system was NOT near collapse, but that a few well-connected banks were just getting a little special treat from the taxpayers. I’m sure they appreciate your willingness to parrot the narrative of the crisis though. Hell, according to many media reports, the Obama admin had to bully financially solvent banks such as Wells-Fargo into taking handouts and those banks wisely just sat on the money provoking another round of public condemnation from Barry O.
You don’t deal with a crisis of confidence by quiet maneuvres in the back room. It has to be right out in front where the public can’t miss it.
You have it exactly backwards. Beating the bass drums in public is a well-worn political tactic to create a crisis mentality used primarily to whip up emotions in order to ram through legislation that the public would never support upon sober reflection.
Your affirmative action hypothesis is about as far misplaced as the 9/11 Truthers.
I offered it as one explanation for Bush’s actions. Ultimately, why the Bush admin crashed the stock market is immaterial wrt the election of Barry. The fact remains that Bush took deliberate action that directly led to the election of BHO. Once the market crashed, it didn’t matter who the candidates were or what kind of campaign they were running, the Dem nominee was going to win. The political class has offered up all kinds of cya narratives, but they studiously avoid the actual explanation preferring instead to blame the voters or celebrate the Messiah-who-is-president.
Remember the timeline:
1. McCain, a very weak candidate who generates little enthusiasm from a Republican base which has been soured by the big govt activity of the RP over the previous 8 years, is trailing BHO in the polls before the R convention.
2. McCain names Palin as his running mate sparking a dramatic upsurge in enthusiasm for his candidacy. McCain springs ahead in the polls.
3. McCain’s poll lead lessens as the Media relentlessly smears Palin and Palin naively steps into a trap interview with Katie Couric.
4. McCain still has a healthy poll lead, a very good sign for a R candidate’s chances, when Paulson holds his presser.
5. There is a flurry of idiocy as Congress reacts to Paulson’s statements. Both parties seem quite enthusiastic about giving Paulson a massive slush fund with little to no oversight. McCain makes himself look particularly foolish by declaring that he is interrupting his campaigning so that he can run back to Washington to personally “solve” the problem.
6. McCain drops slightly in the polls as American voters, angry and skeptical of govt bailouts, see him as part of the problem.
7. The stock market crashes. Voters, even those with little interest in politics and who may not even have intended to show up on election day, are filled with terror as they see their retirement investments plummet in value.
8. BHO leaps way, way ahead in the polls.
9. As the stock market continues heading downward, the relentless smears of Palin continue. Even the McCain campaign joins in the pile on of Palin, leaking unflattering stories suggesting that Palin is stupid or an unsophisticated hick. Maybe McCain was getting a little annoyed that the media was running stories that made it seem as if Palin was the top of the ticket? First rule of picking a VP candidate: don’t pick someone with more political wattage than you.
10. BHO cruises to an easy win, carrying a lot of lower ticket Dems with him.
11. The excuse making and alternative election narratives start peppering the airwaves. The Dems mostly alternate between the “Great and Historic Man” and the “Capitalism Sucks” explanations. The Repub Establishment mostly alternates between the “Great and Historic Man” and the “Voters are stupid and we didn’t do anything wrong and the market crashed because of the CRA” explanations. No one in the political class wants to talk about how the market crashed because of Paulson’s crisis mongering.
Democracy’s bane is sooner or later political failure leads to distraction candidates that bring the whole house down.. Turning the leader of the free world into a PBS after schools special was the biggest mistake America has ever made..
Lets fight the most expensive war ever and rework our economy to be green at the same time.. Obama care, Obama phone, ect.. 16 trillion dollars in the hole on Obama’s watch..
I guess equality means turning the entire USA into Detroit..
At no time is it necessary to spend yourself into bankruptcy.. They should have taken the unpopular hit and let the economy stabilize itself.. Cut government spending, taxes and REGULATION by 50% (could be called doing something)
Let the only money making capital generating mechanism available in the world today turn things around..
The private sector!
But even that it seems would have been racist.. With the emphasis on the individual, White America would have pulled out of the depression far faster than black America.. Adding fuel to the awful racism fire we all love to gather around..
So its economic doom straight into socialist poverty with the destruction of the American military machine being the unspoken goal of our progressive green communists..
You dont think the fall of the USSR was going to be for free.. did you?
For years I have wondered whether or not the US victory over the USSR in the cold war might have been a pyrrhic victory. Marxist agitators did so much cultural damage to the West in general and to the US in particular. The reason the USSR loved detente was that it gave Marxism the only chance it had of defeating the free world by allowing Moscow supported agitators the time to teach America’s youth to despise and undermine the very culture which produced them. The gullible children of the 60s are at the pinnacle of their power now. Will America survive as a free and prosperous nation? If America falls, can freedom survive anywhere else in the world? Stay tuned to find out!
Sadistic Eristic and Jay make noises like a pair of curmudgions…….and remind me o’ me….
Good stuff….it really all is a communist plot!
I suspect us three are not particularly reflective…but are blessed with good memmories (the ability to remember)….for now….