Happy 2010, everyone. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, lets get down to brass tacks, shall we?
To say I'm disappointed by the Obama presidency thus far would be an understatement. Now don't get me wrong here. I'm not part of the nutcase nation of "birthers," "tea-baggers," or anyone else who believes Obama's plans for health care and the like will lead America down a slippery slope towards Big Brother, a socialist state, or worse.
Quite the opposite, actually.
What, and who, I am is an unemployed slob who is merely taking up the space the rest of you freely breathe in. Never mind the circumstances, because to the far right they matter naught. I'm good at what I do, I've been been out of work for a year now, and nobody seems to give a shit except for maybe Bruce Springsteen. God bless ya, Boss. Now can I become your employee?
I am in fact part of the millions of Americans who enthusiastically supported Obama's historic presidential campaign in 2008. Because we believed what the man said in all those "yes, we can" speeches. My one question is, where are all those reassuring speeches now?
For those of us old enough to remember, Obama reminded us of all the hope and change embodied by the real agents of change we grew up on — the Kennedys, Martin Luther King, and the like. For those of you much younger, I figure he represented a new hope for the future of those most invested in it.
So far, about a year or so and counting in, it hasn't happened.
Not even close. In fact, things seem to me to be more the same then they ever were.
But before you include me in the rightie-talker types looking to explode their hopes for a return to the neo-Con Bush years, you'd best think again. Still, much as it pains me to say it, the Obama presidency so far, for all the hopes it represented, looks a hell of a lot like more of the same from where I sit.
Rush Limbaugh and his friends can rest reassured. Obama may in fact be the black man you most feared as a challenge to the status quo. But he ain't about to challenge the way your corporate, money-grubbing pals do their business. Far from it.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - fcetier
My tongue has grown tired from repeated quotes of "Bullworth".
As long as 5% of the population control 95% of the money, there will be no change.
Since you mentioned it several times, in what field is your degree? Where do your skills lie? Best of luck in 2010 finding a job!
2 - El Bicho
If Obama said "yes we can", then why are you expecting him to make the changes on his own?
3 - Silas Kain
It's about the money. As in you and me, baby. Gay marriage? Abortion? It's all bullshit.The real battle is about who is going to make the money.
First of, Mr. Boyd, nice piece. It gives me pause. And El Bicho brings up the best point in his comment above. Barack Obama's mantra is YES WE CAN. There's the keyword: WE. Our collective dissatisfaction in Barack Obama is nothing but misdirected frustration. We have chosen to pin our hopes on this man and his Administration without giving any thought to what WE can do to facilitate change. If we achieve a robust political process with a solid foundation in the rank and file, then Barack Obama's yes we can is achieved. We don't have to fall in behind the Obama Administration and accept the positions of the same as Dogma. Quiet the contrary. If we debate the issues, get involved and force a more level political playing field we have achieved Obama's mantra.
There are positions from both sides of the aisle which deserve active debate as we look ahead. Today is a day when we've got to stop trying to prosecute the Bush years. George W. Bush is delegated to the pages of history. A hundred years from now historians can decide just what his impact has been. In the meantime, let us think of the present and look ahead to the future. Let us learn lessons from the past but not dwell in them. This is America's last chance. If we are unable to make things right -- we will become a part of a New World Order with a central global government controlled by greedy corporate types. It doesn't have to happen, folks. But to achieve change it means getting up from your computer, shutting off the television and going outside to reconnect with your neighboirts and your local government. It means actually checking in at your local Congressperson's office. Be visible. Be vocal. Be vigilant. And then we shall be victorious.
Happy New Year, one and all, I wish you health, peace and prosperity as we embark in the next phase of our journey called life.
4 - Dr Dreadful
Well said, Silas. Well said.
5 - Glen Boyd
I get the whole "we" part of Yes we can. I guess I'm just frustrated because I feel so powerless.
Things don't change in Washington regardless of who we elect, or why we got them elected. Obama's election came as the result of an overwhelming mandate to change things, yet despite a democratic majority in both the senate and the house nothing has changed.
More than anything though, what frustrates me is the way this has all hit so close to home this past year. There is no good reason that I've been out of a job for a year now. I want to feel optimistic that things are going to turn around, both for the country and for myself. But until the way business is conducted changes, I just don't see a lot of reason to think that it will. The very high hopes I had at this time last year sound more like the persistent hissing of a deflating balloon to me these days. I know how pessimistic that sounds, and believe me, I hate the way that I'm quite sure I sound.
What I hate worse though is being dead-ass broke.
-Glen
6 - roger nowosielski
It's quite a statement, Glen, when a music reviewer such as yourself post in the Politics section. Yes, it is hitting all of us.
7 - Glen Boyd
Re: #1...
To answer your question, my degree comes from the college of musical knowledge. I'd also like to think I'm a half-decent writer (except maybe for when I'm ranting anyway...LOL).
-Glen
8 - Arch Conservative
To be disappointed in Obama one would have had to have some degree of faith in him.
Witht hte economy being what it is I can't blame anyone for seeking for something or someone to believe in but you're not 18 Glen. You've been around enough to realize that Obama was full of shit and just saying what he'd thought would get him elected, the same as Mccain was doing.
Never forget that neither the CEO nor the politician truly gives a damn about you Glen. When push comes to shove the only ones that really give a shit are family and friends.
So much of life is about timing......being in the right place at the right time. Hopefully persistence will deliver you to that situation in the near future Glen.
9 - Silas Kain
I guess I'm just frustrated because I feel so powerless.
But you're not, Glen. One individual can make a difference.
Things don't change in Washington regardless of who we elect, or why we got them elected.
But we shouldn't give up trying.
Obama's election came as the result of an overwhelming mandate to change things, yet despite a democratic majority in both the senate and the house nothing has changed.
Things don't end at the ballot box on Presidential Election days. After the ballots are counted we need to keep our voices heard. It doesn't take much and we cannot count on Gallup and FOX News to dictate our thoughts. A handful of people have made lots of money reporting to us what we told them to begin with. It's not Main Stream Media -- it's Amway.
More than anything though, what frustrates me is the way this has all hit so close to home this past year. There is no good reason that I've been out of a job for a year now. I want to feel optimistic that things are going to turn around, both for the country and for myself.
Then try something new, Glen. You're a passionate man. You know the struggles that many of your compatriots are suffering. Get involved. Run for office. Make your voice heard. Go out into the community and get involved with your neighbors. By networking you create a personal atmosphere that will promote psychological and fiscal opportunities.
But until the way business is conducted changes, I just don't see a lot of reason to think that it will...
If we want to really change the way business is conducted, we need to change our own ways. We need to change our buying habits. We need to understand that those three bargain T-shirts we bought at WalMart for $15 lasted half as long as that one T-Shirt we got at Burning Man for $20. Inevitably we discover that we wore that Burning Man T-Shirt three times more often than the Wally World bargains combined. After a year those three T-Shirts are in the landlfill and good ol' Burning Man still reigns strong as ever. So which "investment" gave you a better return?
Equally important -- we need to change our disinterest in the process. We need to stop taking all the bullshit they throw at us and start digging. The tools are all around us -- they're staring you in your face as you read this ssentence. Go online. Check the Federal Elections Commission database. Read foreign news sources. Go on blogs around the globe and see what folks are saying from their computers in their countries. Take a time to listen to all points of view. While there are two sides to every story, inevitably there remains the third side -- the truth.
And when all else fails, use the Internet as your resource to enrich yourself intellectually so that you realize that you are the master of your own destiny and can change this New Year so that when 2011 comes you won't feel so bad.
The very high hopes I had at this time last year sound more like the persistent hissing of a deflating balloon to me these days. I know how pessimistic that sounds, and believe me, I hate the way that I'm quite sure I sound.
You're echoing the words of millions of people around the world, Glen. But you can't give up. Take that pessimism and examine it. Stare at pessimism in the face - identify those things which contribute most to your despair. Then confront those issues individually -- attack them with a reciprocal dose of optimism and determination.
What I hate worse though is being dead-ass broke.
I hear that one, Glen. I hate it equally and as helpless as it feels to be under such tight financial constraints, I believe we still have a small window of opportunity to really create the changes needed to create a marketplace which promotes prosperity. While you may be "broke", you're not broken, Glen. That, in and of itself, is something to celebrate.
10 - Glen Boyd
Thats the thing Arch...I actually DID believe Obama. I believed in the words he spoke, and in the passionate way he said them on the campaign trail. I know this sounds naive, especialy in retrospect, but I actually thought Barack was the real deal. I thought he had both the conviction and more importantly, the balls to get things done. I'm not so naive as to think that it was going to come overnight, or that our system was going to magically be transformed into some utopia. But I honestly thought that Obama represented the best hope for change, and that is exactly why I'm so disappointed.
I still admire his pragamatism, but the lack of balls he has shown since getting to Washington in standing up to the special interests has really surprised, and quite honestly, astonished me in a lot of ways. Right now, the Obama presidency is looking more and more like the failure of Jimmy Carter to me.
Silas, your points are all very well taken, and believe me I'm not as defeated as I probably sound. Chalk that up to a case of post New Years blues I guess. I always get reflective at New Years, and this year that may not have been such a good idea...LOL. I haven't lost my faith or my passion though. I still manage to drag my tired old ass out of bed on most days.
The job hunting experience has just been really discouraging this past year...as I know it has for thousands of others out there. Too many scams on the job boards, too many interviews filled with too many invasive questions about things which had absolutely nothing to do with my qualifications or my ability to do the job.
But yes, I remain engaged in the world around me. The work I do here at BC alone should speak to that fact. I haven't given up, nor will I. But your words are the encouraging thing I've heard today, and I thank you for saying them.
-Glen
11 - Glen Boyd
But your words are the MOST encouraging thing I've heard today is what I meant to say above.
-Glen
12 - roger nowosielski
"When push comes to shove the only ones that really give a shit are family and friends."
Quoted for truth. And that's if you're lucky.
13 - Silas Kain
No problem, Glen, actually I owe you the thanks.
I know this sounds naive, especialy in retrospect, but I actually thought Barack was the real deal.
Don't give up on Barack Obama. I think he's as real as he can be within the environment he has infiltrated. Life inside the Beltway is surreal and the system needs major repair. It's going to take hard work to turn things around, but it can be done. A more vocal public only serves to assist Obama as he tries to muddle through the Washington wreckage. Each of us, regardless of political persuasion, should do everything we can to help Obama succeed. In doing so, we succeed.
We forget there are three branches of government. We have the Supreme Court as the final arbiter. Ruth Bader Ginsburg establishes quite remarkably in many of her speeches and writings that the United States Constitution is the fundamental instrument of government. That document is our salvation, Glen. As we enter this period of what I pray is political revolution, the time will come when the Supreme Court will be called upon to act. Though many do not agree with the current Conservative Majority, I do believe the nine Justices hold sacred the Constitution and are the ultimate patriots amidst this sea of political posturing.
14 - roger nowosielski
Silas, you're dreaming. Think of the Roman Senate and how it deteriorated over time from once a noble institution to the most corrupt one.
Sorry, pal, to break this news to you on the first day of 2010. We're done as a nation, so you had better place your hopes elsewhere.
15 - Silas Kain
Roger, George Bernard Shaw said it best:
"Some men see things as they are and say why - I dream things that never were and say why not."
I'm not dreaming, Roger. I'm empowered.
16 - Silas Kain
I just came across another Shaw quote which may serve as my battle cry this year: "If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton. You may as well make it dance."
Well, folks, it's time to get the skeletons out of Washington's closets and make them dance like it's 2999. And many in Washington know only too well which skeletons deserve a VIP ticket to the conflagration.
17 - roger nowosielski
The system is broken, Silas, and the sooner it collapses, the better. Only then we can rebuild our future, from the ashes.
18 - roger nowosielski
BTW, wasn't that only one of Robert Kennedy's lines?
19 - roger nowosielski
He must have been quoting from Shaw. Thanks for enlightening me.
20 - roger nowosielski
#18: also one of RFK's lines . . .
21 - Silas Kain
It was one of RFK's favorite quotes and Ted Kennedy ended his brother's eulogy with it, Roger.
I think there is one higher office than president and I would call that patriot. -- Gary Hart
22 - Glen Boyd
You guys give one hell of a civics lesson. I guess I should hang out here a bit more often.
-Glen
23 - roger nowosielski
It's enough out of me, Silas, for this day. This negativity serves no purpose.
24 - Silas Kain
Actually, Roger, your point of view about the system being incontrovertibly broken isn't so pessimistic. I think we've arrived at a juncture which occurs infrequently throughout recorded history. We're at the end of the age of United States imperialism. It's unfortunate that all major political shifts happen after great pain. And it is out of that pain that humanity creates yet another system. Let's hope this incarnation is better than the last.
25 - roger nowosielski
I was hoping that's it's not just the madness in me that you're seeing. I seriously believe we are experiencing a kind of rift with the past. Which is why all comparisons fail to satisfy. And no, it's too late to go back.