Barack Obama and Rachel Ray

It's the age of Obamius.

Harmony and understanding!
Sympathy and trust abounding!
No more falsehoods or derisions!
Golden living dreams of visions!
Mystic crystal revalation!
And the mind's true liberation!

Yeah right.

I guess it's the Republican's lament, but seeing and hearing Obama at every turn is becoming irritating (along with all the gag-worthy odes one sees in the popular press, but that's another story). I remember feeling this way about Rachel Ray. Every box of crackers and every commercial seemed to have RR uttering her "easy peasy" exhortation.

It got to be tiresome.

I'm tired of Obama. It's only a week and a half in and I can't stand his way of speaking, or the fact that he's on every magazine. It's getting crazy...wait...maybe I should say crazier; was already crazy. The poor schlub is bound to fail.

Just words...

"I won"

"Never let a good crisis go to waste"

Twas ever thus, I suppose. Campaign on honey and dole out vinegar. The above two lines are from our new president and his chief of staff. You can bet if a Republican said such, it would have been the subject of liberal op/eds across the land. And perhaps rightly so. But are any of these same publications against it now? Of course not.

This is what's wrong with politics today. While of course there should be some bipartisanship, not every single thing needs to be debated/decided on party lines. Can't some things be agreed upon? Can't they make some compromise about the stimulus? This is a crisis for Democrats only, it's every one's crisis, thus everyone should have a say. And this particular crisis should not be used to include every single pet project of the Democrats. It's too big a deal. Congress can fiddle diddle and dawdle on other things and "hang on to childish things" but this isn't one of the childish things. It's big and getting bigger.

And there's Obama, elected by people who cared only about the thinnest crust of his existence: his good looks and his color; his glib, gossamer utterances and his charm.

Obama: not working to make Washington or the world a better place. Just a better place for other Democrats, unions, lawyers and layabouts.

A revoltin' development indeed.

Pridebone connected to the fallbone

Although not very religious, I often find that the Vecchio Testamento says things best, like better a dry crust in peace, etc.

So for the thought today -- and actually of the past several days since the coronation -- along with its applicable OT Proverb, I offer this:

"Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall."

The left is just swelling with pride, kvelling even, amid its new powers. Past precedent be damned! Have these people ever heard of all the old sayings, saws, proverbs, cliches and cautionary tales about ....um.... well.... sorry, "putting the cart before the horse"? Jesus h.

It's just unbelievable the giant, hubrisy, sucking sound that's been gurgling since the swearing in of Obama. I mean, does anyone think that this can all last? This national feeling of euphoria over the election of some guy? I mean, doesn't it feel to anyone else like Obama is the political version of Madoff? Promise, promise and promise but who knows what there will be when people want to start cashing in there good feeling chits from some tangibles?

I suppose it'll be some time before things start to crumble and settle into their usual place, i.e., politics is ugly and compromising is commonplace; people get hurt, promises get broken. And when people get to see this latest sausage recipe, the Obama 100% Pure Sausage, Pork and Childish Things Free, perhaps they'll come to their senses.

For now though, it's all bunnies, unicorns, fairies and "I pledge to Obama."

A really really good show

A quick Inaugural review:

Rick Warren's invocation: terrific

Aretha: great but a little noisy, too much fluff

John Williams arrangement: horrible, awful. Simple Gift a simple mess

Alexander Poem: what?

Obama: good, A- with many hints of A+... these things are tough to pull off. But of any recent presidents, it was probably the best. Certainly said and addressed what he had to.

Joseph Lowery benediction: terrific, starting with the God of weary years, god of silent tears and ending with the little Redd Foxx-type rhyme: when black will not be asked to give back, when brown can stick around, when yellow will be mellow, when the red man can get ahead man, and white will embrace what's right."

Well here we are at the historic moment everyone's been waiting for, going on either 10 weeks or eight years, depending on your level of hysteria.

We've elected pretty much a stranger outta nowhere, not even the cheap seats, to the highest office in the land; the world, too. He's almost like a Wii Mii in the Wii Fit sense. Kind of see-through, not as in "I know what you're thinking," etc., but in the sense that he's tough to grasp, like a wisp of smoke, a snippet in the wind.

The big worry I see is that he's this new (improved?) freight train that everyone thinks can handle way more than the old versions. All his acolytes have been hanging their hopes on him like laundry on laundry line. The rope is bound to break. I hope not. As said before, I hope it works out. His success is all of our success.

But it's all so unusual. Will he be the next coming or is he a charlatan or something between? People adore the guy to creepy levels, that's for sure.

But aside from gaining the White House, what has he done? Did he successfully land a plane full of people in the Hudson River? Has he pulled himself up from the bottom? Saved his family from starving? Overcome any obstacles? Dunno. Don't get it.

Sometimes when I eat chicken or beef or fish, I try, as vegitarians often claim (or suggest) to picture the animal I am eating as a live being. Cute chick, adorable calf and cow, etc. But it never works. Much as I love animals, I can still eat the beast without any remorse. It's the same feeling with Obama. I try to get into the minds of his devotees, to see it as they see it. I guess I'm too cynical.

I can sort of get into the minds of people who just latched onto the "change" aspect. People for whatever reason -- the Bush haters, antipathy, etc -- just want change. No progress without change, etc. I can see that. I can see how people latched onto the "I hate Bush" fad. And I can also see how black people love the whole spectacle, the fact that they're now part of the system, etc. ("I feel like now I can put my luggage down!" said Whoopi Goldberg -- like her life sucks).

But otherwise, for me, the guy's got to deliver something; he has to disappoint people, piss them off, make them happy, make them think, make them act. Until then he's too much of a blank slate. One that could certainly chip, break or fall to pieces as things start getting written. I certainly wouldn't name a school after him yet (although some district has out on Long Island).

Keep you're fingers crossed.