It is actually a rhetorical question. First let me wish everyone a Happy New Year. Maybe if we start off on the right foot, there will be less flamethrowers tossed around.
For the first time I commented in a meta diary on one side of an argument. I don't know why. It was not what I like to do. I always think why even go there because regardless how we view our own importance, in the end, we are just a bunch of lefties who think we can cure the world. Nature cures. We destroy worlds in addition to asteroids, comets, solar flares, gamma ray bursts and my sister-in-law's cooking. The pie fight going on here is a blip in time and space. However, it did get me to thinking.
The reason I am writing this diary is because it dawned on me that in the end we are fighting over one issue, Barack Obama and whether his way or a blogger's way is the right path to lead us to that goaline. I am sorry for the people who hate Obama. You have at least another 3 years to bang your heads against the wall. I realize this meta issue from another blog that gets bandied about here is trying to claim that Obama is betraying all that progressives entrusted in him. Well, no amount of bullet points I can lay out there is going to convince someone who is intolerant of those arguments.
There is one thing on my side, though. The American people elected Barack Obama to lead us. That means that at least 50% of Americans think enough of the guy and his team to lead us over 4 years. That is a great deal of trust to lay on anyone. I know it is fashionable on other blogs (and many here) to lambaste Obama. I don't like a few things he's done (particularly about the bank bailout), however, the world is not ending. We are not in as bad a shape as this time last year, and definitely a helluva lot better than what all the experts and economists predicted we would be in at this time last year. To those unemployed I write that I feel for each and every one of you. It is the worst feeling about oneself when you are idle and every day you lack work is another monotonous day where the world seems to be against you. Been there, hated it. However, things are starting to come around and it could have been much worse. We could have slid so far into a depression that could have taken a generation or two to recover from.
So the question to ask yourself in these times is who do you really trust to lead us? Are we really doing ourselves justice to anoint a pundit on TV or someone who owns a blog, whether it is Arianna Huffington, Jane Hampsher or even Kos as the true guru, or if you see the world Obama is trying to lead as the world you want to live in. Do you trust him as a leader of the free world or not. If you don't, then you should criticize him and look for other leaders to replace him in 2012. Is a blog owner that person? Do I trust Kos more than I do Obama to have the intelligence and the compassion to make the right decisions for the long haul? No offense Kos, I choose Obama. If Obama were to fail in my expectations, there is a long list of alternatives before I even consider a blog owner or a pundit.
Yes, you can call me an Obamabot or whatever the hell us Obama supporters are called, corporate shills, assholes, whatever. If that's the game you want to play, I'm ok with that. I've been called worse. I have nothing against anyone putting themself out there and criticizing Obama, even from the left. Although, Arianna is not my cup of tea. There's criticism, then there's exploitation. I think she crossed that line years ago. However, you have to respect someone who put themself out there. There are aspects to the current pie fight that have merits, whether to align with the exact opposite of the political spectrum to achieve one's goals or not. That is an issue worth arguing over. However, who is the person who gets to make decisions that have greater impact on our country and our party. Instead of breaking what we have, maybe we should all consider ways of improving what we have. I am a bit older than many here. It does not give me more wisdom because I still have a streak, believe me. However, I have patience (if you saw one of my grandchildren you would understand what the word patience means), and I know from experience you don't turn a battleship around on a dime. Change takes time. When I was younger, I had no patience, and did make the mistake of thinking I was invinsible and always right. I never apologized for anything. Today, I can admit all my mistakes were made because I looked at the world as unfair and corrupt. It took me more than 50 years to understand it wasn't the world, it was my perception of it that was wrong.
Social Security is a prime example of how history is a great teacher. When it was first legislated, SS covered white, male workers, not minorities or women. When the Civil Rights bill got passed, it didn't cover all the voting rights issues we wanted. It took another 2 years to get that enacted, even then it took more blood and guts to get to where we are now, and we still haven't crossed the finish line.
Yes, there are still 2 wars and countless other burdens this country must deal with from the Bush years. Changing the catastrophe that was the previous 8 years is not an easy task for any president, Washington, Lincoln, FDR or Bugs Bunny. We have at least 3 more years of this administration. Obama has made mistakes, and he has also made some good calls. It is not up to me to judge anyone in such a short time in office. However, I personally have a good feeling about the future, with or without the public option, with or without the troop surge in Afghanistan(ok, escalation), the economic recovery, global warming and unemployment. It is not in my nature to be a pessimist so you won't get me to agree that the world is going to hell in a handbasket.
In the end, I trust this man more than I trust the ambitions or agendas of certain pundits and website owners. I voted for this man, I am not the kind of person who jumps off a bandwagon just because there are some who tell me to or who ridicule me for my trust in the man. In the end, we are far better off today than we were last year. We could be in the middle of a depression, and only a few are around today who can tell you what that was like. If there are people who think a blog owner has all the answers and think they've worked so valiantly in the cause of HCR or other pursuits to cure the world. Think again. Millions of people work just as hard. You can work hard and valiantly for causes, but maybe the way you go about it is wrong, the message could be wrong, the strategy could be wrong, the tactics could be wrong, or the information could be wrong. Many people fight a fight every damn day. Just because some people are more public about what they do, or work in a certain field, does not make their endeavors any greater than anyone else's efforts. So the argument that some of us have worked harder on a certain issue is a self-serving argument. The bottom line is there is a president who does not react. He is a very thoughtful man. He is not the evil, corporate shill turncoat. He is the president of the United States. At least to me, I am proud to be a supporter of his. I will not let anyone change who I am or shame me into believing differently.
Update: Thank you all for your great comments. To those who wish to view this diary as an attack on bloggers or pundits. That was not my intention. I really don't have an opinion one way or the other whether certain blog owners and pundits should or should not do this or that. This was my way of writing something in support of someone I still believe in. I have no fight against someone I don't know. And I don't know Jane Hamsher and have never logged into FDL. I read the flamethrowing diaries and understand what is going on, but that to me is a sideshow, just like the never ending Sarah Palin exploits or the crap about Michael Jackson. It is the 15 minutes. I admit to reacting to yesterday's bloodbath, however, to me, something inspiring resulted from all that. It reinforced the feeling I have about my confidence in Barack Obama.