The Age of Bozo, Day Second

I don't know how long I'm going to maintain a daily comment. This is two days in a row now and I'm becoming fatigued, but the threat American tradition faces is of Democrat expansion of governmental power, and how effective that will be depends a great deal on how effective their President becomes. So I follow him a bit. I presume he's politically dumb as a stump, I would like to find evidence that he is. If he's really dumb he might create ill-will even on his own side, and that would slow down "change", which would mean some chance to preserve freedom.

First, a correction. I said yesterday that his first phone call was to Hamas. It actually was to Abu Mazen, Fatah. Don't know how I made that mistake but this is marginally less bad. He isn't giving legitimacy to those who are presently killing Israelis, only to those who have killed Israelis in the past, and will in the future. --I do note though that today he somewhat made up the slight to Hamas by calling on Israel to open the boarders to Gaza, while Hamas busily rebuilds it's capacity to kill more Jews. This has to be a comfort Hamas, somewhat. At least it's not so evident he's playing favorites between them and Fatah.

And I note he's also becoming firm with some other disrupters of orderly government, the press. Never mind that they're in his corner, that's not really the same as obedient. He was asked a question when he walked into the press room. Imagine that! Of course he was offended, and placed his hand on the reporters shoulder, and sternly explained to said reporter that when Obama walks into the press room, it is for the purpose of indicating that he is most gracious, it most certainly is not meant as an opportunity for the press to be the press. --'Course, the press hasn't been the press for years, so probably (rightly?) he assumes that his concept of the role of the press is the correct one and that it's just that, just now, a tiny infection has developed. Very tiny, but clearly in need of the healing touch of a gentle hand. No need to let things get out-of-hand. --Perhaps this is the way they do it in Zimbabwe. Barack would know that better than I. Or maybe that's just the way community organizers handle things in Chicago?

So that's all I know presently for day two but it's going to have to do for day two because I do not have much time to actually read much news.

Day 1 & 1/2

Yesterday I bent over and kissed myself good-bye and today it's night and I'm still here? Wonders.

I hear Obama was in the Big House today, behind a big desk, being President. He made phone calls. Called Hamas, just to chat. Didn't want them to feel left out. So thoughtful.

What else? I guess no more Gitmo... in a year, whatever. In a year he ought to be able to decide what he wants to do. Or not. In a year no one will care.

I guess he had a very firm meeting with military types, on Iraq and Afghanistan, giving them the word on what's what. I imagine they said: "Yes Mr. President," and were just darn glad to get out of there finally and back behind their own desks...

And Mr. Barack, President, sits behind his. His is a bigger one.

And so the end of the first day. I imagine he did a lot of profile, with his jaw, I mean.

I wonder how long before it becomes clear this guy is nuts?

Our Little Indonesian

Since we have inauguration tomorrow, less than ten hours, I thought for the record I'd put down my present judgments.

--What does Barack believe? --Talk to five grad students, ask them what they believe, take the average... or just take any one of them at all, it won't matter, and you'll know what Barack believes... at least as well as he does.

--Note: This belief will be all "conscience", but no courage. And it will be pragmatic. Pragmatic here, as is general with the academic class, will mean self interest, but in "good conscience" of course, and for noble purpose.

--So Barack will be pragmatic, no doubt about it, and "pragmatic" will be whatever the press just loves. That means a lot of speeches and a noble thrusting out of his chin and a calling out for higher things. Fundamentally, domestically, that means he'll do what congress does. Internationally he'll just keep a lid on. He couldn't care less about America's strength in the world, or place, or wealth, or reputation, as long as his reputation is high. --International things are going to bite his butt, and at some point he will bomb somebody, just because he don't like gett'n his butt bit.

--What does he really want? I mean his inclinations, the deep things, not his "beliefs" such as whatever they might be:

--First, Adulation.
--Second, votes (same same).
--Third, Reform. This means crapping on absolutely everything normal Americans love, because he knows America is evil. He does want to protect the rest of the world from these people he rules, but won't work at it too hard because he actually doesn't care that much for the rest of the world either; he will focus on America because he knows America really needs work.
--And he wants power. For himself I think he just wants grandeur, but in as much as he actually has any political philosophy I think he wants power for government. Because he really does have a great deal of contempt for this land, for her history, for her inferior masses. He does want to set things right; and though he doesn't know quite what that means, he does know it means rule by the elite. (Probably will get some help from John.)

So there you have it. We have a President who's a foreigner and a snot, sort of half French and half East Asian. The question is: Does he have any political skill? I really doubt it, I think his only skill is image. As long as he's popular he will have power, but I suspect that behind closed doors just about any politician of experience, opposed to him, will be able to tie him in knots. Blago did it.

So? Four years...

Will the press turn against him? No, you can't turn against a black guy. If it turns out he's not black they could turn against him --Clarence Thomas, for example-- but I think he's black, that is liberal, so he'll always be just fine. Two exceptions: While they can't turn against a black guy, they can fall silent, and perhaps sometimes actually discuss issues or report news... and it is possible that "embarrassing" news might develop. And again, behind the scenes, there might be a tremendous struggle for power and turf, and I doubt very much he'll have any control over the government at all.

So who will be President, the one actually making the decisions? I know he has his publicity team, they'll continue full throttle, but who'll actually make policy? I just don't know. I expect it will become a mess of bailiwicks in conflict. A foreign policy flare-up will perhaps give the first indication of what he's made of. A flare-up is one area where there does have to be one President. I sure hope for something soon. (Foreign flare-ups do have a way of coming out of the blue.)

So: Indonesia, Hawaii, Harvard, Corruption (Chicago, that is) --that's what we've got for a President. A real American.

And I do think he's nuts, living in a total fantasy of entitlement narcissism: The World Is Me.

But we'll see.

Last Night

Bush just gave his last public speech, a brief, gracious fifteen minutes of farewell. He warned of continuing threat, but said he was confident of America's success because he was confident of American character. I notice he didn't say he was confident of the character of our congress, or the character of any of our leaders. He did say something to the effect: "I, as all Americans, pray for the success of our next President." I am very much going to miss this President, he's a good man to the core. I do not gladly welcome our next President, and I do not wish him success.

To hope and to pray that our next President will be a success is of course just an American piety; it contains the assumption that he will follow policies that are wise and good, that his success will be of benefit to America. I don't operate within that piety. Men are good or bad, and I do not pray for the success of a bad man.

This might be a good time to post a comment I made to another blog just a few days after the election, where the argument was made that we should be proud that America had elected its first black President:

Why should Americans be proud that they've elected an inexperienced black man to be our President? I feel shame. I had hoped that at some point some black governor of centrist orientation and proven competence would become our President on the basis of merit. Instead we've elected a black man purely on the basis of image.

This has been a deeply racial election, it will be a deeply racial administration; and since I expect it will be powerfully leftist I deeply hope it will fail.

It is interesting, that if I get my wish, that a leftist administration is defeated, it won't be because the right successfully parried the left, it will be because "racist" whites destroyed a black man. The black man who in the street today can say: "Now we have no excuse not to make something of our lives," instead, after the crumbling of the Obama administration, will say: "See, we don't stand a chance. Even if you're President the white racists will destroy you." I presume a century of racial hatred following a failed Obama presidency.

Of course, if the man proves himself wise, he could succeed. I don't expect it. If he proves himself clever, he might change the nature of our liberties. I don't want that.

I fear our first black President is the worst black President possible. I fear the consequences will be enduring.

I'm immensely skeptical of this young fellow. I see nothing in him of command or capacity, love of America, or the fundamental decency of George Bush. I have no idea how he will govern, I just fear that none of his instincts will be the same as mine. --I do note that so far there has been very little criticism that the critics of Obama are racist, but then the critics of Obama so far are simply ignored, barely noted; and there hasn't been much criticism anyway, probably for the very good reason that he's not yet President and nothing he says very much matters.

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Just spotted this on Drudge:

OBAMA SKIPPED BUSH GOODBYE?

At 8 pm, just as pres bush began his farewell speech peotus obama left blair house for the 30 second drive to equinox restaurant on connecticut and I st.

Pool is holding outside... DEVELOPING...

As I said, the instincts of the peotus and mine are not the same. "Peotus", by the way, is a Drudge coinage, it's the first time I've seen it. Very good.

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And guess I will close with this, a quotation from Henry Adams that I just spotted last night:

Power is a poison. Its effect on Presidents had been always tragic, chiefly as an almost insane excitement at first, and a worse reaction afterwards: but also because no mind is so well balanced as to bear the strain of seizing unlimited force without habit or knowledge of it; and finding it disputed with him by hungry packs of wolves and hounds whose lives depend on snatching the carrion.

And more directly to the point:

The effect of power and publicity on all men is the aggravation of self, a sort of tumor that ends by killing the victim's sympathies.

Check. It appears that the young man not only does not respect the man who is still his President, but went out of his way to show a discourtesy. The tumor of insensitivity seems already to have claimed its victim... and he's still just peotus.

Resolutions

Think I'll stick with my tried and true:

--Drink more water;
--Drink less coffee;
--Smoke less;
--Exercise.

Actually, I have recently made progress in drinking less coffee. Iron will. And my exercise isn't that bad.

Matters of significance:

--Dumbo soon will be President. Absolutely nobody knows what he will do, or if he has any competence at all. Or if he's sane.

--Blagojevich. I'm pulling for him. I expect that in the rough and tumble of politics he's far smarter than dumbo, and I would like to see that illustrated.

--Israel and Hamas. I very much hope Israel is serious this time. Even though they seem to have dithered since that first very excellent day, I can't believe they're not going to crush Hamas, or at least decisively and clearly whip and bloody them. They simply can not suffer another defeat such as they suffered from Hezbolah in '06. If that happens again no Arab will ever again fear a Jew. Israel will have immense firepower but female courage. They have no choice but to do damage, and almost certainly that means at the cost of their nation's blood.

Some have argued that this is a political stunt, something to bring Labor and Kadima up in the polls. I can't believe that. There's too much time yet before the elections, six weeks. In six weeks everyone will know if it was a stunt or not. If it's a stunt, Benjamin is elected. --It is possible Olmert, Livini, and Barak miscalculated the difficulty, but I just don't believe it's possible they can quit at any point where Hamas can plausibly claim victory. --I would note Egypt and Saudi Arabia want Hamas defeated, and Egypt, amazingly to me, has been publicly severely critical.

--The economy? Who knows? I think the downturn has been panic, and that things should stabilize soon at some lower level of world wealth but without depression. I just don't see any lessened desire either to produce or to consume, and I see no destruction that should severely damage either; I just see fear... of what might happen. As that eases money should flow again and commerce resume. And the lower oil prices are a trillion dollar stimulus. --It is very necessary to avoid a government stimulus. That's debt, an infertile expenditure, and more governmental power and control of the citizenry. That I fear more than loss of wealth.

--Global Warming? It's becoming a public joke. Again, the great fear there is increased governmental control through cap & trade or whatever regulation they come up with, but it's so expensive, and now so laughable among so many, that I just don't see it as a great threat. Environmentalists will continue to do damage, they're always a net negative, but since there will be countervailing force the damage shouldn't be disastrous.

--And so forth and so forth...

--And dumbo. This really is the unknown. I consider him inept, dishonest, cowardly, totalitarian, and a friend to America's enemies. I'm fairly certain about all of that, but that doesn't mean I'm at all certain what he will do. --I wonder what the press coverage will be once decisions start being made? It still will be necessary to extol his great virtues, and certainly necessary to defend him against any attack from Republicans, still, a decision (whoever actually makes it) is something solid, there has to be a response. I will note that I think the first severe criticism is going to come from foreign nations. I expect most nations actually feel a patronizing contempt for him: only America would be so unsophisticated as to elect an affirmative action black as their leader. Once he starts doing things Americans do, they will pat him on the head, and while being polite, ignore him as well as they can, more so than they've ever ignored any other President.

These are my prejudices. I presume they're correct, but I just don't know. That's why I like this Blagojevich stuff so much. It's one area where he actually has to take some position in the three weeks yet before his inauguration. It will be the first evidence of how he will respond to a genuine political difficulty, and so will be the first real information we've ever gotten about him. --So far he seems to be getting his lines from Harry Reid. But Reid is going to get whipped.
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--And will note that on my walk saw the Eagle again today. A great pleasure, but what the heck does he eat with everything all frozen over? It occurred to me that with those great wings he can't possibly get through the brush to get a rabbit. What the heck does he hunt?