Peter Hitchens, the non-insane and non-drunk Hitchens brother, on Obama.
I strongly disagree with this portion of his column:
“As I walked, I crossed another of Washington’s secret frontiers. There had been a few white people blowing car horns and shouting, as the result became clear. But among the Mexicans, Salvadorans and the other Third World nationalities, there was something like ecstasy.
They grasped the real significance of this moment. They knew it meant that America had finally switched sides in a global cultural war. Forget the Cold War, or even the Iraq War. The United States, having for the most part a deeply conservative people, had until now just about stood out against many of the mistakes which have ruined so much of the rest of the world.”
I think many immigrants have had a much more jaundiced view of the “Messiah” than many people who can trace their family lines back for centuries in this country. Cuban-Americans, for example, were largely unmoved by him.
However Hitchens is on to something here:
“I really don’t see how the Obama devotees can ever in future mock the Moonies, the Scientologists or people who claim to have been abducted in flying saucers. This is a cult like the one which grew up around Princess Diana, bereft of reason and hostile to facts.”
The cult-like aspect of the Obama movement is self-evident, although of course it will be denied by members of his cult. Not all Americans who voted for him last Tuesday bought into the Obama craze, for many it was sufficient that he was not the Republican in a year they wished to throw out Republicans, but I think a fair number did. When Obama runs into rough waters, as any president is bound to, it will be interesting to see if his followers stand behind him or if a growing number begin to say to themselves: “What in the world was I thinking?” . Obama has more unrealistic expectations heaped upon him by his supporters than any politician I can think of in my lifetime, expectations I think he helped foster during the campaign, and it will be a rude awakening for many of them when they discover that he is a relatively inexperienced politician from Chicago and not a wonder worker. I predict that the fall of Obama in public esteem may be faster than his rise. We shall see.
And this coming from the man who is beside himself with the mention of Sarah Palin…
Life’s beautiful ironies.
“And this coming from the man who is beside himself with the mention of Sarah Palin…”
Up early are you Mr. DeFrancisis? The next four years will be a long time for you to play the troll. Your time might be better spent coming up with excuses for Obama when his Hope and Change turns into Despair and Corruption.
As for Palin, none of her supporters ever said anything like this:
Pete’s more pessimistic than mineself. Lining up with Don Mac in that a Secular Messiah’s shelf life is somewhat limited. Waiting for two complaints to emerge quickly- 1. why so few people of color in bigshot jobs; 2. why his Messiahship doesn’t extend to any and all human problems. Say my own city of Philadelphia. Where Mayor Michael Nutter- far more qualified for the presidency than the impending occupant- announced new austerity for city budget two days following Pres election. Neighborhood libraries and city pools- closed. Police and fire overtime- severely limited. Displayed his own example with 10 per cent pay cut. And horror of horrors-ended the subsidy for the annual Mummers Parade. To louder wailing and gnashing of teeth than from those who wish their neighborhood libraries to remain open. Round these parts, The Era Of Big Government is over. Reality punched Michael Nutter in the face. It will, in some way, to the Dollar Store Messiah.