I was in Washington DC last week for the twice-annual nonprofit conference, my first time there since the election heated up and since Obama took office.
It was interesting being in the city at this time. Obama had been in office for about a week and a half when I arrived. The airport had huge banners saying "Welcome President Obama." I found that ironic, because I can guarantee you that Obama did not walk through Reagan National Airport on his way to the Oval Office; so I'm pretty sure these banners were not meant for him to see.
Later on, we had dinner with our client at a restaurant that was in a mall. The center of the mall was open for three floors with a large banner that went all the way from the top of the third floor to the 1st floor that had an image of Barak Obama walking with the message "Congratulations President Obama" on it.
I am pretty sure that signs like these did not welcome President Bush when he took office. Actually I should know, I'm usually in DC this time of year, I don't remember seeing this at all in January of 2001 or 2005. And while I'm a big fan of Barack Obama, I have to say this was a bit unsettling to me.
It immediately reminded me of some of the photos we've seen of leaders of other countries...leaders like Saddam Hussein, Ayatollah Khomeini, the Iranian president (I don't feel like googling his name right now) and others who led in a much less than democratic way. Granted, those outpourings of "love" came from fear from the constituency, but it made me wonder:
If Obama recommended as part of his economic recovery that all Americans turn over 100% of their earnings and belongings to the government for re-distribution to the general population, how many would follow unquestioningly? Even when he admitted he "screwed up" by endorsing Tom Daschle, it was a minor splash, no big deal. Can this man do no wrong? If that had been George W Bush the media would've jumped on him, chalking it up on a long list of mistakes and errors.
Some media actually ARE criticizing him and his proposed policies, which I'll be honest I find welcoming. He does not walk on water, people, he's just a man with a remarkable story and great charisma.
I have to admit I had a similar reaction while watching news about the election results and seeing people in other countries cheering in the streets. My first thought was, "It's not the second coming of Christ."
ReplyDeleteAbout taking our money and redistributing it -- well, the $750 Billion in bailout funds IS our money and some of the top people who took those funds got bonuses in the Millions along with all kinds of other perks. And how rich did Cheney get when his company got the non-bid contracts in Irag for work over there? Those were paid with our money, too. So there is some redistribution but kind of reverse Robin Hoodism.
Every year I was with Wells Fargo, Dick Kovacevich got a total compensation package of $40 Mil (per their annual report) but I see Wells Fargo was at the trough too. I do hope that under Obama there will be no more Enron, Tyco type follies.