The BetsyG-Spot

I have finally recovered from the bug that got me, but I am still really tired, but not so tired that it is alarming. I just feel as if I could sleep for a month.

Here’s what’s been on my mind: Obama bashing. Before Obama was elected, there was a shocking (to me) smear campaign against him, where they painted him as all kinds of things he wasn’t. This is quasi-expected during elections, but I believe that, as a country, we need to put the pettiness in the past and get behind our president, especially in such difficult times. The guy has a big job to do.

Realize that I am pretty liberal (she says, Queen of Understatement), but even so, when my president is elected, Republican or Democrat, I’m going to give her (or him) a chance. I certainly did with Bush II; I was very open to seeing what he might have to offer in the beginning and then how he might protect our country and deal with the terrorism situation following 9/11. I certainly felt patriotism (something short of hanging a flag) and was behind the president following the catastrophe.

It was only when I found he didn’t offer anything domestically and I vehemently disagreed with his invasion of Iraq (why am I the only person who seemed to get at the time that there wasn’t any evidence of WMDs?), that I came to dislike Bush rather intensely. Ultimately, I felt he was the worst president of my lifetime, if not of all time. But that was based on his true performance, not on the mere fact that he was a Republican.

I had a passionate and visceral dislike for Bush I, who I thought was a big phony, but I confess that, as much as I disagreed with his politics, I liked Ronald Reagan. It was hard not to like the guy, and at least he had the passion of his convictions and he accomplished things. So I don’t think you have to hate your president if she (or he) is of the other party.

But what is going on with Obama in many quarters is a knee-jerk reaction by the haters. I saw an ad that referred to him as Narcissist in Chief. On conservative radio (which I do listen to on occasion), the listeners express their concern about losing their rights to free speech, and the hosts concur: “Scary times,” they say. What? This guy is supposedly the most liberal person ever elected and they’re worried about loss of personal liberties? How can you have it both ways?

Regarding this Narcissist in Chief business, whereby they think the guy is in love with his own voice, what I’m seeing is a president who is actually doing something and is communicating. During the eight years of Bushdom, apart from the wars, he didn’t communicate his goals, agenda, or progress. I felt like we were in a national fog (and thus the apathy) during his presidency. Reagan, of course, was known as The Great Communicator, and there was a degree in comfort in knowing what the guy was doing and where he stood, even if I disagreed with him.

Obama has walked into the biggest lemon of a presidency in my lifetime. There’s so much to fix—there’s so much we want and need him to fix—that he has to take action, even if it’s not the action everyone agrees with. The bailout: good or bad? Damned if I know, but I’m glad action has been taken on all fronts. There’s no right or wrong, and there are no simple solutions. Which brings me to my main point:

Give the guy a chance.

The haters are never going to hear that. Until they see their taxes go down to nothing while they still somehow have police officers, firefighters, and healthcare, anything this guy does is bad. I think he’s a smart guy who listens and makes carefully considered decisions, and I’m willing to sit back and see what direction this country takes before passing judgment on his presidency. I’m willing to call him an idiot if, a year from now, yet another bailout package needs to be passed, our automakers are still failing (and the government is running the companies), and the economy continues to worsen. I promise you, conservative Obama haters, I will call him an idiot on this page if the country is not in a better place a year from now. But I will do so only if you give the guy a chance, be positive, be patriotic, and get behind your president during this tough time.

I know I’m not supposed to talk politics in my relationship blog, but this is really about relationships. Some of us think we’re in a honeymoon period and others are ready to file for divorce. Try to make the relationship work before calling it quits. It’s good for everyone.

Have a great weekend, and thanks for reading.