On the January 2009 at exactly one minute past 12pm, Barack Hussein Obama was sworn in as the 44th President.
An already momentous occasion took on immense proportions as he rode a tsunami of popularity spurred on by one of the most expensive presidential campaigns costing some $778 million. It was a campaign that had a natural selling point-he was the first black man who could captain the most powerful nation other than a white male. The furore and the campaign bolstered public opinion and then drove it with an overwhelming force into a believe that this would be the time when; tradition was broken, stero-types smashed, racial divides evaporated-despite the USA's outward show of inclusiveness it remains a divided country with deep seated racial tensions between; blacks, whites, Latin Americans and old held ideas burned to be replaced by a fresh, inclusive ideology.
Barack Obama the mixed race Hawaiian (the first President born outside of america), tall, well-spoken an intelligent man-with a thing for a cigarette or two and a strong intelligent first lady who had attended Princeton and Harvard Law School), Obama was meant to bridge these chasms. Far from being localised to America it seemed that this ‘furore' was for the globe. For sure there was a palpable sense that things were about to go on a seismic shift not just for ‘blacks' but for all those who felt; disenfranchised, ostracised, victimised and on the peripheries from; ‘trailer trash', the ‘disabled' ‘mentally unwell' right through to those in the projects living from day to day-it spoke volumes that just maybe the world was ready for positive changes.
As the slogan ‘Yes We Can' became more powerful than just three words it became an emotive feeling, surging through supporters' veins, jumping from their bodies into dis-believers and pessimists and like some airborne infection changing them into supporters-it was truly a magnificent moment. These feelings were encouraged and fuelled and the first African American President went from a day dream that wafted away with the reality of life to a reality.
The world truly expected a lot and in many respects maybe too much. How could one man change not only years of oppression, negativity (world-wide), politics and people? Indeed in the famous words from John Lydgate– ‘You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time”.
Barack Obama has (unsurprisingly) not fulfilled such unrealistic and high expectations. His legacy is guaranteed with various legislations including of course the bill with his name Obama Care (2010) sometimes called the Affordable Care Act which on the surface appears to be more effective in theory than it is in practise- far from a light of the oppressed-Obama Care appears to be making things harder for the very people it was meant to be helping just one of a number of legacy tainting incidence.
That however is not it-from increasing police violence to black males, to increasing lone wolf assailants intent on mass murder followed by notoriety to a foreign policy that continues to support Israel despite what seems like atrocities to Palestinians, to of course the capture of osama bin laden and his subsequent burial at sea which left so many questions and the apparent increase in radicalised Muslims and groups like IS (which have been financed by America)-Obama has acted in truth like all the Presidents before him and ensured that far from at least showing that he wants to change the status quo changes that by and large he has continued in many respects in Bush and others' footsteps. Controlled by the spectre of those 1 percenters and big lobby groups-Barack Obama has towed the line and sometimes tried to stand up in fairness it would seem to organisations like the nefarious and powerful National Rifle Association with members like Charlton Heston.
On a deeper level Obama has maintained American hegemony. Yes there appear to be some cracks in America's dominance of the globe as Asia (of course) show their own productive and financial might-China's pursuit of africa's resources with apparent gilt edged loans is now becoming legendary (something we will discuss), Latin American and countries like Venezuela have started to voice their own opinions and india surge ahead as well. America however remains powerful with an unsaid and said caveat that at all costs America must remain dominant by; controlling resources, controlling countries through brute military force and fear or indeed through subversive laws and tactics-Barack Obama has indeed upheld the American government way in all its distasteful glory-‘hell hath no fury like a hegemony scorned' as countries like Cuba will attest. Let's not forget that America's public opinion appears to be more liberal than government policies so this is not a slight on the citizens of America per se.
For Barack as January looms, his second term enters its twilight period. Moving with haste towards the ordained (as it were) finale where he must relinquish the Presidency to in coming candidates. In this case individuals like; the divisive Donald Trump whose campaign feels engineered to divert the masses attention from what we do not know, to Hillary Clinton and her own apparently shady self being backed with an irritating almost obsequious vigour by Michelle Obama and others.
Can Obama sit back and feel that he fulfilled the wishes of the masses? Of course not and indeed those that placed those expectations on him were naïve or perhaps merely desperate and hopeful (understandable). This is not to say that Obama is bad or indeed good because it is more than that. For all the promise one thing remains-the President is a mere glove puppet of the American establishment and those who TRULY run America.
At the end of it all (you may disagree) Barack was a flight of fantasy, an experiment, a piece of research, a litmus tests for something in the pipeline and now it's over…we wait for the 45th President of the United States of America; a compliant, obedient servant perpetuating the wishes of the establishment-the end.
Don't forget this is only opinion so please feel free to make comments devoid of abuse.
#freethemind #releasetheanarchy
