[img]583|left|||no_popup[/img]Happy Birthday, Mr. President,
But I’ve got to be honest. You have me as hot as fish grease right now. I can't figure out what's going on in your head. You go out and give rousing, voice-quivering speeches that renew my confidence in the fact that you're finally going to go back and confront the GOP, then you get to the Oval Office and seem to curl up in the fetal position, letting the Republican Party not only roll over you, but us, too. What's up with that?
No Time for Serenity
I think your heart is in the right place, but I've come to the conclusion that you're suffering from a coping mechanism you have developed over the years. Having lived all over the world and dealt with being an outsider all your life, you have developed a go-along-to-get-along style of dealing with adversity. That obviously has worked for you in the past. After all, you are President of the United States. But it is not what the people want in a President, It is time to reassess your strategy.
While the American people liked Mr. Rogers, just as they do you, they didn't want him as President. The American people want John Wayne. That's the only reason Reagan was elected, and is still glorified, in spite of his gross incompetence.
The Republicans recognize that fact, which is why Bush and Cheney walked around in cowboy boots. They knew that the American people expect their President to be strong and resolute, even if he's ignorant. I don't know who is guiding your strategy, but if they're telling you that the people are going to put up with a President running around Washington asking, “Can’t we all get along,” they are wrong.
You need to step up to the plate, my man, and let some of the ‘hood come out. That's what the American people voted for. They figured we needed an intelligent man with the backbone of a ‘hood rat. They were right. You see, that's all John Wayne was a white ‘hood rat.
Your rousing oratory may backfire on you in the coming campaign. If the rest of the electorate are like me, instead of your quivering voice evoking moist eyes of inspiration like it did during the last campaign, it is only going to provoke anger this time, reminding people of how they were bamboozled in the last election. They are going to stand by you, because they know their only option is enduring a fascist America.
While I am mad at you, I plan on sticking by you and pushing for your growth. That's the nature of the progressive mindset. We believe in independent thought, giving everyone the benefit of the doubt. We don't insist on always marching in lockstep.
No Monopolies Here
We understand that no one corners the market on knowledge, wisdom, or intelligence. We must rely on our combined intellectual resources to move forward. That is why we are firm believers in the vigorous, sometimes angry, debate taking place among progressives today.
It is important to keep in mind the difference between efficient thinkers and ideologues:
Efficient thinkers always give truth priority over ideology. Ideologues give ideology priority over truth.
I am with you until the end, but I'm going use my column to give you pure hell every step of the way. You see, sometimes you have to drag great men up Mt. Rushmore kickin' and screamin'.
Besides, you managed to get Michelle, so you must have something going for you. A good friend would call that a “slapliment.”
I will let you get through the week in peace. We can fight later, and fight we will.
Eric L. Wattree is a writer, poet and musician, born in Los Angeles. A columnist for the Los Angeles Sentinel, the Black Star News, a staff writer for Veterans Today, he is a contributing writer to Your Black World, the Huffington Post, ePluribus Media and other online sites and publications. He also is the author of “A Message From the Hood.”
Mr. Wattree may be contacted at wattree.blogspot.com or Ewattree@Gmail.com
Religious bigotry: It’s not that I hate everyone who doesn’t look, think, and act like me – it’s just that God does.
