Heartbreaker

I'm having a hard time getting all worked up over the whole Nobel Peace Prize flap. The Nobel Peace Prize has never quite been the same, in my eyes, ever since Henry Kissinger got one. Maybe the Prize for Obama is premature. But, the past 9 months have seen a sharp turn in the direction of American foreign policy, especially in the areas of nuclear disarmament, international cooperation, and relations with the Muslim world. On the other hand, there is nothing yet concrete to show for it in the Middle East or in Afghanistan.

I sometimes think that Richard Nixon was more of a liberal than Obama (or Bill Clinton for that matter). I agree with Grandmere Mimi that he is in fact very center-right in his views. He is not interested in major institutional reform and re-invention, even where it might be desirable or even necessary (national health insurance for example). His approach to long desired and necessary reforms is very conservative and cautious. He refuses to prosecute or investigate the Bush Administration because he does not want to create a precedent for Presidents to prosecute their predecessors. That's understandable, but I think re-establishing the rule of law should take precedence.

I'm very worried that in a lot of issues, we're getting the old Democratic Party leadership run around. Keep those constituents worked up with promises while nodding and winking to the financial Powers That Be. For all the promises on health insurance reform, I still fear that we are going to get a very minimal bill effectively written by the insurance industry. The gay-lesbian constituency is definitely getting led down the garden path with promises.

I like the President. I want him to succeed. I want to support him. I really don't want all the angry bitter crazies and their corporate enablers to take over again. They've done enough damage.

But, I voted for big changes, and I've yet to see anything more than very modest reforms.