generalspeaking

Cool, Calm, Collected

When Senator Obama presented his cool persona during the election campaign for the presidency, he was much admired for his ability to remain above the fray, and stick to the point, the matter at hand. His calm demeanor earned him great plaudits, as a potential for the highest office in the land. Nothing would faze him, he was in control, not given to histrionics, to passionate outburst, to embarrassing lapses in temperament.

In fact, the man is not temperamental. There is a serenity about him, a seeming clarity of vision, a commitment to clear and trustworthy communication. His promises to alter the way things have traditionally been conducted in Washington appealed to a majority of Americans. His personal appeal of being in charge, of enduring adversity with a great measure of calm spoke to his stolid and trustworthy character. And he promised a new and different future.

In short, this was a sterling display of control that he evinced, that had the effect of enthusing people in his potential to take charge of situations sans agitation, and in a manner that inspired confidence in his abilities. This helped get him elected; the trust he inspired in people by his confident and calm demeanor, the assuring qualities of his character. And those promises, oh those promises.

Now he is president, in the early stages of his administration. And suddenly he seems detached, too unperturbed, too cool and measured when the country is in a dire state of unsettled economic woes that simply do not seem to want to settle down. Rising unemployment, a collapsed housing market, a feeble stock market, a hugely diminished manufacturing sector, and scandals in the financial sector have taken their toll.

He's the first populist, common-touch and electronic president of the United States. He represents the consummate political communicator, available at any time to the media, and going out of his way in a manner unprecedented, to speak to his country through the medium of interviews, television talk-shows, writing op-ed explanatory pieces, and spreading the word through the Internet.

But his casual demeanor and almost-dismissive air of rejection of catastrophe, in his determination to forge ahead with his administration's decision to bail out financial institutions and auto manufacturers, his rejection of big business' self-entitlements, his socialism-inspired taxes on the wealthy, have earned him few admirers of late.

His injections of humour during bleak moments discussing the nation's travails have appalled his interlocutors and his critics, happily emerging from the shadows of anonymity where they lay in wait for events to overtake his learning curve. Statements that appear flippant in the face of emergency legislation and taxpayer discontent have brought his critics to a loud howl.

It's being claimed that his light-hearted responses to some heavy questioning are grossly inappropriate to his executive station and his responsibilities to the nation. He's gone former President Clinton's 'feeling your pain' gambit one too far, toward let's laugh together, when no one feels like laughing.

Life's tough: 'no drama Obama' has morphed into 'no pain Obama' and people are confused, bemused and unhappy.

Labels: Particularities/Peculiarities, United States

posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, March 25, 2009