Monday, October 12, 2009

All You Need Is Nobel



So happy to see some liberal derision of Obama for winning the Norwegian merit badge (Gore Vidal's apt phrase). I don't know if this signals a turn against President Savior, but you gotta start somewhere. Yet until more conclusive evidence is in, I'll stick with my contention that no significant liberal/prog mutiny will develop against Obama, especially as 2012 draws near, and the lunatic right keeps its freak show jumping.

Indeed, those reactionaries are perhaps Obama's biggest allies. The crazier they act, the more reasonable and moderate Obama seems. This also helps liberals who struggle to oppose a sitting Dem president, a position that most would rather not take, primarily against a historical figure whose name adorns their rear bumpers. But it's still early. As the shit water rises, it'll be harder to ignore the stench. Then again, many liberals can convince themselves that overflowing sewers are beautiful fountains, so horrid conditions may be denied for ideological need, or blamed solely on the right, whose power and reach is so vast that it forces Democrats to act against their better nature.

You know the lyrics.

Prizes are largely bullshit, politically determined, selectively awarded. But if money's attached, or if one's career is advanced, the allure is understandable. In Obama's case, the money must be given away, and his career cannot be bettered. How much higher can he rise? In a sense, the Norwegians punked Obama, praising him for peace while he blows apart anonymous poor people. It showed in Obama's reaction, the standard faux humility that Bill Clinton honed to a fine edge. Several liberal commenters I read thought it was a "class act," but in truth, Obama was cornered by his hypocrisy. He knew it, tried to finesse it, but the cognitive dissonance was clear. (If Obama's team was on its game, the president would've gone Brando and sent up a woman of color -- Muslim? -- to accept the award instead.)

It's impossible for an American president to embrace peace. Not part of the job description. Like telling a demolitions engineer to knock down a building with a daisy.

The optimist in me believes that as Obama steadily erodes, his admirers will acknowledge the reality that made him king, and act to counter it. But honestly, who has time for optimism these days? Check your socks for sewage stains.