A Good Bet

I just heard on NPR today that if I had put my money where my mouth was last year at this time and invested $100 in Obama (didn't catch what market it was), I would have made $1,600!

Here's a sure bet... TIME magazine will name Barack Obama "Person of the Year" for 2008. How could they not? Though, if Fox News had anything to say about, that honor would go to Joe the Plumber, who was on Hannity & Colmes tonight. The Election is over. Why does anyone care what this prop thinks? Why did anyone care before? Sarah Palin and Joe the Plumber, there's a 2012 ticket for you. Well, not for any of you who are reading this. Plunge, baby, plunge. (Maybe Joe will be named person of the year in Out of Time magazine.)

I just saw Pat Robertson on Larry King, and even Robertson acknowledged that Obama is an intelligent, charismatic man, who has the potential to become one of our greatest presidents. That admission was not something I would have bet on. This hope thing may really take hold...

As we look to the future ethos of the country, I'm sensing a paradox. Those on the Right threw around the 'liberal' shibboleth once again this Election. Yawn. Another example of the tired us-them mentality that illustrates the divisiveness that the electorate rejected this year. For someone labeled liberal, Obama may actually usher in a more conservative (lowercase 'c') era, not of politics, but of how we live our lives.

Obama is extremely disciplined and straight-laced. He did not take any wild risks during the campaign. His decisions were deliberate, well-thought out, calculated without being calculating. He and Michelle seem to love and respect each other, and appear to be raising wonderful children. He behaves the way conservatives profess to behave and the way they try to force others to behave. The real issue is that his temperance and discipline are virtues which are neither liberal nor conservative.

Seeing this kind of example from our president may inspire us to follow: to tighten our belts and not be so profligate (the current financial crisis has had that same effect); to be better parents and children and neighbors; to be more understanding, respectful and forgiving of others; to consider and help those who are less fortunate than we; to stop blaming others and start taking more responsibility for our actions. Wouldn't it be just terrible if that kind of toxic liberal thinking caught fire in this country?