OK, I’ve been watching Obama since the election. I've been biding my time, hoping for some semblance of a rational, sensible plan for America. He couches his words in euphemisms that mean little or nothing. He adds buzzwords like 'reasonable regulation' to his ideas, but no one even tries to find out what his definition of 'reasonable' is. We all know what 'regulation' means - control.

The media gives him a pass. No hard questions, no real news, no counterpoint. He provides no information himself.

There are "Obama" coins for sale on the shopping channels ... some of the sales go on for long blocks of time.

Those are really not the things that bother me, not a lot, anyway.

No ... the scary thing is what people say about him ... they act like it is a religion. When I asked someone why they voted for Obama, do you know what they say?

Because he is "The One."

They say it with a strange, almost fanatical, light in their eyes. All these people that pride themselves on their individuality seem to do whatever he says. They do it without question, they do it on faith (yes ... faith). "The One" is not questioned ... he is without error and will lead us into the future of America.

That scares me.

Americans are not blind followers ... we know better. When we threw thousands of men at Omaha beach, they weren't told, step-by-step, what to do, we told them to take the beach and left it at that. They figured it out all on their own.

Are all you Obamanites really going to give control of your lives to a child of a man? A man that has no real experience, no real life-lessons, and who idolizes people like Rev Wright, who hates white people?

I am NOT a dyed-in-the-wool follower of conservatism, why do you have to be a blind follower of liberalism?

I am willing to give the man a chance. To let him show me that he has the stuff that great presidents are made of. He must earn my confidence.

Why aren't you willing to check his numbers, to see if he really is this "One" you seem to worship like a deity?

Faith is good, people. It gives us courage during dark times, and strength during hard times.

Blind faith, on the other hand, is irresponsible. It means we give him free reign with our country, our laws, and our economy.

Is this smart, people?

I need to quote someone. He was undoubtedly one of our greatest patriots, and a great leader of men, regardless of his political persuasion.

Ronald Reagan said, "Trust, but verify." He wasn't talking about politicians, but the principle applies, none-the-less.

I think that's what everyone should do when it comes to politics in America, whether they are liberals, centrists, libertarians, conservatives, or anything else.

Haven't our leaders proven that no matter what they say, they must be checked and balanced?

Trust, but verify.

----------------------------------------------------

What you see ...

... is not necessarily what you get.

Look, I have never blogged before, and I am not sure I will continue to blog. I am hoping that by doing this little bit of writing, I can improve my communication skills, and maybe let the world know how this average American feels.

Is it important to agree with me? Yes, but it's only important to me. If someone agrees with me, I'll feel a little tingle of 'hooray!' If they don't, I'll defend my position vehemently. I can't help it, I am who I am.

When people look at me, they make assumptions. This is natural! It's how we initially evaluate each other as friend or foe, potential mate, competitor, leader, follower or acquaintance. That's not the full list, but it's a start.

I make assumption about people I meet, as well.

Do I judge them? Of course I do! We all do. We are humans in a human world. Our judgements are based on a host of different criteria, some of which are: Race, religion, nationality, political leaning, sexual orientation, sexual gender, age, experience, weight, size, and many many others.

Our judgements are based on things we 'know' about ourselves and what makes us comfortable.

But ... just because we automatically judge someone when we meet them, does not mean we cannot be friends (or more) with them. We can also be wrong about them. People we immediately like can turn out to be the worst enemy you've ever had. People you don't seem able to get along with can turn out to be some of the best people in the world.

It doesn't mean we can't set aside those initial judgements and see that (for example) just because Chauncey is a liberal democrat, doesn't mean that he and Joe "Leans-to-the-Right" Sixpack can't be friends, or can't find some middle ground to agree on.

My take on it, anyway.

DeMann