More Than Obama Can Chew

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown recently visited the U.S. with his family, an occasion usually marked by great pomp and circumstance. This time, however, the results were embarrassing for us and infuriating to the Brits, as evidenced by the lack of press coverage here at home in stark contrast to the blaring headlines from the Olde Country.

For those not familiar with the incident, first I must say that you are not to blame for your ignorance since, if all you do is read the paper or watch network news, you would have no way of knowing the particulars of the events. The venues mentioned suddenly seem to have no interest in embarrassing the president, so information is only available as they see fit. I imagine George W. Bush in the same predicament. The average citizen would never have had to actually dig for detrimental coverage of the former president during his eight years in office. Such is life.

In the meantime, we have a young president - both in chronology and tenure - who has demonstrated a startling ineptitude for the position thus far, which is now being excused by aides as fatigue. Um, pardon me Mr. President, but we never heard about fatigue during the long campaign to win the brass ring. Then again, there were no added pressures throughout the campaign other than not mispronouncing the rolling words on the teleprompter, so in a sense, the words of your defenders have a modicum of merit. What is most worrisome, however, is the accelerated pace at which respect for the highest office has been eroded, and all because of the claim of lack of rest.

I have heard and read from many people who have expressed alarm over the prospect of a President Obama, and all for a variety of reasons, some that I subscribe to and some that I am skeptical about, but all of which I have entertained in the spirit of educational curiosity. What we are seeing though, this early in a fledgling administration, is an urgent clarion call for closer scrutiny of what we have wrought with our impetuous election of a man who, admittedly, has bitten off more than he can chew.

If a faltering economy is so cumbersome that our new leader cannot practice proper protocol for our most prized ally's visiting dignitary, how can we feel confident for the rest of his term, when events in the world are likely to present challenges that will dwarf the significance of a visiting world leader?

It is a sublime irony that opponents of George W. Bush revelled in the notion that "a grown-up would once again occupy the Oval Office". Irony continues unabated in the fact that those voices are now mute, for no one has had the gumption to admit that a vote for Obama was an un-Godly error.

My dear old Grandmother often used a term when we left food on the plate; "your eyes are bigger than your stomach". If she were still around, I'd wager that she'd have a good tug on the ear of the adolescent president.

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