Don’t Believe the Hype: President Obama is on the Right Path

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Interesting how we, the people, tend to develop convenient forms of amnesia. Interesting how easy it is to allow the perpetrators who started the problems we are currently facing in these United States, to turn the tables and make the main person who’s trying to solve the problem the “bad guy”.

How did President Obama become the person who is “wrong”. When did he become the one who’s not “moving in the right direction”? How is that he is the one who “does not know what the people want, or need”? Since when did he become the one who is out of touch with the people? At what point did he become the one who “didn’t explain the situation, the issue, the problem sufficiently, so that somehow, we, the people, now are “confused”? Think about it!!

This is the bilge water the Republican-run media and political pundits are trying to use to brainwash Americans who support President Obama. There is an old saying, “give them an inch, they will take a mile.” And that is apparently patently true when it comes to Republicans. In the Black community, when the perpetrator is trying to cast doubt or blame the other party, we called it “the pot trying to call the kettle black -- of course back in those days we only used cast iron cooking utensils -- but the meaning is pretty much the same: the real culprits are trying to throw you off the track by blaming the hero -- President Obama.

DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE, THE TYPE, OR THE GRIPE on the part of the Republicans and the blow hot-blow cold so-called Independent party.

It has never been a case of whether Americans need either affordable comprehensive health care, or decent well paying jobs. It is a case of Americans needing both -- as enunciated by President Obama in his campaign speeches, his inauguration speech, and from the time he stepped into office. He has not changed the message, or the mission. What’s happened is that the message is being distorted, and there are many who are trying to undermine the mission.

No, President Obama did not forget that jobs were needed. In his speech in Denver, at the Democratic National Convention, he spoke of bringing American jobs back from overseas and giving corporations that did so a tax break for making it so. He reiterated it during his State of the Union Speech.

No, President Obama did not neglect explaining what was going on with his policies. He has been very diligent about keeping his promises. What is happening is that the mainstream media is spending a great deal of time, ink and propaganda distorting the information, to maintain a level of confusion. Unfortunately, America is just beginning to realize that “they been hoodwinked” -- by the media, the so-called blue dogs, and the Republicans. As Malcolm X said, “You been took, you been had!” The lies are piling up higher and higher. Look at the headlines of the newspapers -- they lead with negatives. (interesting isn’t it, that the entire time Bush was taking the US down the proverbial toilet with his misguided policies, you never so much as saw one invective -- wonder why that is?)

No, President Obama is not to blame for the loss of either New Jersey’s gubernatorial race, nor Massachusetts the loss of the Kennedy legacy. The Democratic Party is culpable for being schizoid in its support of him. For once they can blame no one but themselves for any lapses in bills passed, elections clinched, etc. They are in the majority (also known as the cat/bird’s seat). Yet they continue to fumble the ball. They have the responsibility for watching his back, and dealing with any lapses in support nationally and locally. So what’s up with that? Interesting! No time for resting on past laurels. Time to wake up and take care of business.

No. President Obama did not forget how to add. He inherited a government with a trillion dollar deficit, banks failing, automotive industry on stall, millions of jobs disappearing, and rampant foreclosures.

Funny isn’t it? The entire 8 years that these monies were being mismanaged, that people were being bilked out of their earnings; mini-Katrinas were ignored until the big Katrina was staring us stark in the face and all the world saw how far we really sank in terms of Bush's administration. When the prices of housing were "higher than a giraffe’s ass", while salaries and jobs were shrinking faster than a wool sweater in hot water, somebody was asleep at the switch. Then we, the people suddenly realized that you can’t get here from there. Wall Street was trading our mortgages on the international market, and whole blocks of neighborhoods were secretly being sold to foreign interests for pennies on the dollar. We, the people couldn’t get a decent mortgage for a roof over our heads, or find an honest lawyer who would tell the truth about the fact that we were walking into a time bomb that was going to blow up in our faces. Obama was fighting for us - we, the people.

Even before he was President, he was working in his own community in Chicago to help those people who were being devastated by the Bush policies that had trickled down and eviscerated urban centers throughout the country. He saw first hand what was happening, and took a stand even then. He did not forget once he got into office; and he has not lost touch.

When he won the election as the 44th President of the US, Bush handed Barack Obama the broken toy that is America, and said now try and fix it, and oh yeah, here’s the monkey wrench. Interesting how no body thought to hold him accountable for his destruction of the country; no one tied his feet to the fire; no one said hey, wait a minute, how come he and his henchmen get to walk off into the sunset without so much as a reprimand? (well actually, we did, but he got on that helicopter anyway).

Now my question is, where the heck are we coming from? What sam hill is our problem? Why are we allowing the yellow journalists to get away with this garbage of trashing the President, while and sitting back as though our brains are made of swiss cheese? Just like we need to change from the big banks that have abused the privilige of handling our funds while giving us a pittance return on our investments; we likewise need to change the publications we read -- try the local Black News Papers, the international papers; online publications, blogs. Stop allowing the mainstream media to manipulate the truth for their own ends.

We finally have a President who stands for us. Who is not going to allow business as usual to continue on Capitol Hill. Guess what folks, contrary to popular belief, silence is definitely not golden. And yes, we do have the power. And we must stand with our President.

Did we think that now that Bush was out of the White house, and Obama was President, that our job was finished; did we think that his detractors are going to sit back and let him do his job. We all know the answer is NO.

So what should we be doing? Any thing and everything to make sure that we back him up. We should be backing him up in the communities we live in. We should be backing him up in the polls. In the petitions and demonstrations in support of his policies. And we should definitely be making sure that if our locally elected officials are not in compliance with Obama policies -- they should be replaced.

This year is the so-called mid-year election. Supposedly, Democrats in congress are will lose their seats, and Republicans are supposed to gain a majority, as a sort of back-lash against Obama. Well, just like we brought Obama to the White house, it’s time to shake up a few more “givens”. And this one definitely has to be laid to rest. We have to triple, quadruple our efforts now, so that all the primaries are loaded with Democratic candidates, who are there for us. And that we not only keep the majority, we increase it. We have to campaign like we’ve never done before. The strategy is vote or die for real. The strategy is there ain’t no more days like that.

Next, all those states that received stimulus packages that have not shared them with the African American communities, have to be put on blast, immediately. But make sure that when you do so, that you have viable projects in your community ready to go.

Obama’s policy is one of inclusion. DC’s is one of exclusion. Republican’s is one of confusion. WE have to be the Solution. Make sure that each and every one of the incumbents know that we want the Health Care Bill Passed NOW. And make sure that the funding for the jobs bill is taken care of.

When they ask where the money is going to come from for the programs we need implementing, advise them of the following options: they can actually bring the troops back in May instead of August, saving billions and billions of our dollars. That they can make sure that the big banks ante up on those bonuses they managed to set aside for their incompetents, by giving them to underwrite local businesses, and salaries (as the President mentioned in his State of the Union Address - remember?). Tell them to get Bush, Cheyney, Halliburton, and the rest of their cronies that ripped the US off for the past 8 years, and tell them we want our money back Now!

I’m not being unrealistic in my request. Nor am I being facetious. I am saying that now is the time to stop treating the perpetrators like sacred cows, while the President is being subjected to racist remarks, duplicitous behavior, and salacious inuendos - I am saying that it is time to return to integrity -- or maybe I should say, get some integrity. At any rate, the principle has always been people (ie humans) first; things (money, positions) second. Sure, they want the status quo. But I think we made it clear when we elected Obama we were tired of the run of the mill run over us while they run away with the money type of government. We are tired of footing the bill, while they plant their foot dead in our derrieres (individually and collectively).

If you take care of the people - us -- the people will take care of you. This principle was violated over and over again by the Bush Administration. The Obama Administration is trying to change it. He can’t do it by himself. He needs us, and we need him.

So, people what have we just learned from this little treatise? I sum it up with these Commandments (of sort):

Thou shall not allow the hostile media and the Republicans to commit iniquitous acts against our President;
Thou shall not allow false witness against the President to go unchallenged -- regardless of whether it’s on TV, Radio, Newspaper, or some religious fanatic;
Thou shall not recite (regurgitate or parrot) media crapola chapter and verse as though it was the truth (due diligence is the name of the game);
Thou shall take a stand for the policies that our President stands for, and encourage your associates, family, friends, neighbors, acquaintances to do the same;
Thou shall turn out in record numbers to vote for issues that are in concert with the President’s policies and encourage your associates, family, friends, neighbors, acquaintances to do the same; (ie vote like you’re voting for Obama all over again, with lines around the block -- make them know that you are taking a stand
Thou shall not let the main stream media program you against President Obama;
Thou shall not allow the media to insult your intelligence by telling you you don’t know what you do know;
Thou shall make sure that both Affordable Health Care Bill and Jobs for America legislation are passed;
Thou shall read the President’s speeches and statements for your self (either online or in hardcopy), and make sure your children do the same;
Thou shall keep a running tally of all the good things President Obama has accomplished since coming to office;
Thou shall be wary of Republicans bearing gifts; and of Independents, many of whom are really Republicans in disguise;
Thou shall bring people first and humaneness to our communities, neighborhood, and America.

If we begin now with these few commandments, and come up with axioms as we go along, we can begin to bring about the change we need to see in the how things are done, and how they affect us and our families. And like President Obama says, if you have better ideas, please bring them.

Stay blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson