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Wiley · 28th September 2008, 06:12

I have a bad feeling that many of those thirsting for 'change' and thinking they will get it through an Obama victory in November will have their wishes granted - in spades (perhaps an unfortunate phrase to use in the circumstances – but definitely no pun intended).They’ll certainly get change, but perhaps not in quite the way they are hoping for.

What I've noticed about him is that he consistently says absolutely nothing substantive so incredibly well. His delivery - of damn near nothing you can ever put your finger on - is as polished and slick as any speaker I've ever come across before. He's up there with Churchill in his oratory - but Churchill usually actually said something in his speeches. Obama just spouts platitudes - beautifully, I'll accept, but all too often, they have absolutely no substance.

The scary thing about the possibility of an Obama victory is the absolutely huge risk of a far bigger war(s) resulting from it, quite possibly from a totally unexpected quarter that none of us have even thought of at this point in time. Many world leaders, quite correctly sensing his inexperience, will be tempted to test his mettle. (Mr Putin, no longer [yeah, right!] a world leader, comes immediately to mind, but let's not forget the funny little fat fella in northern Asia or a whole bevy of bearded gentlemen, some of whom don't even have a country to call home – yet). If he folds in his first (or tenth) such test, US interests will suffer - at a time the US can't afford to lose anything. But if he stands up to any such test, he may well have to actually draw - and actually shoot - his proverbial six gun to prove he's not the easy mark he appears to be.

And if he backs down in the first such test, (which many would say he's already promised he will do - in withdrawing from Iraq), or his second or his third, he's going to have to up the ante considerably when he decides his line in the sand, whatever that may be, has been crossed.

International politics bears remarkably close parallels to that part of the school yard that was out of sight of the teachers, where brute force and the bullies reigned, and (mixing my metaphors just a little bit) Barak Obama is very much the 97 pound weakling with the pocket full of lunch money that many of those bullies would dearly love to take.

If he gets in, I think we're all in for 'interesting times', if not quite like the times many who will vote for him think they're going to be.

28th September 2008, 06:12	#3005 (permalink)
Wiley Join Date: Jun 2001 Posts: 1,307	I have a bad feeling that many of those thirsting for 'change' and thinking they will get it through an Obama victory in November will have their wishes granted - in spades (perhaps an unfortunate phrase to use in the circumstances – but definitely no pun intended).They’ll certainly get change, but perhaps not in quite the way they are hoping for. What I've noticed about him is that he consistently says absolutely nothing substantive so incredibly well. His delivery - of damn near nothing you can ever put your finger on - is as polished and slick as any speaker I've ever come across before. He's up there with Churchill in his oratory - but Churchill usually actually *said* something in his speeches. Obama just spouts platitudes - beautifully, I'll accept, but all too often, they have absolutely no substance. The scary thing about the possibility of an Obama victory is the absolutely huge risk of a far bigger war(s) resulting from it, quite possibly from a totally unexpected quarter that none of us have even thought of at this point in time. Many world leaders, quite correctly sensing his inexperience, will be tempted to test his mettle. (Mr Putin, no longer [yeah, right!] a world leader, comes immediately to mind, but let's not forget the funny little fat fella in northern Asia or a whole bevy of bearded gentlemen, some of whom don't even have a country to call home – yet). If he folds in his first (or tenth) such test, US interests will suffer - at a time the US can't afford to lose anything. But if he stands up to any such test, he may well have to actually draw - and actually shoot - his proverbial six gun to prove he's not the easy mark he appears to be. And if he backs down in the first such test, (which many would say he's already promised he will do - in withdrawing from Iraq), or his second or his third, he's going to have to up the ante considerably when he decides his line in the sand, whatever that may be, has been crossed. International politics bears remarkably close parallels to that part of the school yard that was out of sight of the teachers, where brute force and the bullies reigned, and (mixing my metaphors just a little bit) Barak Obama is very much the 97 pound weakling with the pocket full of lunch money that many of those bullies would dearly love to take. If he gets in, I think we're all in for 'interesting times', if not quite like the times many who will vote for him think they're going to be.