Then again, when you a-s-s-u-m-e the worst, that's generally what you end up with.Originally Posted by Marlin
There's not much a person can do about past mistakes other than realize they were made, admit they were made, try to correct them, and move on. Doesn't it show more character, being able to do that, than it would to ignore them and expect others to do the same?
It's all a matter of perspective of course, but some may say that attempting to open or maintain a dialogue as equals, regardless of financial/political or other levels of power, is the true indicator of strength.
It also seems curious that some are of the opinion that Obama won the election just because he was/is a good public speaker. I mean, I personally do think that he is, although I was also of the opinion that at times during his campaign his speeches had almost started to sound like they were being delivered by a tele-evangelist. But regardless of his public speaking skills, it was what he was saying (and more to the point...doing) that had me leaning more in his direction. (And I should at this time say that Obama didn't eventually get my vote, in case anyone is starting to think I'm saying what I am to justify any decision I made after the fact).
What he did was actually put into practice what most people said they wanted a candidate to do; have the ability to focus on the issues while NOT falling prey to the tactic of making the campaign process a big mud-slinging contest...(similar to what's happening now with current opinion polls). That fact alone showed that the man had character, and that he could maintain a more mature level of discourse even when it may have been easier to simply fight fire with fire.
In my opinion, it's all still a matter of having realistic expectations. It seems that the majority of people wanted change, it's just turning out that the only change that will be considered acceptable is the type of change that doesn't require the people who wanted change...to change.
Reply With Quote