President Obama

There are very few moments during a life time where one knows, with certainty, that they are witnessing history. The evening of Nov. 4th, 2008 was one of those rare moments. It was somewhere around 11:00 pm eastern time when Barack Obama was declared the next president of the United States. Never, in the history of the world, has a man with dark skin obtained such great power and influence. Never, in modern western history, has a man from a once enslaved and oppressed minority risen to govern a majority white nation. Only in a country as diverse and dynamic as United States, could institutional bigotry and social inequality be reversed in a generation's time. Now, of course, Mr. Obama's election does not mean racial inequality is eliminated, but it is a major bench mark that has been cleared in a remarkably short period of time. This is truly a great moment in our country's history.

During such a moment, it is extremely tempting to mistakenly assume that the man at the middle of this moment is great simply because the moment itself is great. Many in the nation's media have fallen prey to this temptation even before the election was won. Even more are now expressing admiration and heroworship, projecting this moment's greatness on to a man that has yet to prove worthy of such praise.

Make no mistake, Mr. Obama's achievement should certainly be admired and appreciated. In fact, if he does nothing else of substance in his career he will always be remembered for this moment. However, this moment alone does not make Mr. Obama a great man, nor does it mean that he is destined to be a good leader. The fact is President elect Obama's victory was as much a product of circumstances beyong his control (unpopular war, economic crisis, unpopular president, etc...) as it was his campaign. In addition, the exit poll data tends to show that Mr. Obama did not overcome any significant amount of bigotry in the electorate. So, while Mr. Obama's victory was certainly historic it was not improbable or extraordinary, given the circumstances.

In reality, a review of Barack Obama's relatively short career shows little sign of courage, leadership, vision, etc... or any of the other traits you might expect to find in a great man. In fact, Barack Obama's career is the protrait of shrewd opportunist who exploited associations and legal loop holes to advance his career, all the while avoiding any political confrontation that might have hindered his rise to power. This, of course, is something that can be said of most of the politicians in Washington. But that is precisely the point. Barack Obama has not shown himself to be anything more than an extremely ambitious and shrewd politician.

So, I hope that the people of this nation will appreciate this wonderful moment but will also not be too hasty in attributing greatness to a man who has yet to demonstrate it.