We’re Ready, Don’t Wait, Obama ’08

By Wayne D. King

December 1, 2006

Ask around among those who have years and years of living within the Washington Beltway and breathing the air of power and you’ll hear most of them tell you the same thing about Barack Obama. “He needs to wait, get experience.” “He’s too young, too green too . . . too . . . too”).

There’s only one problem with all those observations. They fail to recognize that breathing the rarified air of Washington also produces other symptoms – among them arrogance.

That arrogance, manifested in the view that those with years and years of experience know what is best for us, took a solid - and well-deserved thumping - last month. Those who had all the experience in the world got their comeuppance from an American public tired of the lies, the corruption and the arrogance.

What years of experience and so-called expertise have gotten us lately has been nothing but heartache. As a result, the next President of the United States will inherit an unnecessary, ill-conceived and unpopular war; a world, skeptical at best, that the United States can be an honest broker in the Middle East or anywhere else for that matter; and, a country deeply divided politically.

The times call for someone different than the usual suspects.

The times call for a fresh face, untainted by scandal, and unpolluted by the winds of arrogance and corrupting power that blow through the Capitol. The times call for a leader who can call on all Americans to focus on what unites us, to take pride in ourselves and our country; and to play a role in restoring the moral leadership of this planet. That’s a very tall order. . . We’ve seen the rest – we need the best. And there is only one person who can do that – Barack Obama.

Admittedly, I have not been so excited by a political leader since Bobby Kennedy. For many reasons, Obama seems to have the same electrical charge that Bobby had for me - and millions of others I might add. Here is a man unafraid to use the word “love” in a political speech; a man unwilling to pander to our fears; a man calling on us to dream again; and, most important, a man who sees the place of every citizen in the struggle to build a better world - calling on us to step up and play our part.

Now I’ve never spoken to Senator Obama, and I don’t anticipate being among the masses who converge when he comes to New Hampshire on December 10^th to celebrate the recent election victory of the Democrats. That’s not because I don’t want to see him, but because I’m not really willing to lend any credence to the notion that Democrats won the election. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a reasonably loyal Democrat, though I’ve never voted a straight ticket. But let’s face facts. The Democrats did not win the last election. The Republicans LOST the last election. I’ve never been so proud of the American people as I was on the day after that election, but I suspect they would have voted for Francis the Talking Mule if he had been on the other side of the ticket. Democrats have a very small window of opportunity to prove that they deserve to govern – both here and nationally. Obama seems to recognize this and I hope he’ll remind those gathered that its time to govern and prove ourselves.

It was an unusual election, but these are unusual times. Our nation is in crisis and we must have a leader who will help us turn this crisis into opportunity. We already squandered one such opportunity, after 9-11. We can’t afford to squander this one.

9-11 presented an opportunity to unite the nation in ways that none of us could have dreamed possible the day before. Instead it was used to further the cynical machinations of a cadre of NeoCons looking to reshape the world in their own image. The opportunity to point Americans toward their better angels was lost. . . but perhaps not forever.

If there is one thing the Bush administration has proven quite well it is that the crisis we face, from within and without, will not be made better with dogmatic arrogance and the thoughtless use of military power. Yes, of course, we must use our military might to protect our citizens. But more than anything else, the threats to our nation come in the form of a clash of cultures and ideas. This is a battle that will not be won by military might alone. It is a fight that calls each of us to reaffirm the values put forward by our founders: fiercely, protectively, proudly. It is a struggle of ideas and ideals for the hearts and minds of the world.

This is where Barack Obama is head and shoulders above any of the other potential candidates – on either side. This is where he is in a league all his own.

Listen to him speak and you feel the power of his intellect - but just as strongly you feel the power of his heart. This is a leader who will be able and inclined to reach out to the powerful AND the disenfranchised. His guileless style and his heart has not yet been corrupted by the cesspool of Washington politics – that’s why we need him now.

As for experience, I have no doubt that he will surround himself with the best and the brightest when it comes to leading this nation. But surrounding yourself with the best and brightest only works when your own moral compass allows you to continue to steer the course that is best for the country. Barack Obama may be short on years, but he is long on heart and with Americans hungering for leadership that truly speaks to their hopes and dreams that is exactly what we need.

Senator Obama - it may not be in your own interest to run. You may even wonder if you are ready. . . that’s a good thing. Our greatest leaders have always been those whose self-doubt tempered their impulses. What I am about to say is not for you, but for my beloved country. I want, more than I ever have in my life, to believe in the American dream again.

Run Obama Run.

Wayne King was the Democratic nominee for Governor in 1994. He is the Publisher and Editor of Heart of New Hampshire Magazine.

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Critical Thinking and the Paradox of History

 Critical Thinking and the Paradox of History

Advice from a Lifelong Student (and sometimes Teacher) of History

Wayne D. King

Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and it is shameful to surrender it too soon or to the first comer: there is nobility in preserving it coolly and proudly through long youth, until at last, in the ripeness of instinct and discretion, it can be safely exchanged for fidelity and happiness.

George Santayana

US (Spanish-born) philosopher (1863 - 1952)

Paradox at the Powwow

History and politics must be approached with a large dose of skepticism whether from the left or the right because, after all, history is generally written by the "winners" whether their cause was just or not. While I may have coined, or simply adopted, the phrase "The Paradox of History" neither the phrase itself, nor the thought, is unique or original.

Economist John Maynard Keynes coined the phrase the “Paradox of Thrift” to describe that point in a recession when the public is inclined to save as much as possible and spend as little as possible, while at the same time massive spending is the only way to alleviate the economic peril that the country faces. The Paradox of history is simply that history is written by the “winners” who have a vested interest in the narrative, while at the same time, history's greatest benefit to us is what might be learned from an unbiased narrative that provides us an opportunity to see both the good and bad in its events, personas and results. Stated more eloquently by Gordon Craig, “the duty of the historian is to restore to the past the options it once had.”

So, therefore, a good teacher's first responsibility to his or her students is to convince them that they should believe as little as possible of what he or she is about to tell them. Let's call that the "educators corollary" to the Paradox of History.

Having admitted to complete and utter fallibility, a good teacher must then impart his/her knowledge assertively, as if no other source was closer to the oracle of knowledge.

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A worthy teacher, then, seeks not to serve answers or truths but to urge students toward the development of critical thinking skills and a healthy skepticism, from which they can derive their own narrative.

This does not in any way alleviate the burden upon you, the student. Quite the contrary in fact - it imposes a larger responsibility because you must find a way to demonstrate a modicum of deference to my years of experience and knowledge while, at the same time, double checking the veracity of everything you learn from me.

One of the first things that you will learn is that a good critical thinker does not mistake opinion or "common sense" for fact. Opinion, after all is just that; one person’s view of something. Common sense, that stalwart beacon of logic and wisdom with which your elders have urged you to imbue your thoughts and behavior, is an even more devilish force because it is empowered by the vast influence of majority thought.

Stephen Hawking, in his extraordinary "Science in the New Millennium" speech, said “. . . common sense is just another name for the prejudices that we have been brought up with.”

Facts, on the other hand, as Mark Twain said, are "stubborn things"

they may stand by themselves or they may be turned into thought, but without them thought has no basis in reality; and, ultimately, no power.

So, as we begin this term, make it your goal to keep both your eyes and your mind wide open. Take joy in the moments in which your notion of the world is turned upside down because that is the surest sign that something useful is happening to you.

We the People are the Rightful Masters

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The Best Leader

A leader is best

When people barely know

That he exists,

Less good when

They obey and acclaim him,

Worse when

They fear and despise him.

Fail to honor people

And they fail to honor you.

But of a good leader,

When his work is done,

His aim fulfilled,

they will all say,

'We did this ourselves.’

Lao-Tzu

Chinese philosopher

Wayne D. King