The Time Capsule: Why Obama’s cheerleaders should recoil

 “If you’re not a Socialist at the age of 20 you have no heart.  If you’re still a Socialist at the age of 50, you have no brain.”  

Winston Churchill is credited by some with that statement, although researchers say he probably didn’t—at least not in those words. There are numerous versions of the sentiment: “Anyone who was not a Liberal at the age of 20 has missed half the point of life, and anyone who is still a Liberal at the age of 40 has missed the other half,” and so on.  

Being a societal revolutionary, setting out to fix things and striving to create Utopia, is a natural part of youth. With age comes an appreciation for history; with the realization there aren’t any original ideas. Things tried repeatedly that failed are likely to fail again. Hope and change brings consequences, and some of them aren’t good. There are old principals worth conserving. New isn’t always better.  

Obama cheerleaders seem to be getting shrill. They’re still waving pom-poms and chanting “Yes, we can!” but some of the spring has gone out of their cartwheels.  Obama’s Bush-like approval ratings show fans heading for the exits, as have polls revealing a majority of voters no longer trust him. At one time or another, we’ve all been misled, and for most of us the person who told the whoppers is slow to regain our trust.

I watched recently as CNN commentator LZ Granderson said all politicians lie, but that “Americans have said that we can deal with the lies President Obama tells us because we believe in his heart he has the best interest of the American people.”  

This is a stunning statement.  To say we can overlook lies because they are issued with good intentions, by the most powerful person in the world—while running for re-election—is a sentiment beyond response.  I wonder, though, if Mr. Granderson felt the same way when a certain Republican said “Read my lips; no new taxes.”  

While there are those on the far left who will never budge, others have. A recent study of Harvard students (and that’s a pretty far left group) show the majority would recall the president if given the option. Most oppose Obamacare. They are not signing up and overall, their majority disapproves of the job the president is doing.  

Young people communicate with cell phones, email, twitter and similar methods. They seem to be less than pleased about the massive spying system our NSA has put in place. They might like big brother, but big brother’s ability to monitor their daily conversations is another matter.  

Other bad news for Obama cheerleaders is a December Gallup poll showing the president’s approval rating among Hispanics at 52 percent.  A year ago it was 75 percent.

I suspect he doesn’t care. He secured his second term, is loading the bureaucracy with lifetime and like-minded appointments, changing laws beyond what the constitution allows, piling on a national debt, redistributing wealth like never before, and pushing a massive government take-over of private lives and decisions.  

On a happier note, the president’s Uncle Omar—who has lived in this country illegally for decades—is now a legal resident.  You may recall Omar was stopped for driving drunk a couple of years ago. The White House then denied Barack had ever met Omar. Now we find they once lived together. This was no doubt another little fib told with our best  interest in mind.  

Roy Marshall is a local historian and columnist for the Red Oak Express. He can be contacted at news@redoakexpress.com.