The problem with euphoria is that people expect immediate results. The people that elected Barrack Obama in a huge emotional outburst will no longer accept their houses being foreclosed only because they are unable to pay their mortgage. Mothers with sons and daughters fighting in Iraq will be quietly celebrating as they expect them to be safe and come home soon. Pensioners will expect to hear that the value of the pensions have not eroded, and want to be able to spend money based on what they feel they should be worth – not what they are. And the world over people will expect a President that will bring the US back to the negotiating table and stop being a bully.
That is just not going to happen overnight…..
…….There is little Obama can do in Iraq in the short term, and he has already made too many references to the Iran for them to come to the negotiating table easily. Nor is he going to be able to withdraw troops from Afghanistan after his strong stance on the war there and in Pakistan. Ongoing civilian deaths n the two countries is going to put Obama in an awkward position – unless he is willing to rein the military in. That is something that the republicans will fight hm and accuse him of, as will the military. As commander in chief of the armed forces, he has another function to shoulder – which is not to alienate the military from his policies.
The underclasses and the dispossed of the US, the minorities, the afro american communities will expect the blocks to their hopes of economic advancement – perceived or not – to be visibly removed. The huge Latino population may even expect to see more liberal immigration policies, especially on illegal immigrants currently living in the US. Given the state of the economy, the angst of the people created over the last few years, a world that is in recession – Barack Obama will not be able to handle all this in the short term. He will need all his public skills to keep his electorate motivated and willing to make sacrifices nw in order for a better future – a future that in everything Obama has said, sound like a more socialist interpretation of the free market economy.
I do not envy you, President Obama !
May the ancestors of wisdom and truth guide your steps through what will deffinitely be a difficult and dangerous journey ahead. You have earned the faith and confidence of not just The United States of America…but many other countries around the world.
Hopefully, there will be support and encouragement on a continual basis, even when things may seem unmanagable…from all those who support you now.
May your success and footprints be the change this world has been long waiting for.
It does take a village to raise one child, but in this case…it seems as though you are the one child who has raised the village…to new heights, new hope and aspirations.
YES WE CAN
CONGRATULATIONS!!! Obama and Family
Obama was ahead and won just bcs he is younger not 72… if his competitor was younger then he, in that condition he couldn’t win……
Shekhar,
Why don’t you make a film based on a short story of Robindranath Taigor… E-mail me I will tell you which you will definetly like to make a film based on… or tell me how can i suggest & send you that complete story idea…..
There is nothing wrong in thinking like a socialist especially in the current scenario. That is what would pave way for sound capitalism to be realigned with the policies and overarching objectives Obama has set.
A good thing hes done is already set up a Team that functions from day one. So not really a President in the making but really someone who has thought through how the battle of winning over confidence would be fought not only during the first 100 days but the coming four years, and God willing, eight!!
after reading this i don’t envy him either.
a great great post sir !!
🙂 Obama’s victory is a hope of a new life/better times … really truethat all this cant happen in a short while .. but hope it happens the right way soon
Historic is the day and Precious are the moments
1st Indo-American in City of San Jose Council – Ash Kalra
http://www.upana.org/ashkalra
&
http://www.ourdigitalvision.com/newsashkalrafirstindianforsanjosecouncil
CHANGE
All these suggestions implicitly assume that the people are well-behaved, decent subjects with ideal lifestyles. And hence, the leader has only to play a superficial role to make things better.
You are not going deep enough into the roots of the issues. Best case scenario is that Obama will bring peace with all nations, implement good healthcare, improve the economy, yada yada. But after all that, who is going to address the over-indulgence, materialism, lack of wisdom and unhealthy lifestyles that are the root issues, which will again produce the same by-products of wars, financial meltdowns, etc.
Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown!
But honestly, Obama is not a fair Player. He reneged on his offer to negotiate with McCain to limit election-spending to public-funds only. He did this after he saw his huge war-chest. A fair swordsman will let his opponent pick up his sword before fighting him. Honorable people like to play and win on a level playing field.
One critism against him during the election was, he has auhored more memoirs than bills (laws) in the senate. Is he working for a $400K salary plus book-deals and paid speech appearances, or will he serve the American people? Let us wait and see! A pragmatic answer would be “both”, which is fine, so long as he not screw America or the world as someone suggested elsewhere on this blog.
Dear Shekhar,
I know there are great expectations from President Obama and he was very prudent to say it in the speech last night that change may not happen overnight, that it may not even happen in 1 term, so he is trying to set the expectations correctly. With 2 wars and Wall street in crisis the challenges are quite big but he says one things quite often that “we are going to the politics of common sense” which is a very big statement as most problems can be solved with common sense, but that often breaks the status quo and the execution is a big challenge e.g. 2 billion a week in Iraq for war – don’t do that and bring the people back and save so much tax dollars – that’s more than the whole election expense. I’m sure there will definitely be some sections that’ll not be happy, but you obviously need nerves of steel to be president. Getting elected is only the beginning of history but the true success criteria is how well you execute over time – that’s what will be written in the books. After all there is no replacement for longevity in defining someone as successful, so only time tells how well you meet the challenges in life, survive, and stay victorious. I truly wish President Obama all the best and I hope the world becomes a much better place in his time.
Best Regards,
Himanshu
Hardly he has won the elections, media covered his victory and then today morning I see CNN, BBC and even Indian news channels asking professors and historians what/how/when he can overcome all the problems!
President Obama cannot rest now like Mc Cain! Yet, he has fought elections and the only thing now is to come clean with practical problems, be vocal about it. I think psychologically, when a person wins elections, the first official speech is of prime importance and I wont be surprised if President Obama will actually tell people about impending challenges…of Recession, War, Insurance, Gulf, Osama, Pakistan and what not! If he can be very clear about it, he can deliver at least for the next four years. Another thing is President Obama went to the extent that he will include all the sections in his last speeches so, the man knows what is ahead…
May god bless his health and may he deliver for world needs a good leader with change and he is not that old and has Biden…god bless America
Oye brahmhastr..tu abhi tak bakvaas kar raha hai..ja nikal yahan se..nobody needs to read your crap..
Obama’s victory has brought hope and cheer to millions around the world. Very well written post Shekhar.
I guess this just goes on to show the importance that the US and off course its President command over the world. Conventionally one would expect local leaders to deal with issues in their own backyard but on the contrary people expect the American President to solve their problems. This is not at all a pleasant situation to be in. Either the local leaders are way too weak or the American President is way too powerful. Either way its a very very shameful state of affairs.
“May you live in interesting times”…someone said that…well we certainly are, whether we want it or not !
Congratulations Prez Obama, I wish him and his family a successful stint at the White House. Here’s to CHANGE and all that it means to the world.
Rashmi
Dear Shekhar,
Please watch the movie”OYE LUCKY LUCKY OYE” and bless the child artist who plays the role of KANWAL NAIN in the movie,this little fellow was the patient of you late Father Dr.Kapoor-whom we all miss.
India’s Obama :
—————
HOPE is a strong positive emotion. Obama has been great at bringing it alive and shaping it for the unspoken lot.The skeptical,cynical and naysayers rooted within the problem will find him to be incredulous. Whether he fixes the issues or not, he stands for what people collectively desire when faced with extreme challenges. A ‘hope’ that things will get better.
Doesn’t India miss its Leader today? We have mature public institutions, sane economic leaders,sensible administrators.
But who is that one leader who can appeal ‘not to’ the divisions in our minds (caste, region, religion) but to that core emotion of hope.Situations make leaders out of ordinary men and women. Are we not desparate enough today? Are we not troubelled enough already? Or are we completely deviod of hope and steeped in complacency and acceptance of the chaos.
Have you spotted that leader in India ?
– Omar Abdullah ?
– Narendra Modi ?
– Rahul Gandhi ?
Do you wonder ?
Lets change to change.
Truman was the president of America who had ordered that Nagasaki and Hiroshima should be destroyed — without any reason or rhyme, because Germany had surrendered and Japan too was going …. The papers were being got ready, just the signature was needed of the emperor of Japan. Within two or three days, or at the most seven days, agreements would have been completed and Japan would have surrendered.
Seeing that Japan was going to surrender, Truman was very quick. Before Japan surrendered — because then he would not be able to test his atom bombs — he gave the order. Even his military experts said to him, “This is absolute wastage. It is unnecessary murder — and not of one man, but more than two hundred thousand people!” Hiroshima and Nagasaki were big cities.
But Truman did not listen to his military experts. He said, “You don’t know politics, you keep quiet. An order is an order. You send the order that immediately, tonight, the bombs have to be dropped, before the agreement is signed.” And when the order comes from the president, the commander-in-chief immediately gives the order to the lower — to the people trained just to follow, because obedience is the greatest virtue.
Truman was also asked the next morning, “It was your order, how do you feel about killing so many people unnecessarily?” The whole world could see that Japan was going to surrender, there was no need at all. The war had almost stopped; the commanders from both the sides were having discussions and making arrangements how to surrender.
Truman said, “I had to test the atom bombs. We have wasted so much money in creating atom bombs …. I am perfectly happy that the bombs worked, and now we will be growing more into atomic technology.”
_ OSHO
you can’t expect anything more than Truman from an American President (or any politician) whether Obamma or Mccain.
With great power comes great responsibility… and enormous risk.
While I do not envy President Obama’s position, I wouldn’t want anybody else in it.
In some ways, the utter failure of the Bush administration was necessary – now we have a chance at a new world order.
I, like you, hope we seize it.
nick
Oye antibrahmastra, abe kanpur ke kabootar..why don’t you just ignore my posts if you feel that nobody needs to read them.
Guess obama will take a few lessons from FDR; and mebbe, like him get elected four times.that should take care of the ‘short term’.
to quote the man of the moment himself everything is possible in America.
yes..one of the primary root cause of the present situation is the human expection of perfect life by over-indulgence in materialism which in itself is lack of wisdom.
but distrusting obama (the most powerful elected man on earth or shall i say the most powerful action oriented tool of nature in its human form) just based on our perceptions is too early to say anything on the kind of role this man can/will play.
i wish he just keep his(head) cool and play the divine role rather than getting entangled in the flow of political expectations.
I am taking the liberty of writing to your Hon’ble self directly,to bring to your kind notice the sickness governing our Political System.
You must be aware of the fact that once our country was called “sone Ki Chiriya”,to plunder our country came invaders from almost all parts of the globe,The Moughals settled to rule,a dynasty that ruled our country for centuries,sensing a rich harvest with a weak ruler came the British,again ruled our country,After the British left our country, we are being plundered once again by a new breed of invaders called the politicians,they too have established strong roots in our country to plunder it to their satisfaction.
Every politician claims that till his last drop of blood he will serve the nation,but his own blood never serves the nation,have you ever heard that the son/daughter of some politician has joined the armed forces,no the kith and kin of politicians never like to shed their blood for the nation,but they suck the blood of the nation,You will find that the kith and kin of the politicians either become businessmen/businesswoman or follow the footsteps of their father or mother.Its for the common man to serve the nation,I had tears in my eyes when once I read in a army camp”FOR YOUR TOMMORROW WE GAVE OUR TODAY”,The supreme sacrifice of life.
Since there is a retiring age for all Government Servants their heads should also retire when reaching that age.The politicians should be allowed only two elections in their life time,their retirement or two elections which ever comes first.In our country a politician wants to contest elections till his last breath.
The mother of all evils is the State Elections /the Government formed in a state to rule, does the Government machinery collapse when the Central Government imposes Presidents Rule in some states, no it never does rather the working of the Government Officials improves during that period.There should be a competent Governor in a state to oversee the matters of the state with the help of competent officials.
The age to contest Parliament elections be raised to 35 yrs,let all citizens serve the armed forces for a minimum period of 10 yrs after their graduation.Graduates should only be allowed to contest Parliament elections.
The kith and kin of a politician be barred to contest election till his father or mother is contesting or is Member Parliament,Minimum period of 5yrs gap should be there,before for making him or her eligible.
Like MISA,COFEPOSA,POTA etc.Stringent Law should be enacted to punish corrupt Member’s of Parliament or Ministers,misusing their post for selfish gains.
Now comes a very important question ‘What will a politician do after his retirement”-Politician then will serve the Party-the People-the Nation.
With a population of over one Billion people I am sure we will have better people to serve the Nation in all respects.
Gurdeep Bagga
CITIZEN OF INDIA