The Obama Dilemma, the Illusion of change, and the Myth of a "Post Racial Society"

Now that the smoke has cleared and the lofty expectations and novelty of the first black President has worn thin, a more critical assessment of Barack Obama has taken shape among his supporters and critics alike. The president’s enthusiastic and idealistic supporters who spearheaded a revival of hope with the promise of pumping new life into the struggle for fundamental change and visions for a “Post Racial Society,” are now having to preside over a funeral instead, The Eulogy includes a laundry list of betrayals and mourning the loss of trust and transparency; now all that remains is the benediction.

The President is now preparing yet another speech, one of about 18 others on the subject of Health Care Reform. Unless the sun fails to rise and sky falls from above, it promises to be just as hollow as the rest of his speeches, which have offered very little to rescue African people and workers from the economic quagmire in which so many are entangled; and there is no reason to believe his prescriptions for Health Care Reform will be any different. This latest speech will likely be ultimately characterized as too little too late.

In Obama’s address to both house of Congress, it will be interesting to note what other compromises he concocts with the so called “blue dog” or conservative democrats and republicans in support of some sort of Health Care proposal, which likely will have neither substance nor significance for the millions who lack access to quality and affordable health care, regardless of his claims to the contrary

We are able to shed more light on the Presidents dilemma with his critics and supporters alike by looking at the hole in which he has dug for himself since taking office.

Among his most recent and vocal critics is a tapestry of dissenters, including some in the president’s own backyard; who are newly elected democrats who benefited from an anti-Bush backlash, but not necessarily a pro Obama, Tidle wave. It also includes a number of self styled progressives who supported the President’s candidacy and shared some of his campaign goals and objectives but remained highly skeptical of his ideological position, as the lesser of two evils.
Another group of critics, who have climbed aboard the bandwagon, are a motley group of Republicans and conservative diehards, who have tried to conceal their profound disappointment at the rejection of their conservative ideals at the polls, and who are referred to as “sore losers”, like John McCain, the other contender for the oval office.

Finally, among the President’s most vociferous and angry dissenters are a very destructive group of “haters” who temporarily repressed their seething resentment of a black man in the white house, for the lack of a venue in which to do so, legitimately; so in alliance with other critics and dissenters of the President they have used the Town Hall meetings to unleash their frustration and vent their anger, without having to account for their racist sentiments, under the cover of a “Post Racial Society”.

The President’s vacillation on a number of issues and his failure to follow through on a host of campaign promises has alienated some of his most ardent and loyal supporters. The time table of his campaign rhetoric for bringing about any kind of fundamental change expired, shortly after his inauguration, using his own barometer. By sending a mixed message about his position on Health Care Reform and the role of the Insurance industry, and not respecting the voice of single payer advocates, he has created a bridge between himself and many of his political allies, to the extent he is no longer able to command or galvanize those forces to rescue him from the abyss in which he finds himself, and no speech on “Heath Care Reform” at this point is likely to heal those wounds.

Obama’s failure to consolidate his political base has opened the flood gates to attacks by some of his most virulent critics and allowed the most entrenched and reactionary opposition to regain a foothold in American politics; despite the fact that most of the policies the opposition purports to reject have been substantially moderated or eviscerated. For example, the Public Option feature of the Health Care Reform proposals, now fighting for its life, has already been scaled down from enrolling 130,000,000 Americans to accommodating lees than 10,000,000, and the president is now entertaining the notion of some kind of co-op to soften Republican opposition. We will see what kind of Hybrid emerges from his most recent proposals.

The President’s flip flopping has provided cannon fodder for those who had lost a commanding voice in Public affairs after a resounding defeat in last November’s election, and these are not likely to subside with another one of his infamous speeches. The President is largely responsible for reenergizing these reactionaries, racists and not so happy campers of the right wing and their allies in the media, who have seized the opportunity to seduce their audience with sensationalism, and inject their two cents worth in the service of their ruling class benefactors.

Dick Cheney, the former vice president, an embattled conservative and an immensely unpopular figure, has appeared on the news and talk shows almost as often as the president, supporting the most horrendous torture of so called enemy combatants, a considerable number of which have been denied a hearing or trial or have been proven innocent.

In the past few months the media has devoted an inordinate amount of prime time to the coverage of a bunch of screaming and foul mouthed rebel rousers at the so called Town Hall meetings designed to ostensibly discuss the merits of Obama “Health Care Reform” proposals. Instead these meetings have provided a platform for the racists, and conservative die hards and reactionaries who have found a venue to express their views and rekindle support of a right wing agenda. They have used the meetings to discredit any movement toward change, under the pretext of opposition to the cost of Obama’s Health Care Reform Proposals, and have acted as obstructionists for any sane and civil discussion of the Health Care Delivery System in the United States and how to best guarantee universal coverage and quality care for all.

Although in reality no one knew at that time what was actually being proposed in the Health Care legislation in the first place, including members of congress, the unruly mobs made it up as they went along, with the media exploiting the sensationalism for the consumption of a gullible viewing audience.

Not anywhere in the media did we hear a denouncement of the savage and tyrannical tactics used by the almost exclusively white audience, tactics that would have likely brought down the wrath of the media establishment and Obama himself if it had come from the left of the political spectrum or involved black people or other progressive grassroots organizations. Unfortunately, most of the participants in this charade could have probably benefited from the most comprehensive Health Care plan one could envision, but instead fail victim to a Ruling class strategy in sabotaging their own best interest.

The irony of all the drama is that none if any of these no nothing, contemptuous rabble rousers could explain in any detail what they were actually fighting for; consequently we have to consider what they were fighting against and the only conclusion one can draw is that they were fighting against Obama himself, using the Health Care debate as a pretext. This forum of Town hall meetings provided a cover for racists and others to express their resentment of Obama without being exposed for the racists they really are thanks to the Myth of a “Post Racial Society.”

What is the greatest of all ironies however is that Obama was never a threat to these hoodlums or to any of his more sophisticated critics who might have harbored white supremacist tendencies. The resurrection of this mummified crew of the walking dead was a monster of his own creation.

Obama in his campaign and after his election devoted a lot of energy in trying to placate potential opponents and prevent the emergence of fears and discomfort at having a black face in the White House. Obama was obliged to reject his long time mentor and confidant, the Reverend Wright in strong and inflammatory language and categorically repudiate the support of Minister Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam. He was careful not to be seen at black churches or other black fraternal organizations until after his nomination and refused to speak out on the most egregious violations of Human rights of African people, like the shooting of Sean Bell by the New York Police in Queens, 50 times, shortly after his wedding. By ignoring this incident and others like it, and disassociating himself with any manifestation of militancy among blacks, Obama paved the way for the creation of the illusion of a Post Racial Society to allay the fears of a potential white constituency, who might harbor serious reservations about his loyalties, and whose votes were crucial to his election.

In his haste to accommodate his opposition and build a legacy as the great arbiter of the racial divide and partisan politics by courting the favor of the ruling class, and undercover racists, Obama forfeited his claim as an agent of fundamental change, and a champion of equality. Whatever finally emerges from the “Health Care Reform” debate or what happens with the future of the economy is academic. Obama has already left his indelible footprints in the annals of history. The dimentions of these footprints match perfectly with those of the Bankers and the imperialist oligarchy of the world, and they are branded on the backs of Africans, workers and the poor.

Failing in his mission to promote the Myth of a “Post Racial Society and the illusion of fundamental change, Obama is left to stew in his own dilemma which will likely follow him to the end of his term. He is slowly digging his own grave and when the hole is big enough, he will fall in it.