Hypocrisy

I like President Obama! This statement has nothing to do with hypocrisy because at no time did I ever claim to not like him. He is not perfect. He has made mistakes (all presidents do). He is being tested and seems to continue to shine.

Thinking about our economy's very slow growth, it is understandable why many Americans will quickly forget that Obama is trying to manage the mess left behind by their beloved (and eventually very unpopular) former Pres. Bush.

So where does hypocrisy fit into this?

Some days I just think of Obama and get filled with pride. YES! A black man is president! That fact still amazes me. He won legitimately. He is an American citizen and even if he were Muslim...who cares! This country is for people of all religions. That fact seems to bug some Americans.

If Obama were Muslim, why should it matter? Why should it matter that he is African American? The fact that this country took this long to elect a black man speaks to the racism here. The fact that a woman of any race has never been president speaks to another issue...but I digress. Obama isn't just the first black man to hold this seat of power and leadership, he is the first non-white of any race to be elected president. What I find hypocritical are the excuses I heard some white people making to justify to themselves that they should vote for this man.

One person I know explained quite clearly that Obama has a white mom, therefore he is biracial, not black. By that logic almost every black person in American can trace their ancestry and find either Irish, Scottish, Native American and a few other races in their backgrounds. Many whites, if they had the guts to look, may find a black person in their family history.

The white-washing of Obama was an insult at the time. I am scared to predict that his problems with the economy will be partly blamed on his inability to handle the job simply because of his race. That is how this country thinks. That is how this country works. A white person is given many more passes of screw ups. A minority person (especially a black male) is written off as less intelligent no matter how difficult the problem tackled.

The worst thing is...if Obama is perceived to be a failure, many whites will think less of all black people. If he is a success, then Obama is "one of the good ones." Ultimately, the best benefit minorities and blacks specifically get from Obama's administration is the pride in knowing he is doing his best and he won that seat fair and square.

Pres. Bush can't say that about his first election.