My How Times Have Changed

I am sitting here trying to stay awake at almost midnight. I will stay awake until the live show in the studios is wrapped at 1AM. We had a couple of issues at work, and since Murphy is my friend, I know if I go to sleep something else will blow sky high.

I heard something on the way home after work tonight that really made me laugh. Sitting in line at the Seven 11 waiting to buy my liter of diet, and the two young women in front of me checking out were bitching that Obama's press conference was screwing up their favorite show. When I got home, I found out it also took out Idol and a few other shows.

It made me laugh because they got into a car with two bumper stickers on the back. Obama08 on one side and BUSH's LAST DAY on the other. They put him in office but now they are so concerned with what's going on that a show like American Idol is more important? It just boggles my mind.

I know I am showing my age, but I remember when there was only broadcast TV available in my hometown. The three majors; ABC, CBS, and NBC, two PBS channels, and one independent that ran wrestling and movies. When the President gave an address or news conference, everything stopped. Everyone ran it, and my dad could not be pulled from the set. He expected us to sit quietly, watch, and understand the importance of what was happening.

I don't know if you caught it, but trend used to be until this past January that unless it was a major address, only the news channels carried it. It has been that way for the past two presidents, as far as I can remember. I point this out to remind you that the way this president is covered is so much more complete that ever before. Every move, every speech, every comment, and it is all out there for everyone.

This extreme scrutiny is a double edged sword. Some would say it makes things transparent. That may be true, but it puts the person in an impossible situation. No matter how much the media loves this president, they will turn on him. It is just a matter of time.

Now the conservative media has already started to attempt to pick Obama apart, and anyone surprised by that should not be allow to drive a car, or operate heavy machines. Fact is, in some instances I agree with their assessments. It does seem like Obama is a little lost. It does seem like the job has really taken a toll on him. It seems he is following a liberal agenda. If you are surprised, again, please don't drive in my neighborhood.

I don't care your political affiliation, nor do I care if you like Obama or not. I remember when both Bush presidents first got in office. I remember when Clinton first got in office. All three had a few things in common with this president when they first took office. I remember the complaints that they all seemed a little lost. I remember the bitching about how they had an (insert political affiliation) agenda they were following. I remember watching all of them quickly age from the stress involved in being the leader of the free world.

Am I saying give change a chance? No, we need to watch everything going on and all different view points need to be expressed. Debate is a great thing. Bitching just to bitch does nothing productive. The goal needs to be a defined focused plan to move the economy, and more importantly, the country ahead quickly.

I hope everyone in Washington wakes up quickly and realizes most of us out here don't want to hear bickering, backstabbing, finger pointing, or posturing. I want answers. I want action. I want a solution. I predict if that doesn't happen, we will see the biggest house cleaning in congressional history during the next election.

I don't know about you, but hearing about what was inherited or what they were left with only pisses me off. You knew when you spent two years running for office that the economy was in trouble. You knew that you had a mess to clean up. You said you could make the change needed to correct and reverse the bad decisions, so stop making excuses and get to work!

Let me know what you think. Drop me a line at bigdaddy@ccwinteractive.com