The Pink Flamingo :: Passion, Hillary, Obam-O-Rama, & John McCain

For days I’ve been trying to define what bothers me about Barack Obama. After seeing a photo of some little twit at one of his rallies, crying, it dawned on me college kids are doing the rock star thing with him. I don’t think this translates into POTUS qualifications. I also think this is no way to build a reliable base. If kids are standing there crying while he speaks, next month they will be doing something else, moved to tears. He’s a college campus fad.

That still did not define what bother me. The other day I listened to an interview on FOX with an author I cannot remember, but the bottom line was the fact that a person needed certain forms of experience to be a successful President of the United States.

One of those factors was failure, heart-ache, and tragedy.

A person needs something of the above to make them into a being with ‘heart’ so to speak. I’ve been thinking about this for several days. Then Hillary had what is sure to become her legendary melt-down. I know I keep harping on it, but something happened to Hillary Clinton at that moment. Her whole appearance has changed and it is not because of the benefit of world class cosmetics and make-up artists. She changed. You could watch the transformation occur. I was watching her this morning. She even looks different. Something happened deep inside. Susan Estrich said something about a politician facing loss and defeat and how they can turn it into a transforming moment, or simply vanish into oblivion. For Hillary it was a transformation.

This morning, watching Barack Obama, I realized there was no fire in the belly, no soul, no passion. He is clinical. In order for him to be transformed into a consummate leader, he needs to face loss, heart-ache or tragedy. So far, the only thing to go wrong in his life are a few credit problems. Trust me, those are not transforming moments.

I suddenly remembered the great classical pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim. Years ago my mother and I were attending one of his concerts. I found him boring and abjectly clinical. His music was annoying. It was perfect, but lacked passion. He started doing a number of live performances and televised “Great Performances” and Live from Lincoln Center with Itzhak Perlman and Pinky Zukerman. I came to dread the programs where Barenboim participated because he was so clinical.

A few years later I was listening to a live concert on the radio, remarking to my mother about how incredible the pianist was. (My mother is a piano freak. We share a love of classical music and opera and have a tendency to attend concerts and recitals together, or call one another to watch or listen to music. She and my sister share a love of ballet and do the same. I detest ballet and my sister feels the same about the music).

I was absolutely shocked to discover the artist was none other than Daniel Barenboim. What could have transformed a clinical performer into an artist of such exquisite passion? I then discovered that his wife, Jacqueline de Pre world class cellist had tragically passed away and he had a very difficult time dealing with the loss. He put all of his feelings into his music, where he was transformed from a clinician to a magnificent world class pianist and conductor.

Barack Obama has his spew down pat, but he lacks passion. Nothing has ever gone wrong in his life. He is clinical. While I do not recommend personal tragedy, the man needs something to go terribly wrong in his life to turn him into the man he could become. Until then, he’s simply a tone-deaf rock star with an out of tune message.

I put Mitt Romney in the same category. He is clinical. He is ambition. But he has no passion.

Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, came face to face with the possibility that everything she had spent her entire adult life working for was going down in flames. In one brief moment, she discovered her passion. Her life and even her appearance have been transformed. She is now going to be a formidable enemy.

THE I DON’T GIVE A DAMN FACTOR

John McCain on the other hand, has had passion to the point where it has been oozing out of his pores. He came face to face with his inner demons in those obscene communist prison camps during the Vietnam War. He knows exactly who and what he is. I think the problem with McCain until recently was the fact that he had too much passion. There was too much fire in the belly. He was like a Saint Barnard puppy disparate to please. Just pat his head and he wags his tail. He was also a man who gambled big, putting his entire political career on the line with immigration reform and with the surge in Iraq. Facing abject political defeat he realized that passion is one thing, and doing what is abjectly right is another.

Rush Limbaugh is a two-edged sword. During the Clinton years he kept us all on target and was a light in the darkness. But too much of a good thing is simply too much of a good thing. There is nothing wrong with being conservative, but like the adage, you can be too rich and too thin, just look at Howard Hughes. You can be too conservative. Conservative without wisdom and compassion is just a lot of Hot Air (analogy intended).

Consequently everyone, no matter who or what you are, no matter what party, attempts to be ‘conservative’ to pander to the Limbaugh factor, even liberals. So we have Barack Obama running away from his 95% liberal record. If you are a liberal and believe in what you are doing, proclaim it to the word. Why be ashamed of what you believe unless you are so insecure you must pander to the Limbaugh party line.

We all know Rush Limbaugh tells us that “Conservative wins elections.” It is a trite comment completely lacking in political understanding. Limbaugh is a good entertainer but he is completely lacking in political savvy. All he knows is “conservative” and how to rake in the money and the ratings. Those two things, money and ratings equal power. Power equals a voice, be it right or wrong. Power breeds imitation. Power also attracts panderers.

When someone like John McCain, who is so sure of himself, and so positive about what he believes he cannot be swayed no matter how he is ridiculed, mistreated or criticized. He knows his heart and his core values. (So does my friend, Lindsey). They cannot be swayed by a Rush Limbaugh, who has, is, and will turn his considerable ire on them.

Last summer John McCain’s Presidential hopes were DOA. His political career was in the dumps due to a defeat of immigration reform by the forces of Ron Paul, John Tanton, and some very unsavory individuals who have managed to co-opt the main-stream conservative movement into their own. McCain saw through them. He literally thumbed his nose and went about his own business.

I call it the “I Don’t Give a Damn” realization. It is something with which I am very familiar. It comes from being through so many hard knocks, you just don’t care any more. There is a time when a person must come face to face with the realizations of life and realize one’s passions and plans don’t amount to a hill of beans in this crazy mixed up world of ours. In order to survive you just say, ‘shove it, I don’t give a damn’ and walk away. It isn’t giving up, it’s just a realization that sometimes things just aren’t to be. I’ve been there and done that. It shows up in my blog, where I just don’t give a damn what people think about me or the blog or my writing. I’m going to keep on keeping on, doing what I think is right, and I truly don’t care what people think anymore.

When you do this you shed a heck of a lot of baggage and realize you don’t’ need to pander for approval. I think this is what happened to John McCain. He just gave up worrying about what people thought, fighting for votes, and just plain old started doing what he thought was right.

I truly think people see this. I think this is why his POTUS campaign has risen like a phoenix, alive and on fire. People have realized there is something more important than being conservative. I think people are finding the fact that McCain is not pandering to the lowest common denominator to be quite refreshing. I know I do. That’s why I’ve realized I am supporting him over Rudy Giuliani. Yes, I think Giuliani would be a better administrator, but there is something endearing, refreshing, and comforting about that ‘frankly, I don’t give a damn’ attitude.

I don’t know about you, but I like the idea that a person is sure enough of him or her self to buck the establishment conservative talk millionaire media and just want to do what is right. I think if we had more politicians like John McCain or Lindsey Graham, willing to thumb their nose and go about what is right and honest this nation would be a far better place.

Godspeed John McCain!

NOTE: This post was prepared with the assistance of a certified attack kitten. Any formatting mistakes are entirely hers.

Trackposted to The Virtuous Republic, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, Rosemary's Thoughts, The Random Yak, Allie is Wired, Right Truth, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, Cao's Blog, Leaning Straight Up, Pursuing Holiness, and The Yankee Sailor, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

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