Some thoughts on… Losing Cachet
With the year almost complete, questions are being raised on Barack Obama’s effectiveness as a President. His poll numbers have come down from their sky-high start at the beginning of the year, and many say that his aspiring claims for change have crashed on the hard ground of political reality.
With a continuing the war in Afghanistan compounded by the elusiveness of Al-Qaeda; the domestic unemployment rate at an all time high; and belligerent negotiations with Iran over nuclear-arms control resulting in stalemate, has Obama lost some of his lofty stature and his purpose?
Tiger Woods, a mixed-race American with Black descent, has reached the pinnacle of his chosen career. His young age, boyish-good looks, and phenom golfing ability propelled him to the top of a sport that historically was a bastion for white middle-aged men. The endorsements came a-calling – Cadillac, Gatorade, Accenture. Want to be a success? Be like Tiger. His fall from grace due to marital indiscretions came even more rapidly.
The personal circumstances of his private life are irrelevant; those are his burden to bear not ours to judge. But was his Icarus-like fall due to the fact that he soared too close to the sun? Did his actions essentially bite the commercial hand that feeds him? To the extent that Tiger was representing an upright, moral, and disciplined person one could argue that his actions tarnished this image. But that’s not what he was portraying – most of his advertisements expatiated his remarkable ability to play golf. That talent has not dissipated. The company endorsements that relied on depicting a perfect man may be taken away, yet we should still admire his skills on the course for what they are – this is essentially what Tiger is staying true to. He will be ascendant again soon.
Ivan Reitman’s new movie, Up in the Air, flies at many different altitudes. At its heart, it is the story of man determining what is important in life. George Clooney plays the wandering soul, Ryan Bingham, to Oscar-winning affection. Ryan’s goal is to achieve ten-million mile status on American Airlines. His pursuit of this goal overshadows any other meaningful relationship – spouse, employment, children, home. His family is the airlines, and he is happiest when flying. As the movie tagline claims it’s “the story of a man ready to make a connection”.
Ryan’s loss of elevation is precipitated by work circumstances that ground him before achieving his goal. He is forced to deal with terrestrial matters that are much stickier than cleanly flying off to a new destination. An aerial life is impossible if you carry too much weight, and he reluctantly discovers that by keeping his head in the clouds, he has lost opportunities to acquire any baggage – maintaining a friendship with his younger sister, choosing a travelling companion to share his daily journey. We may see Ryan’s compulsive flying as a distraction or escape, and yet for him it is reality; the most important objective in his life. We can not fault Ryan’s choice to stay aloft; he recognizes that this decision comes at the price of Earthly gains.
Obama started the year flying high and has naturally faced turbulence. But his cachet has not plummeted for two reasons: he is not biting the hand that feeds him and he is staying true to his principles. He is tackling the weighty issues of his office instead of whisking himself away from conflict by keeping his head in idealistic clouds.
Listing out the accomplishments so far is impressive: wrangling landmark legislation on Health Care, negotiating targets on climate change, selecting an outstanding Supreme Court justice, winning a Nobel Prize, and placing the US back in the center of world politics.
Perhaps it is liberal guilt that we feel a need to provide an unbiased judgment on Obama’s performance for the year. Yet, I don’t remember any year of accomplishment in the past 8 of the previous administration that have been this impressive. The President may have lost some cachet after the election but he is definitely not losing acceleration.
December 23, 2009
With a continuing the war in Afghanistan compounded by the elusiveness of Al-Qaeda; the domestic unemployment rate at an all time high; and belligerent negotiations with Iran over nuclear-arms control resulting in stalemate, has Obama lost some of his lofty stature and his purpose?
Tiger Woods, a mixed-race American with Black descent, has reached the pinnacle of his chosen career. His young age, boyish-good looks, and phenom golfing ability propelled him to the top of a sport that historically was a bastion for white middle-aged men. The endorsements came a-calling – Cadillac, Gatorade, Accenture. Want to be a success? Be like Tiger. His fall from grace due to marital indiscretions came even more rapidly.
The personal circumstances of his private life are irrelevant; those are his burden to bear not ours to judge. But was his Icarus-like fall due to the fact that he soared too close to the sun? Did his actions essentially bite the commercial hand that feeds him? To the extent that Tiger was representing an upright, moral, and disciplined person one could argue that his actions tarnished this image. But that’s not what he was portraying – most of his advertisements expatiated his remarkable ability to play golf. That talent has not dissipated. The company endorsements that relied on depicting a perfect man may be taken away, yet we should still admire his skills on the course for what they are – this is essentially what Tiger is staying true to. He will be ascendant again soon.
Ivan Reitman’s new movie, Up in the Air, flies at many different altitudes. At its heart, it is the story of man determining what is important in life. George Clooney plays the wandering soul, Ryan Bingham, to Oscar-winning affection. Ryan’s goal is to achieve ten-million mile status on American Airlines. His pursuit of this goal overshadows any other meaningful relationship – spouse, employment, children, home. His family is the airlines, and he is happiest when flying. As the movie tagline claims it’s “the story of a man ready to make a connection”.
Ryan’s loss of elevation is precipitated by work circumstances that ground him before achieving his goal. He is forced to deal with terrestrial matters that are much stickier than cleanly flying off to a new destination. An aerial life is impossible if you carry too much weight, and he reluctantly discovers that by keeping his head in the clouds, he has lost opportunities to acquire any baggage – maintaining a friendship with his younger sister, choosing a travelling companion to share his daily journey. We may see Ryan’s compulsive flying as a distraction or escape, and yet for him it is reality; the most important objective in his life. We can not fault Ryan’s choice to stay aloft; he recognizes that this decision comes at the price of Earthly gains.
Obama started the year flying high and has naturally faced turbulence. But his cachet has not plummeted for two reasons: he is not biting the hand that feeds him and he is staying true to his principles. He is tackling the weighty issues of his office instead of whisking himself away from conflict by keeping his head in idealistic clouds.
Listing out the accomplishments so far is impressive: wrangling landmark legislation on Health Care, negotiating targets on climate change, selecting an outstanding Supreme Court justice, winning a Nobel Prize, and placing the US back in the center of world politics.
Perhaps it is liberal guilt that we feel a need to provide an unbiased judgment on Obama’s performance for the year. Yet, I don’t remember any year of accomplishment in the past 8 of the previous administration that have been this impressive. The President may have lost some cachet after the election but he is definitely not losing acceleration.
December 23, 2009