Sunday Roundup
In Strasbourg yesterday, the president was asked about American exceptionalism. "I believe in American exceptionalism," he began, "just as I suspect the Brits believe in British exceptionalism and the Greeks believe in Greek exceptionalism." Leaving aside that we Greeks believe our exceptionalism to be exceptional and exceptionally old, the president's answer was masterful as he went on to talk about America's core set of values, quickly pivoting to the need to recognize "that we're not always going to be right" and "that other people may have good ideas." So basically, yes, we are exceptional -- when we live up to our exceptional values. It's going to take a while to repair America's reputation -- and thus its ability to lead in the world -- but in Europe this week, Obama made an exceptional start.
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Mr. Obama is quite good at telling people what they want to hear. But too often he says one thing and does another.
As opposed to Bush that said nothing at all while shredding the Constitution at the same time....
At least Bush didn't bow to the Saudi's.
Obama bowed to religious intolerance.
Obama bowed to misogyny.
Obama bowed to anti-semitism.
Obama bowed to homophobia.
Thanks to Jeff G for his insight; it couldn't have been stated better.
Gosh, what a smart president you put in office.
Speaking of saying one thing and doing another, watch Bush's convention speeches will you?
hey, Bush is gone. Getr over it
You would not know the President did well if you listen to the usual naysayers in the media. CNN and Fox News leading the way with a little Chuckie Todd thrown in for good measure. They all s.u.c.k. and deserve to not be listened because they all try to act and talk like the biggest fail.ure in Presidential history never happened. Everything is President Obama's fault and let's not talk about our First Lady. Name one time in the past 8 years where Laura and George W. Bush were greeted in Europe or anywhere else the way the Obamas were. Of course, the President according to the MSM was supposed to get everything he wanted nevermind the need for him to restore America's place in the world. I cannot stand the lying media and their constant distortion of how the President is doing. They did us a disservice under GWBush and the rest of the republicans now they are supposedly trying to get their credentials back under Pres Obama. Forget it MSM we do not trust you and we cannot believe your lying, distorted reporting. I had to listen to Richard Quest to get the real deal not US media. If Fox News does not stop lying and distorting, something is going to happen to them and it won't be pretty.
I agree totally. But the reality is that the whining progressives on Huffington Post are just as determined to see this president fail as the MSM is. We don't love change. We love having an enemy like Bush so we can rehash the same or arguments and ideologies in every situation. The right has no new ides and neither does the left. Sad thing is that I believe it will be the left that brings us Palin/Romney 2012, not the right. We love our stale old anti business, anti war arguments more than we love the idea of change and dealing with complex problems with realistic and nuanced solutions. Pray for our president and this country.
"Sad thing is that I believe it will be the left that brings us Palin/Romney 2012, not the right."
Thank you for saying this - it needs to be heard.
Antibankers fail to remember it's not banking, per se, that's the problem. The problem is the culture of banking over the past 10 years -- deregulation, reckless spending, greed, highstakes loans and political manipulation of the industry. Banking had been a reputable industry and will be again when it returns to a culture of discipline and sensibility. Political manipulation as happened with loans to the marginally employed should not be allowed without govt subsidies on deposit before the loans are made, coupled w/ insurance built into the mortgage stipulations.
Could someone discuss how in 1998 Larry Summers actually tried to support regulation of the derivatives (the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) proposal)? GOP Senator Phil Gramm - before he left Senate to join banking giant UBS Warburg - supported by Mr. Rubin (before he left to take a $126 million to date consulting job at Citi as a member of its Board) and Mr. Greenspan - forced Summers to back down. In 2004 the FBI told the world there was massive fraud in the banking system that must be address lest the system collapse, only to have the GOP President &controlled Congress refuse to restore the 500 white collar crime positions that had been cut from the FBI in favor of more focus on terror..
The heroine in the 1998 story is Brooksley Born, the chairwoman of the commodities commission. She met on 4/21/98 with a Rubin rejected the proposal in favor of asking for more disclosure and capital requirements - both in the end rejected by Gramm and Greenspan. The Democrats trying to start with a proposal that meets the GOP half way never works - and the Democrats never learn this fact.
As long as Americans have no knowledge of the historical roots of their constitution and have their information on other country's societies from films, this nationalism sounds rather bland.
What Obama did was exceptional in expressing the fact as proud american he believes that america is at its best when america listens and respects the rest of the world in its complexity
As far as Obama ... he's done just great. No one can deny that in doing what he was elected for on the foreign policy front ... in rebranding America as something other than a bully and a heel ... he has succeeded beyond expectations. No other presidents role out has gone as well. And the prospect of him still "growing into the job" bodes for a very bright future.
Thank You! Well put, with insight, intelligence and a touch of idealism. President Obama, is the first and only President that I have ever voted for in my life. If of interest to any readers, I am half German, father born in the United States, Mother Japanese, born in Japan. I am an American, born in the United States. 43 years of age. I believe in the "Principles" that our forefathers built this nation on.
Freedom for one, and a Nation of The People, and For The People. For the first time in my life, I trust a President of the United States. For those who would make light of the progress already being made. Don't forget you can be of help to. One last question for whom it may concern. Are you "addicted" to Money?
Exceptionally EXCELLENT.
The new addiction that is sweeping the planet is high speed hand held internet devices.
Obama's belief in American exceptionalism will bring about the downfall of our nation. Arianna, you did not mention President Obama's other act this week, his decision to escallate the Afghan War.
I've taken to calling that war "ObamaNam.
So what's your answer to Al Qaeda genius? Or are you just chair of the Palin/Romney 2012 campaign? Bet they'll do a great job brining peace to the world.
We are spending 3 billion a month in Afghanistan and 10 billion a month in Iraq. All of that money is borrowed from China, England, Japan, the Saudis, etc. Current estimates are that we've spent 3 trillion on these wars. When compound interest and health care for disabled vets are considered, these wars will have cost trillions more.
When the opportunity costs are considered, all of the things we could have otherwise done with that money, the costs become truly staggering.
Osama bin Ladin won the moment we invaded Afghanistan. His goal of destroying our nation succeeded the moment we invaded Iraq.
If we really want bin Ladin then lets go into Pakistan and get him. But these wars have destroyed our nation. Instead of sending our kids to college, we will be paying interest on the money we borrowed to finance these wars.
It is attitudes like yours Kluvs that allowed bin Ladin and Al Qaeda to bring down our nation. The fault is yours. Thanks for destroying our nation.
I have to say I saw Arianna on the Stephanopolis show this morning ... "This Week" I think they call it ... and her description of Geitner and Paulson and Summers living in a Ptolemaic world where the world revolved around them instead of the Copernican world where the world revolved around the sun was particularly appropriate.
Economist bankers and financier should drop their models and take a walk around in the real world ... get their hands a little dirty ... bump up against the great unwashed.
II think it an unfortunate trait of modern society to build a person up if only to have them in a position to easily trample back down on. Newspapers have been the worst examples of this over time. Pundits make money out of being controversial. Fox are masters and their sponsors do extremely well out of it selling gold and iffy retirement programs.
It is soooooooo nice to not cringe when I watch my President speak now :)
Finally a President of the USA to be proud of !!!!!
Let's not rest on our laurels, folks. Yes, President Obama has done a wonderful job fixing our reputation (such as it was) overseas. But there is still a LOT of work to be done. He still hasn't gotten our troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan - two countries we have no business occupying. We still have the banking scandals du jour back home.
Yes, I admire our President, and he's a great role model. But let's not get cocky.
President Obama, Arianna,
PRESIDENT OBAMA.
Not 'the president" or Obama- Try to address him properly.
Please and thank-you
he is after all not like you and me
he is exceptional
blue blood
Sarcasm noted.
Having said that, President Obama deserves to be addressed this way.
It is a way of expressing respect for the position.
It is a way of expressing respect for the person in the position.
President Obama worked hard to become President.
Respect it.
Respect him.
Respect the position.
NO ....he is NOT like you and me ....he is President Obama
WHAT IS AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM?
What is this thing called American exceptionalism that so eludes Barack Obama and Arianna? The belief that America has an inescapable destiny; that it has escaped the common fate of great empires, superpowers and civilizations-the cycles of birth, growth and decay. That America is unique in that her periods of decline and retreat are brief in duration followed by national renewal and a new advance forward in bringing our ideals and values to the world.
The aftermath of World War II following the Great Depression was proof of this; as was the aftermath of the Reagan years, following the malaise of the 1970s, when the Soviet Union collapsed and millions were freed from communist totalitarianism. FDR believed that "history is democracy and democracy history." That liberal democracy is the end and purpose of history. Historical experience since the founding of our republic proves that FDR's intuition was right as the growth of liberty since 1776 has been astonishing. The future belongs to liberty, not tyranny, and America leads the way. That is the meaning of American exceptionalism, transcending what little exceptionalism is left to Greeks, Brits and other nations whose past contributions to the progress of humanity have been substantial.
Notwithstanding the exceptional murders rates, mass shootings, infant deathrates, aids figures, std's, divorce, abortion and drug use. Best to quietly accept that no nation is perfect. Obama gets it?
America is not a true Democracy; it is a Republic.
The concept of Democracy is wonderful if truly executed in an utopian society. Just like the idea of Communisim is wonderful if truly executed in the same utopian society.
The truth is: the devil is in the details.
Every empire falls, and Amercia is no exception to the rule; America is still relatively young. Give it time. (What goes up must come down...)
This is precisely the kind of nonsense that has gotten you folk into so much trouble in recent years.
You have among the worst health care and retirement systems in the developed world; your government is corrupted by lobbyists; your educations system ranks in the bottom quartile of developed countries; you lock up more of your citizens than any other country on earth; in some states you still execute minors; you still don't get that your rate of death by shooting is around 100 times per capita that of comparable countries. You are the highest consumer of both legal and illegal drugs, bothe actual and per capita, and you are the worst polluters on the planet.
And you think you're exceptional.
What you are is big. And a bit slow to get what those of us who live in civilised countries got long ago.
Our exceptionalism is based on the unmatched record of our economic, political, scientific, technological and cultural achievements given the short period of our history. Our healthcare system is the envy of the world. Sick Europeans flocking to our shores is proof of that. The central problem in healthcare is one of cost nothing that a little tort reform couldn't cure. A solution that Obama doesn't have the balls for.drug abuse is a universal problem not peculiar to the US. As for America the great polluter just what is it that's causing the ice caps on Mars to recede? You will find the answer in the new Nick Cage film "Knowing."
This is the most dangerous type of national-speak, by any nation, and I am so happy that Obama eschews such language. A nation that feels it is exceptional, above others, or divinely provided for can murder, enslave, and occupy with impunity. As you noted, history shows this to be true. Especially for the U.S., the myth of the frontier created the idea that a vast, empty, land created people who were somehow different than Europeans because this land created individualism and the quintessential American frontier spirit. But during this time we attempted to wipe out millions of people already living here in over 500 separate nations. Then we needed slaves to produce wealth on all these vast lands. I am glad I am an American citizen, but I would never want to feel better than any other person, or nation, and I would definitely not want to ignore the truth of the history of my country. And while the Constitution is a great document, the founding fathers were extremely intelligent, and Democracy is a good institution, it is always good to understand the flaws in each -- this makes you a good citizen.
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