Criticism Teflon

It must be nice to have criticism Teflon. No one’s criticisms stick to you because hey, you’re just that awesome. That’s basically what’s happening right now with Barack Obama.

It’s inauguration week and instead of being critical of the festivities, we’re suppose to take it all in and admire the history.

Trust me, I can admire the history while being critical of the over-the-top, A-list celebrity like treatment Obama is receiving in Washington. Just because Obama is going to make history tomorrow doesn’t mean I can’t call him out for being hypocritical.

First off let me say that I don’t have a problem with all of the inauguration festivities. I thought the whistle stop train ride was particularly nostalgic, the scene of Obama and Biden hanging off the end of the rail car was kinda cool…I’ll admit that. However, this big rock concert featuring Beyonce, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Hanks and others was over the top, and it’s the kind of treatment that turns politicians into dictators.

Now I’m not saying that Obama is trying to position himself for a dictatorship, I’m simply stating a fact. When we stop treating politicians like politicians and begin to treat them like celebrities, we stop judging them on political issues. Suddenly it doesn’t matter what they’ve done to the country, they’ll always be admired as “inspirational” so long as they continue to deliver dazzling speeches.

Obama lofted so high with his rhetoric during the campaign that the only way to live up to the expectations is to be celebrityesque. He’s said repeatedly that he won’t be able to accomplish all his campaign promises quickly, yet he’s never been specific as to which ones would be put on hold. Meanwhile he continues to talk about the coming “change” and needing everyone’s help to accomplish the absurdities that he’s promised.

The other issue I have with the inauguration is the price tag.

In an interview on ABC last week Obama said that everyone is going to have to sacrifice for the “greater good.” He said everyone is going to have “some skin in the game.”

Yet his inauguration costs a whopping $150 million, over $100 million more than Bush’s inauguration. For some bizarre reason Michelle Obama is hosting some children’s ball, that’s sprinkled in with huge concerts, several gala events, and of course the inauguration itself.

I would have less of a problem with this massive bash if the full $150 million was paid via donations to an inaugural fund. While most of it was, $42 million came out of Uncle Sam’s pocket, that’s nearly as much as the total cost for Bush’s inauguration. Let’s just call this massive celebration’s price tag a sign of things to come.

I understand that this is an historic event, and for that very reason I’ll be sitting in front of my TV tomorrow at noon to watch Obama be sworn in. And while I’m not an expert speech writer, I do have some suggestions for him…

1. Keep it short – Abraham Lincoln, the person Obama forces people to compare him to, kept his second inaugural address to just over 700 words. Obama should take note, America doesn’t want to hear a long winded reassurance of hope, we want to hear some short and sweet bull crap about how we all have to unite.

2. Please, please, please limit the use of the word change and hope – The campaign is over, time to put on the big boy pants and act presidential. You’ve been elected, that change and hope bull got you into the White House, now talk straight to us, be honest about our problems and the time it’ll take to fix them.

Furthermore, here are things that will make me turn off the TV tomorrow…

-If the word change is over 10% of the speech
-If he mentions some “everyday” Americans that can’t afford health insurance or day care for their children (I don’t really care)
-If every cutaway from Obama is to a crying black woman in the audience (I understand it’s an historic day, there will be crying and rightfully so, but networks, can we please utilize some shot variation)
-When the cost of his spending suggestions reaches $1 trillion (that would be attained after mentioning his “recovery and reinvestment program” and universal health care)
-If he compares himself to Lincoln (even if he does it only once)

I will enjoy tomorrow, I can learn to feel good for the other side, I can appreciate the history that tomorrow represents. But at the same time I will break through Obama’s criticism Teflon and offer my instant reaction to his speech.

You know what that means? Yup, Obama Inauguration live blog. Oh, how sweet.

UPDATE: apackof2 offers a different perspective on what will keep the TV off, via twitter…

I won’t even turn mine on The sugary lib media commentary will be enough to give anyone diabetes’!

–jb

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