Advice for President Obama on Recognizing Meaning

Max grew up as the son of a man who knew 'ALL' the answers to the problems of the world. Max's father said so! Many times, his father let everyone know that anyone who didn't know that he had the answers was a turkey or a knucklehead.

The famous Ma Bell, the second most powerful force in the world (next to God of course), thought so much of Max's father's opinions, that she made him 'Supervisor of Troubles'. This is true!

The advice Max promised you, Mr. President.

You won! So what did you win?

Max knows how unsettling it can be to win only to realize that there was no meaning in winning. Success for success's sake is an empty victory.

Imagine, as many lower income people do, finding yourself making more money in a month than your father took home in a year. It might sound like success, but if you have no desire for the things that this money can buy you, it can feel awkward.

Max has had that feeling. It was a nice feeling only in the security it brought. Being rewarded beyond reasonable expectations made little sense. It created a feeling of dissonance that still exists today.

You won an election. Now what are you going to do with it? It is a very hairy question indeed.

All the things you proposed depend on your finding a way to put our bankrupt nation back in the black. If you go forward without doing this, a few years after you leave office all that you have done will be undone by the weight of economic necessity.

In many ways your predecessor won. He gets to retire. You, on the other hand, get to do all the jobs that no right-minded person would want.

Of course, you know that you have won the right to attempt to resolve the issues facing the American government for the next four years. And you have probably won the right to go for four more if you really want to.

As Max sees it, you have won the opportunity to lead. You will be allowed to put your feet up on that big desk if no one is looking!

As a leader you are already showing that you can take the bull by the horn. Of course, once you have it by the horn it can be very difficult to let go.

Interestingly, having been elected to the American presidency, much of the rest of the world is looking toward your providing leadership. It is a world view that started back around the time of the Second World War. It doesn't mean they will let you lead. They just expect you to.

In this country you, as a family man, will be expected to set a moral and cultural tone. People will look to your wife when deciding whether to wear gloves or do their hair up. You have won the pleasure of hearing her out when the articles written don't give her a good feeling about things.

Your campaign skills have won you the admiration of millions of Americans and others. Yet this also leads to expectations that you will be able to transfer those skills to the decaying situation in the country.

For better or worse you have won a status as a celebrity as you pursue your agenda. It comes with all the false adulation and expectations that greatness unproven provides.

You have won the trust of the people that you will do your best to leave a nation better able to deal with the future after two decades of being allowed to decay.

You won the right to say you won! You will have to earn the right to say you succeeded.

Max wishes you success as you try to steer the ship of state.

Max writes about greenways, rare diseases, timely topics, places to eat, travel and other issues of interest. He encourages you to add your comments.

Link one is Mugabe win in Zimbawe.

Link two is an article on a Nigerian election.

Link three is liberal article on elections and Iraq.