It's Obama's Viewpoint That's Out of Touch, Not Obama

April 13th, a full two weeks after Barack Obama slipped up and spoke his mind rather than a sparkling, articulated sunshine and roses speech, the sparks still fly. "So it's not surprising then that they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations." Bitter Americans? Frustrated Americans? Are these lies?

American's, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents alike are bitter and frustrated. These are not words out of touch with anything happening in the country. While I am personally a Hillary girl, I have great admiration for Barack Obama. He is a superb orator and truly an inspirational charismatic. The emotion Obama inspires is reminiscent of JFK and Bill himself. As an aside, wouldn't it have been a lovely race between Bill Clinton and Barack? The blue is obviously shining through here. Yet, while Obama's words of "bitter" and "frustrated" are daggers of truth, it is his perception, his belief of how American's act out those feelings that drew the blood.

After the 2004 election, there was a phrase floating around a group of folks here in Chicago -- a very blue city in a very blue state -- that is identical to Obama's words from his San Francisco fundraiser, albeit a bit more crass. It went something like, "give me my guns and keep those faggots away from me and I'll vote for you." That's what was being said by some Democrats as a way to explain why George W. was re-elected. At the time, same-sex marriage was the buzz issue that has since been replaced with immigration. Yet, are those words, or Obama's words any different than Republicans' explanation of Democrats -- that we are "bleeding hearts," that we believe government should be involved in everything, or that we'd like to see the Constitution rewritten to suit us?

Barack Obama knows there are specific reasons people vote and think a particular way in America. He knows that location, education, family and friends all play into the dynamic of American partisanship. What Obama doesn't know, yet assumed he did, as so many of us do, is what the personal beliefs and thoughts of individuals are. His viewpoint is that he can presume to tell me, or anyone, what we are thinking. The next step from there, and this is what caused the bristle, is to tell us that our thinking is wrong and we should think a different way. Obama's words have put him in the light of one who assumes to know rather than attempts to understand. Some folks may think that Mr. Obama clearly demonstrated how he talks the talk but does not walk the walk.

Obama's words give the uneasy feeling, whether meant or not, that rural Americans need to be told how to think. Early settlers knew why the Indians danced around fires -- they were devil-worshipping savages -- wrong thinking that needed to be fixed. Early Crusaders knew why all the "others" had sun gods and moon gods -- they were ignorant -- wrong, needed fixing. These are examples of viewpoints, world-views seen through a set of "cultural glasses" or "Kulturbrille" as noted by early anthropologist Franz Boas. We all wear these glasses that provide us a lens to interpret the world around us. For the average American, this is fine. However, for would be President of the United States to have naive realism world view that can easily transform into one of ethnocentrism, is not a comfortable feeling, especially since that is what we have in office currently.

Can Mr. Obama change his viewpoint -- his worldview? Absolutely. He has the intelligence and ability to understand his misgivings, correct them and move forward. "All in due time my pretty, all in due time." Whether he actually changes his worldview or learns to mask it is yet to be seen. Obama's verbal slip-ups come from his raw exuberance. Which leads me back to why I'm a Hillary girl in the first place. Maturity and experience are not bad qualities, and may just be the biggest hurdles Barack Obama will have to face.