It’s hard not to feel pessimistic tonight.
I am astonished that Washington can't come together for a little compromise in these crazy times. All the world is asking for is a little reassurance that we have one competent leader in the face of endless bad news on the economic front. Washington seems to be divided between two camps: Those who want to peel the band-aid off slowly and those who prefer to rip it off after counting "One!" The Democrats are afraid to let anyone fail, and the Republicans would rather let the chips fall where they may. I suppose the Bush White House is a third camp: It's desperately trying to keep itself out of the wastebasket of history. Good luck to that. Band-aids aside, what systemic changes are being proposed to prevent or mitigate similar debacles in the future? None so far... Both parties are failing the leadership test.
Dear friends, in times like these I wish everyone the best of luck. I hope that all of you are secure in your jobs. It's not too early for a new year's resolution: Job security should be our number one priority in 2009. There may not be a better time than now to do some serious sucking up to the Man or Woman (depending on your office demographics). Consider putting in extra hours and not-too-subtly advertising your dedication and value to your company. Don't let the higher-ups believe that you are expendable, because many folks have lost their jobs, and the bleeding is likely to get worse before it gets better. Even if you hate your job, it's probably better to tough it out and keep hating it rather than risk unemployment. If you depend on a sugar daddy or sugar mama, you should probably offer more oral sex.
Meanwhile, back in Washington… Obama should appoint a medium to his cabinet so that he can personally consult with FDR as needed. By the time January 20 rolls around, this country may be desperate for a fireside chat or two. I feel for poor Obama. No doubt, he's a talented politician, but I'm not confident that anyone can keep us out of some serious economic dumps. All he can do is act presidential, try not to make things worse (by sitting on his hands while the automakers collapse, for example), and hope that things start to look up before people begin to think he's part of the problem. Considering he'll probably spend most of his time trying to look busy on the economy, there's a good chance he won't get much else done the first couple of years.
Let us hope for change in 2011, then.
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