"It is written in the stars, child, that only a king who comes of two royalties, one royalty of the Tribes who follow the Goddess, and one royalty of those who look to Rome, will heal our land of all this strife..."
--The Mists of Avalon, by Marion Zimmer Bradley Chapter 2, page 6
If the above passage seems like I'm citing Scripture...well, that's because I am. My own Holy Writ. The above book was very special to me, at a time when I was waking up to my spiritual nature.
This passage, I believe, is Viviane, The Lady of The Lake, the Queen of Avalon, (and a sort of avatar of Branwen) speaking about the forthcoming British king (Arthur), Arthur, while his story originates in the post-imperial Dark Age hellhole that is Great Britain, comes truly alive in the courtly romances of the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries, where he and his Round Table knights are held up as paragons of virtue, truth and justice.
I needed to write about this this morning after I saw a disturbing clip on YouTube. Said clip was footage of the various crackdowns on OWS across the country, and the resulting brutality, with a voice over of an Obama speech where he's talking about the human rights violations in Syria, the Arab Spring, and the importance of basic democratic rights.
I think the point of the video was to show Obama as being a hypocrite of sorts...the title was OBAMA YOU FASCIST SCUM (which personally I don't think was as warranted; Obama certainly, I wouldn't consider a fascist...but like every Administration, he becomes a scapegoat with things turn sour.)
What did strike me was something that I've been aware of for months; Obama, at least to my view, wields his power weakly, ineffectively. When his campaign was in full swing, and during his Inauguration, people were hopeful, looking forward to a better future, that this New Guy was gonna run shit better than Dubya and rebuild the good will and trust with the international community that had been pretty much fucked by certain "Unilateral" actions. (Gulf War II, anyone?) When New Guy got into office, he began cleaning house, installing new Cabinet members and pretty much sending the message that there was a New Sheriff in Town.
With Obama, I think people were expecting FDR redux. What they got instead was Jimmy Carter, part II. Carter, this was the guy in the Oval Office when I popped out of my mommy's belly. His claim to fame was the Camp David Accords, the a peace signed by Egyptian President Anwar El Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin on September 17, 1978; the move led directly to the 1979 Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty, and resulted in Sadat and Begin sharing the 1978 Nobel Peace Prize. Carter's tenure as President was a time of continuing inflation and recession, as well as an energy crisis. (This was around the time of the Arab oil embargo) He ended up losing to Ronald Reagan in 1980 in large part because of the Iranian Hostage Crisis.
Carter was held up as an idealist but also as a weak, ineffectual executive by many of his critics. His heart, it seemed, was in the right place, but good intentions don't always win votes. Obama, he too, it seems, genuinely wants to help the American people, but appears to be hesitant on using his political will. Witness the debt ceiling debacle that cost the U.S. its AAA credit rating by Standard & Poor's, caused a shit-storm on Wall Street (and made me miserable at work!) Bill Clinton was interviewed by some news outlet , I forget which one, but he had stated that that would have immediately used an executive order to get an extention in place if Congress could not stop squabbling. I was very angry when I read this piece. I wanted the President of the United States to fulfill his role as Executive, Commander-in-Chief. Obama, man up!
I wanted my President to be PRESIDENTIAL. THIS is the proper use of power; one of the most basic traits of an effective leader is the ability to recognize situations where quick, decisive action is required and to swiftly make a move.
I think Obama's done some good. Passing health insurance reform, that's good (Though we'll see what the Supreme Court has to say; they are set to argue some key provisions of the law. How he handled Libya, that's good. We went in with our NATO friends (BILATERALLY, hear that Bush?!) to help a people in a genuine fight for freedom from a tyrant (Per my earlier post...this is where war is unfortunately necessary) and quickly handed off the ball.
Maybe Obama is trying to play both sides of the aisle (With a Republican-controlled Congress, perhaps he has too). But I think he should take a harder line. The GOP, basically wanting to skull fuck the common man every chance they get with tax cuts for the rich, that's not okay. He's been quiet about OWS, from what I gather, perhaps fearful he's going to make enemies with the Republicans and certain conservative Democrats; the GOP already wants to rip the Obamacare law to shreds...and he's gotta make nice with the party in control of the legislature if he expects to get any shit done. But police forces all over the country brutalizing people for exercising their Constitutional rights? That's not okay. Maybe if the president could show the people that he's sensitive to their concerns and make some genuine moves to change things, it would help the movement, perhaps pacify its more radical elements and steer it in a constructive direction, and shore up his own political standing. You have an opportunity here Mr. Obama. More so even, an obligation. That's great you want to support democracies in the Arab world. But help out your own people first. Help out the people that made you the Leader of the Free World by the very process you claim to support.
Remember that oath: "To support, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States"
Because its under serious threat now. I think of men like King Arthur and his knights these days, who want peace and goodwill between all people, but who are willing to fight for it when necessary. Obama could learn some lessons from the Tale of the King Who Was and The King Who Shall Be...
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