I actually like this article a lot, well, at least as far as it starts out. Obama is clearly a smart enough guy. That isn’t the question worth asking. The question in my mind should more likely be, “Is Obama a sh*tty leader? While he sure talks real purty, is there actually any ability to get anything done behind all that overblown rhetoric.” All the jokes about Obama and his skill in public speaking are dead on. The guy has proven time and time again that he’s great at making a speech and these speeches have proven time and time again that they are just speeches. I think Obama should send a message and sack John Favreau, his speech writer. Obama needs to show that he’s about more than just talk.
Analti_Calte_Equity Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > thommo77 Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > He went to Harvard and was Editor of Law Review > - > > the guy clearly is smart despite what people > think > > of him. > > > Completely agree. Wait a minute. GWB went to Yale and Harvard. Does that mean he is “clearly smart” too?
I think many thought he was going to be uber smart, have it all figured out and we would have change in the right direction. Unfortunately, he has been a huge disappointment. One of the criticisms from his detractors was his ultra-light resume. I think that has been an issue. It appears as though he is not LeBron and he can’t play at this level, even though so many thought he could.
ChickenTikka Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I actually like this article a lot, well, at least > as far as it starts out. Obama is clearly a smart > enough guy. That isn’t the question worth asking. > The question in my mind should more likely be, > “Is Obama a sh*tty leader? While he sure talks > real purty, is there actually any ability to get > anything done behind all that overblown rhetoric.” > > > All the jokes about Obama and his skill in public > speaking are dead on. The guy has proven time and > time again that he’s great at making a speech and > these speeches have proven time and time again > that they are just speeches. > > I think Obama should send a message and sack John > Favreau, his speech writer. Obama needs to show > that he’s about more than just talk. I agree that he is an excellent public speaker… only when the teleprompter is there. Without the prompter, I think he is average among all recent presidents. I give him credit for good choices of words. THE best public speaking president is Bill Clinton. Espeically if you observe how he handles press conferences.
Hey Alpha, most your posts seem to be about lambasting President Obama and the left in general. I think we understand what you don’t like about our current political situation. So for a little change of pace (hopefully a constructive one), what changes would you like to see?
AlphaSeeker Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Analti_Calte_Equity Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > thommo77 Wrote: > > > -------------------------------------------------- > > > ----- > > > He went to Harvard and was Editor of Law > Review > > - > > > the guy clearly is smart despite what people > > think > > > of him. > > > > > > Completely agree. > > Wait a minute. GWB went to Yale and Harvard. > > Does that mean he is “clearly smart” too? You don’t become Editor of Law Review without some smarts. Obama is a smart guy period despite what these guys in the media say about him. I would argue that GWB got into Harvard based on his name. Harvard knew he was not the smartest guy in the room, but knew he would become an influential leader/figure purely because of his family connections.
recycler Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Hey Alpha, most your posts seem to be about > lambasting President Obama and the left in > general. I think we understand what you don’t like > about our current political situation. So for a > little change of pace (hopefully a constructive > one), what changes would you like to see? Hey man. just a few thoughts. 1. stop his class warfare push and talks. This is the single most divisive factor of our country now. 2. respect the capitalism, abolish populism. People with money are investors, not fat cats… (have you ever seen a cat that’s fat? I haven’t) 3. understand the government role in running a society/economy is limited and should be left that way. What constructive ideas do you have?
thommo77 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > AlphaSeeker Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > Analti_Calte_Equity Wrote: > > > -------------------------------------------------- > > > ----- > > > thommo77 Wrote: > > > > > > -------------------------------------------------- > > > > > > ----- > > > > He went to Harvard and was Editor of Law > > Review > > > - > > > > the guy clearly is smart despite what > people > > > think > > > > of him. > > > > > > > > > Completely agree. > > > > Wait a minute. GWB went to Yale and Harvard. > > > > Does that mean he is “clearly smart” too? > > You don’t become Editor of Law Review without some > smarts. Obama is a smart guy period despite what > these guys in the media say about him. I would > argue that GWB got into Harvard based on his name. > Harvard knew he was not the smartest guy in the > room, but knew he would become an influential > leader/figure purely because of his family > connections. You could argue Bush got into Harvard based on his name. I could argue Obama got into Harvard because of affirmative action.
to all who claim Owebama is a great speaker, please youtube clips when his teleprompter fails on him The guy goes into pure gibberish mode
man you guys are brutal. No wonder this country is so divided. There is no middle ground anymore. I don’t agree with some of Obama’s policies, but I do know the guy is smart teleprompter or no teleprompter.
thommo77 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > man you guys are brutal. No wonder this country > is so divided. There is no middle ground anymore. > I don’t agree with some of Obama’s policies, but > I do know the guy is smart teleprompter or no > teleprompter. Jimmy Carter was a hell of a lot smarter than Obama is and his presidency was a disaster as well. It takes more than just smarts.
ZeroBonus Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > to all who claim Owebama is a great speaker, > please youtube clips when his teleprompter fails > on him > > The guy goes into pure gibberish mode just another so called smart negro right jeez argue about his policies instead we get these half ass petty base accusations, obama only eats arugula he is such an elitist!!!
ManMythLegend Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > thommo77 Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > man you guys are brutal. No wonder this > country > > is so divided. There is no middle ground > anymore. > > I don’t agree with some of Obama’s policies, > but > > I do know the guy is smart teleprompter or no > > teleprompter. > > Jimmy Carter was a hell of a lot smarter than > Obama is and his presidency was a disaster as > well. It takes more than just smarts. The question the OP posted was “is Obama smart” and posted some troll article that most us agree is crap writing, pure rubbish piece of journalism. In my mind, the answer is unequivocally yes Obama is a smart guy. The question of whether his presidency is a success or a disaster is a completely different discussion. My point is simply that Obama is a smart guy love him or hate him.
thommo77 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > He went to Harvard and was Editor of Law Review - > the guy clearly is smart despite what people think > of him. I’d have more respect for him if he had been editor of National Lampoon’s.
thommo77 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > ManMythLegend Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > thommo77 Wrote: > > > -------------------------------------------------- > > > ----- > > > man you guys are brutal. No wonder this > > country > > > is so divided. There is no middle ground > > anymore. > > > I don’t agree with some of Obama’s policies, > > but > > > I do know the guy is smart teleprompter or no > > > teleprompter. > > > > Jimmy Carter was a hell of a lot smarter than > > Obama is and his presidency was a disaster as > > well. It takes more than just smarts. > > > The question the OP posted was “is Obama smart” > and posted some troll article that most us agree > is crap writing, pure rubbish piece of journalism. > In my mind, the answer is unequivocally yes Obama > is a smart guy. The question of whether his > presidency is a success or a disaster is a > completely different discussion. My point is > simply that Obama is a smart guy love him or hate > him. A “smart guy” can mean different things to different people.
Sweep the Leg Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > thommo77 Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > He went to Harvard and was Editor of Law Review > - > > the guy clearly is smart despite what people > think > > of him. > > I’d have more respect for him if he had been > editor of National Lampoon’s. Or “The Onion.”
Just in case you’re not aware, basically every politician you’ve heard speak in any context for the last 60 years or so has been using a teleprompter. The “oh he’s not a good speaker without the TPT” have got to be some of the lamest attacks I’ve ever heard.
Historically, the US has detested having highly educated Presidents. It’s just the way we like it. Clinton (Rhodes Scholar, which means an Oxford postgraduate education) is a bit of an exception, helped by favorable economic conditions (and one could argue that the republicans still detest him). As for Bush going to Harvard and Yale, my recollection is that his GPA was basically a “gentleman’s C.” Obama held a number of prestigious positions, like editor of the Harvard Law Review. I’m not an expert on this stuff, but their performance in school was certainly different. Our most educated presidents have been Jimmy Carter and Woodrow Wilson. Both left more or less in disgrace (Wilson did suffer a stroke that was hidden from the public and he was basically out of commission, but this happened as he was out trying to rally support from the public). Obama and Kennedy are also up there in terms of education. Kennedy was reasonably popular by the time he was assassinated, but had a lot of trouble early on with Kruschev and the Bay of Pigs. I should add that our most educated presidents often have very important legacies, despite. Wilson basically invented the League of Nations, which is now the United Nations. Carter spotted the need for energy policy and some important environmental planning issues that are highly respected today, even if they were not implemented. Obama’s healthcare effort may be remembered this way in 30 years. Teddy Roosevelt was a fairly popular and highly educated president. Educated and aggressive seems to fit with the US character. As long as you are expanding the US in the world successfully, the public doesn’t mind if you talk smart. Obama was a highly motivational speaker. The contrast from the campaign to the presidency is really stunning. I think it’s because on the campaign trail, he was able to talk about his hopes for the country, and he really is good at marshaling that emotional energy. And the message was basically his. As President, Obama tries to talk in a balanced way, for good or ill. He tends to talk like a professor addressing a student in a classroom “I understand this point, it doesn’t mean that we ignore that point, but point Z is what’s important here.” And although I agree with his logic on this stuff, it is NOT inspiring, very wonkish, and most of the public tunes out as they hear it. Then they gravitate to things like the Tea Party (or possibly the far left) because even though both of those groups are insane, their message sounds simple and doesn’t require having to make any balancing decisions. Rule by slogan, basically.