Tuesday, August 26, 2008

The Liberal AND Conservative Obamas?

There's no question that if you judge the candidates on their actual lives, rather than mythologies, the Obamas are extremely mainstream and conservative. Married for life, great parents, very humble beginnings, driven meritocrats. No divorce or adultery - and regular religious attendance and faith. And yet they are tagged as elitists and radicals. Yes, they're liberals in policy, although not radically so. But they're conservatives in their lives.

The same paradox can be seen in Obama himself: a policy liberal but a temperamental conservative. To see the Obamas as they are requires us to see them in these paradoxes. And to recognize that they may not be paradoxes at all.
--Andrew Sullivan

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Good quote, but I don't know that we can say that Barrack and Michelle are married for life OR that that is a conservative trait. OR that great parents, humble beginnings, and being smart and successful is conservative. Plus, if Barrack is a "meritocrat" it doesn't jive with the social work he did in Chicago for a great many years.

They are, in a sense, conservative in their lives, but that is not the kind of conservatism that mates up with political conservatism.

Much as liberals are "conservative" with respect to marshalling the planet's energy resources carefully and judiciously, many liberals are consistant in having kind and non-hystrionic relationships with friends and family. And careers that are steadfast.

Anonymous said...

If all this is so self evident then why does it have to be explained at all?
How many times does Michelles statements start out with;

You see, Barak.........

If it were true, it wouldn't need to be explained.
People recognize a phony when he's exposed.

Anonymous said...

I can't wait to watch the Anointed One rise up like a rock star onto the stage to make his speech at the convention.
That ought to put the finishing touch on what has been a complete whitewash job of this empty suit which the media has perpetrated on the American public.
The smoke and mirror theatrics are wearing thin and people are waking up.