Well, President Obama would like to think himself a king I believe. For awhile I think we all wanted him to be a king as well. Some may balk at this idea, but they can't deny the almost mesmerizing effect he seemed to hold over the US and global populace during his first presidential run. He could seemingly do no wrong. Questions about his birth were swept aside as conspiratorial or racist, questions about his leadership ability were laid to rest as racist - really, most criticisms were easily hammered out as "racist". So he was popular, hugely so, and he rode his wave of popularity to an easy second term.
Somewhere along the way, cracks began to appear in the facade. I wish I had paid enough attention to politics years ago that I could point out when exactly these cracks began to appear. I think some people knew there was a problem all the way back in 2010 with the passing of the Affordable Care Act. There is a distinct difference between knowing a problem exists and seeing a problem however. Many people knew the government bailout programs for the Wall Street banks were bad, though few among the average American citizen could directly reason why. At the time, everyone else was saying these programs were good. Obamacare was good. We could all keep our healthcare plans, remember? The worrying and fretting seemed silly, like an elderly woman fussing about the shape of clouds in a sky wondering if her arthritis will be affected. Everything was fine, Obama was the most popular president ever among the US people and even citizens around the world. He could do no wrong.
Then 2013 came and everyone lost their healthcare plans. Snowden blew the whistle on the US spying on its own citizens. Benghazi was fresh in everyone's minds. Cracks. But it was fine -- Obama was still the most likable fellow around. The popularity polls wouldn't lie after all. Obama wouldn't lie. No, it was those damn conservatives (this was still a bit before the alt-right boogeyman really rose into prominence) and their backwards ways. So we all focused on correcting those backwards ways and worked on implementing some social equality. All that needed to be done was that one half of the country needed to fix the other half. I'd like to say that the US began waking up to the fact that something wasn't quite right around this time when groupthink began being enforced less surreptitiously than it had in the years past. Though perhaps that's just me extending my own realizations to the rest of the country, so it's maybe not quite a fair assessment. Still, it's a position I'll hold since I believe many other young people my age could probably point to around this time when they began to see that something was severely off-kilter about their world.
The strange thing to me is that years later, the facade is still being propped up and defended with an almost religious fervor. The Mainstream Media still preaches Obama's incredible popularity here in the US and abroad. As he continues to spend his days golfing and snorkeling, he can seem to do no wrong. Even as the Chinese snub his arrival for the G20 summit... and roll out the red carpet for Putin. Even as Duterte humorously rants against him and his imperialistic aims. Even as the Brits blanch at the idea of him telling them how to vote for their Brexit. Even as the Japanese largely shrug at his "apology" over Hiroshima and ask when the US will ever leave Okinawa and stop raping their women. Even as the Puerto Ricans bemoan the austerity measures forced upon them.
Even as the American people wake up and realize their country is being sold piecemeal from under their feet.
The king turned out to be a king after all I suppose, King George III.
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