Will Senator Obama get a Hollow Prize?

Hollow “lacking in real value, sincerity, or substance”

this blog was inspired by thread on this page

http://princetonprofs.blogspot.com/

“Hollow Prize”. Mos def an interesting concept and one that I have wondered about for several years. As inner cities fell more in the hands of African American mayors there seemed to be a corresponding decline with respect to infrastructure, education, tax base, support services, and just plain relevance. It was almost like “ya’ll can have it – Peace!”

Where I live, we have had African American political leadership which included two of the last three mayors, yet the city is in decline, and still racially divided. Yet the organization which runs the city is a business organization consisting of CEO’s and business types that only recently included African Americans. To their credit those organizations have been the patron of many African American institutions in the community. Currently the city has a white mayor who raised a lot of money to get elected, who is now at odds with many in the black community on several issues. When one thinks of the true value of urban centers one word rears its ugly head - regentrification. With the price of gas, the issue of urban sprawl, many whites are moving back to the city, coffee houses, bars, entertainment areas are being developed in many urban areas – therefore what once was a hollow prize is regaining its lost luster – at least to those running for office and those who profit from development fees.

My speculation on a local level then begged the question if African American would become president would that be a hollow prize? Meaning if Senator Obama wins the election will he be given the wheel to a ship that lacks value, rudderless and adrift? To answer that question I reminded my self that value is a subjective term often seen through the eyes of the beholders.

So what through what lens do we see value? Elementary civics taught me that “we the people” own America. However Dealy Plaza taught me something different. I begun to see America in a different light. My observations suggested that the true owners of America, the true king makers see America and the American Presidency through a different lens. Those king makers and their assigns have co-opted the American government through the use of lobbyist, secret societies, and other relationships that too often lack transparency. Those folks also realize that the American President is no more than a mere appendage whose primary function is to make sure that at the end of the day, their interests are served. They take no issue with political party, or ideology because in their eyes all politicians are beholden to them.

Through the lens of America’s true owners there is still value to be extracted from this country. Our military protects their interests, the American brand and “democratic principals” replaced Christian missionary work as a portal to dominate third world cultures. There is value in this country as long as the American people are too dumbed down to see the truth. There is value in this country as long as Americans buy into the illusion of the two party system or the illusion of democracy. A nation of two hundred fifty million potential functionaries ready to die for the oil of others, cannibalize their young, enslave themselves with massive personal debt, and whose best solution of energy independence is “drill baby drill” has great value. A nation that is willing to participate in the destruction of other cultures by using political tools like NAFTA, while at the same time increasing their profits has real value.

Through the lens of the candidates running for President, most of them harbor no illusions that they are nothing more than puppets. I often tell people immediately after taking the oath of office Presidents are shown an unedited version of the Zapruder Film, as a friendly reminder. Unfazed by their relative impotence and driven by ambition and ego, they go after the brass ring. So while the office may be hollow in relative terms - prize is not. The fruits of being President extend far beyond time in office. Even if you resign in disgrace or get summarily dismissed after one term, there is still a gravitas that comes with being an ex-President. Bill Clinton is a prime example of how one can increase his wealth exponentially especially if one leaves the office at a relatively young age. Jimmy Carter is an example of one repaying his karmic debt after being a willing participant in a fraudulent system.

But who wins when America is valuable only to serve corporate/imperialistic agendas or personal political agendas? Who pays butcher’s bill when America hits rock bottom?
Looking through unflinching eyes of history what kind of America will Senator Obama inherit if he is elected President? Last summer I read American Theocracy by Kevin Phillips, a very interesting read. Kevin Phillips compared the decline in other “empires” Britain, Spain, Rome, to the current forces in play in America.

Phillips wrote
“The inevitable twenty first century global transition from oil to a postoil regime .…..could see the United States replaced by a new leading economic power probably an Asian one”

Stripping away the veil of distractions, and denial what do we see? A country on the decline, but doesn’t know it. If the 20th Century was an American Century, the 21st Century has all the ingredients of being dominated by China. The world is much different and more complex then it was when a product of the “Greatest Generation” John Kennedy was elected. America is less safe and more vulnerable both economically and militarily as a result of machinations, mistakes and malfeasance of past presidents. The burden of public and private debt undermines our independence, our three branches of government have become wholly owned subsidiaries of major corporations, and Americans refuse to think critically preferring to download massive doses of misinformation. Our obesity is a national shame, and our greatest health threat, and then there is our energy dependence. There are folks who joke that Senator Obama is being set up for failure, indeed if elected he must pick his friends wisely.

This is a critical time in America; Senator Obama if elected may go a long way in restoring America’s reputation as a world citizen. His vision hopefully will inspire innovation and technology, his ascension to the nation’s highest office may motivate young African Americans to dream, and finally he can use the White House as a forum to unite rather than divide.

As a cynic, I have lowered my standards for any American President, hoping for vision and leadership rather than systemic change. I truly hope that the vision and leadership of Senator Obama inspires many Americans to see themselves as change agents, and bring about a new way of thinking.

Yet as a cynic, until Washington effectively breaks it’s addiction to the blandishments of corporate largess, real change won’t happen. America is not a hollow prize in 2008, but unless America awakens from her slumber, one day soon an American President will be given the wheel to a ship with all the markings of the Titanic.