By Denise Michaels, Author, “Testosterone-Free Marketing”
This morning President Barack Obama was named winner of the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. Tongues wagged.
Many felt the choice was an exciting one. Reflecting an acknowledgment of the international effect Obama has had. And, how people in many countries are more hopeful about America’s leadership, but also excited about their own prospects for peace and prosperity.
Some asked, “What has Obama really DONE?” They must’ve given the award on their expectations for what he’ll do in the future and not based on what the 44th President has accomplished.
Then – leave it to the whack job right wingers. Rush Limbaugh, with 20 million listeners daily, said he was in agreement with the Taliban – Obama shouldn’t get the award. For good measure Limbaugh said the world sees our President as a joke.
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the greatest honors in the world. It establishes respect for a person’s work towards peace worldwide. Naturally, Limbaugh finds a way to flip it 180 degrees to appeal to his hate-besotted listeners.
Former President Bush spent eight years holding back progress – in science, medicine, culture and other facets of life. Like standing in the middle of the Mississippi River trying to hold the water back. No one could predict the rush of changes that bust loose January 20th on Inauguration Day. There was no stuffing the toothpaste back in the tube again.
The America I grew up in was largely a white, Christian country. There were minorities of every color and creed. But the majority was so firmly in control and dominant, people who didn’t fit the mold went with the program. It was the American way and no one ever thought it would change.
The last 25 years the American landscape has shifted dramatically. African Americans are about the same percentage of the population – but they’ve increased significantly in economic clout and influence in all sectors of American life. The numbers of Asians and Middle Eastern people, while still small, are evident in greater numbers. The biggest population shift is the millions of Hispanics, now proud Americans. Another sea change: the fastest growing religion in America today is Buddhism often embraced by former Protestants, Catholics, Baptists and others. Instead of teaching their children the words to “Onward Christian Soldier” they’re teaching them how to meditate.
White, right-wing Americans with their continued sense of entitlement are no longer the dominant demographic force. And they’re mad as hell. Seems like they’re afraid the rug’s been pulled out from beneath them. Not by Obama, but by the flood of population changes resulting in different priorities and different values. The USA isn’t all about them any more. Many are struggling to maintain a grip on the America that always felt so safe as it slips away. They still see themselves as the “real Americans” and everyone else is an also-ran Nobody’s trying to get into their exclusive “club” anymore.
The world views Afghanistan and the Taliban as stuck in the bad, old days of the Middle Ages. Limbaugh and his followers are right there along with ‘em. Trying desperately to hold back inevitable change. Shouldn’t that tell you something about the sheer power of this wave? (I’m hoping in a few years there won’t be sufficient numbers of ‘em to support ratings – and ad revenues – for national shows like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck.)
One obvious example of this came during the summer of our discontent as right wingers swooped down on Town Hall meetings to scream at politicians. One blonde woman in an Arkansas Town Hall meeting plaintively cried, “I’m scared! I want MY America back!!”
But you can’t stuff the toothpaste back in the tube again.
Personally, I wouldn’t want to. I live in a neighborhood that’s like a little United Nations. It’s a mix of White, Black, Hispanic and Middle Eastern folks. My husband’s originally from India so he adds a little Asian. Wide-sweeping changes are coming in science, health care, the environment, the economy and more. Right wingers still dumb-founded by Obama’s election – find it hard to fathom they’re not as “in control” as they always were. The safe mantle of entitlement they always assumed would be theirs is gradually being peeled away. As a result, screaming mean-spirited, racist people are rearing their ugly heads.
The times are exciting and honestly – I don’t love all the changes. I don’t love:
• How I feel I have to be plugged in and “on” all the time.
• The rudeness and animosity permeating both left and right.
• That objectivity has gone the way of the dodo bird in journalism
• If we don’t keep up with technology, well fuggedaboudit.
• It looks like we’re getting more deeply entrenched in Afghanistan
I do like that:
• We’re closer to real health care reform than ever before.
• Players on the world stage are looking to America to lead again
• Millions of African Americans now proudly wave American flags
• Millions of children who never felt they had a chance now have hope
• There’s a push toward a “green” economy and sustainable energy
I don’t know where all the change is going. My crystal ball’s a little smudged. I’m open to an America that works for everyone – not just a few. A country respected on an international stage. And whether President Obama got the Nobel Peace Prize as a result of his accomplishments or expectations for what he might do – I wish him well and proudly salute this honor. It also says those of us who voted for Obama because we were confident his approach would be met with approval on the world stage were right – and that feels great.
As for Limbaugh and his knuckle-dragging followers who cling desperately to the past like the Taliban and their right-wing sense of entitlement: you can’t stuff the toothpaste back into the tube.
Denise Michaels is a marketing mentor, trainer and author of the business bestseller, “Testosterone-Free Marketing.” Find out more about her at her websites below:
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