You won’t find a report card on President Obama’s first year here. It’s kind of hard for me to summarize what has been a complicated year, full of ups and downs, so I won’t bother. The excitement I felt last year has waned, but I’ve yet to turn as cynical as some of the president’s once ardent supporters. As much as I try to stay informed, there’s still so much I can’t easily grasp. Like what’s left of Health Care Reform, and all the technical jargon regarding the economy. 

 

 But here’s what I do know:

 

- It’s been over a year since my father has been unemployed. He’s just one of several thousand people who make up California’s double digit unemployment rate.

 

- Angela and I both have family in Detroit. To say things are dire there would be an understatement. Check out The Ruins of Detroit for visuals.

 

-Post-racial America is still as much of a joke today as it was a year ago. Props to Tony Grands for sending me these links: Stuff Black People Don’t Like and Paul Shirley’s gem, If You Rebuild It, They Will Come. This stuff is disheartening but hardly surprising.

 

- I might never get use to the idea of a Black president.  It’s surreal. I’m still in awe whenever I see Obama in front of the White House. I still cry whenever I see footage of the night he was elected.

 

- I will never understand, or agree with, the argument that the last eight years of Bush was better than the last year with Obama. Never.

 

- I’ve been disappointed, not at all surprised that the President did exactly what he said  he was going to do in Afghanistan, and yet I’m confident things will get better because I still believe Obama can, and is determined to, help this country live up to its creed.

 

I saw on the Twitter that the smark folk at Post Bourgie will have an open thread on the State of the Union Address tonight. Be sure to check that out.

 

Also, peep this video a friend of PT shared on Facebook.  I think it sums up the gist of this post quite well.

 

Tags: Barack Obama, President Barack Obama, State of the Union