I read a comment tonight that really made me think. The diary of relevance to this response was penned today by fellow diarist Crashing Vor. There was a comment that got me thinking as a writer.
I disagreed with the two principle points of the comment made, but only knew the emotion of the disagreement and not the logic that would help me understand the disagreement. My thanks to Crashing Vor for a great piece of writing, and to MargaretPOA for an outstanding comment. You can find both here.
I believe that is one of the most important results of reading the really good writing of another writer: Engagement in the words from a personal perspective that elicit testing, thought, determinism, and finally accurate conviction of your own beliefs.
When it is really good writing, dialogue can be born. Civil discourse can begin. How wonderful is that?
Follow me just below the squiggledoodlethingey fold, and see how that turned out.
Your first point is where I began my personal journey which led to this response diary.
There have been several veritable armies, from the White House--to your house--engaging citizen in re ACA, for what, four years now? That same group has coalesced around untrue, unfair, and unrelenting attacks on ACA from before it was even presented, to this very day. (Mr. Boehner now believes he has FINALLY created the effective means to completely repeal this landmark legislation. Don't be beguiled into believing his threatened lawsuit serves any other primary purpose.)
This army has responded in force to the deception, obfuscation, and prevarications created by opponents to ACA and this President at every available moment. I'm glad they did, and continue to do so with such unified force of truth.
The President did, considering the usual and more unusual demands of his Office, a superlative job of leading--and managing this important legislation for tens (perhaps hundreds) of millions of American citizens.
One of the things we, and most American citizens have either never clearly understood, nor find it reasonable to accept is that Barack Hussein Obama won a mandate from citizen to manage the affairs of State as it's Chief Executive. Twice.
But, he earned the right to be this nation's leader, as well. These are unique and separate distinctions. While I read just a ton of stuff about what he has not done, or not done sufficiently, I read very little about what he has been able to accomplish successfully. It is a very long list that deserves the attention and gratitude of this nation. Both lists deserve due consideration on an equal footing.
On this point, my appreciation for the work of these legions of citizens who talked to neighbors, family...and strangers begins with the President himself. I am of the (completely unproven, yet singularly "fitting") political, philosophical and scientific theory--and current opinion that:
Mr. Obama, either by decision or default, faced down the most significant questions a politician/President could ever have unmercifully flung in his face by a team respecting citizen, the power of the moment, and the most fundamental, basic truth of political life: namely potential political capital cum lasting benefit to our fellow citizens, our nation, democracy, and the entire planet.
"What are you willing to give up, in order to get the most from this proposal? What are you not willing to give up, no matter what? What does success in this situation look like? What will be the next step(s)? "
For many decades, we have accepted and taken as our own belief that the idea of single payer health insurance coverage for every American citizen does not have a technical solution. President Obama challenged that tenet, and set about creating the technical solution this problem required. He did so with great success.
It is my belief that the President of the United States answered honestly to those questions. His answer looks something like this to my mind. His is an extremely costly decision which has, even as of this very day, neither yet been fully charged--nor paid. To my mind, President Obama's thinking goes something like this:
"Take the absolute most we can get, from any potential stakeholder possible, toss the dice, and then create the foundations for the next step(s).
"It must, however, be no mere window dressing; it must be of the greatest possible value for, and benefit to to the American citizen, at the lowest possible cost. We must commit to using the gained goodwill to engage those who will hate me, hate us and our party forever.
"I'm perfectly willing to have that disagreement, because I can clearly see the benefits that those who oppose this idea cannot even imagine.
"THAT is how we will earn the right to take the next step. And the step(s) after that until our dream is reality."
I contend that the evidence of the correctness of my theory is not merely contained within the actions of President Obama, his administration, and his various teams regarding ACA. I believe that his administration is also quite saddened that they will probably not see the winning touchdown in their lifetimes. I frankly do not believe I will see it, in my lifetime.
But there is no doubt that, so long as our nation remains a liberal democracy, single payer will now happen. The signal has been sent: "Not quite yet, but I'll meet you more than half way. Go for it!"
On your second point: Managers lead from the middle. That's where managers live.
Leaders lead from the front. My previous words here notwithstanding, please believe me when I say to you here that I am in no way, nor am I inclined to believe I will ever be, a true Barack Obama worshiper. Let me give you one example of how this reflection on The President's leadership regarding affordable healthcare for all Americans has impacted my life directly. It comes from a pretty obscure point of reference.
I've recerntly signed on to commit to stand for election in a FaceBook community of nearly 500, 000 citizens (and more than 1,100 voting members) to be the President of their corporate Board of Directors. These numbers must remain, for the time being, rough approximations. Actual factual data has not been forthcoming.
The organization's situation is dire. It very possibly may not withstand the tensions of a national election by its members in light of the current difficulties the organization is experiencing. To me, my decision process was informed by my understanding of the example case I offer above.
Yet, I had to finally respond with an answer for myself required by the one guiding precept of my life in a way that could potentially make a significant difference in an untold number of outcomes for a very large community:
"What are YOU going to do about it?"
It is not often wise to do something bad about it. I have not (so far) found a circumstance where doing nothing was a sufficient answer to this question. (Ergo, the origin of many difficult days, and years of my life.)
I take much of my current decision as a large vessel of opportunity. Not for myself, but for 500K+ citizens who are looking for a decent way back onto the rails of democracy in my native land. I see them, talk with them, and live in a nation desperately in need of them.
Things got very ugly, very quickly. So be it.
I can handle ugly. That does not change my first decision, and it by no means justifies the momentary gut punches that have been taken by those innocents who now have become a team of many to support my decision. So be it.
It is still the right decision for me to have made; and you have to know I've had non-stop opportunities to reevaluate that decision since the moment it was made.
The slog created by others as obstacles to my decision has very quickly become unnecessarily deep, wide, and intense. So be it.
I take hope, and courage from an example I would never disown or disavow.
Generations now of American citizens have seen managerial prowess and courageous leadership from our nation's Chief Executive. That is the truth. This I surely can take away from those moments of President Obama's tenure in the White House. So should we all. Even at my house, there have been some valuable lessons in personal, and national values, both positve and negative. He is not a perfect man, nor a perfect politician, and not even a perfect President of these United States. He, like me, has a belly button.
I'm just one person, doing what I believe to be the right thing. My intentions may not, in the end, yield the results I want to achieve. There is no prior guarantee for me, or our nation. Yet I, and I submit President Obama, before beginning the ACA journey knew what the outcome of inaction would be: THAT is guaranteed. It is also, at least for me, unacceptable. What can I do? How can I become the change I seek?
I spend a lot of my time asking citizen to wake up, stand up, and step out to "exercise the franchise" at every possible opportunity. I'm not looking behind me to see how far behind me others may be. I am the only one with my vision for what could be. That is true, at least at this moment. I must keep my eye on the prize if I dare to lead.
How many people now believe that PPACA is too great an achievement to mess with--save perhaps to transform it through demonstrable experience from what could never be, through what could possibly be, all the way to what now is?
I am. That's enough for me. I believe President Obama believes this, as well. That's two. Doubling the constituency should be so easy! :)
It's not the first match lit in a very dark place that makes the greatest difference in what one sees. It is the second match lit! thanks to a comment, I lit this diary. So be it.
Let me be that second match! Thankfully, I have a living embodiment of what that means, in very real terms.
He happens to be my President.