Competence and Ideology

Many Progressives seem to be up in arms that Obama is not making the appointments that they hoped for.

Be careful what you wish for. When left ideologues scream because they did not get the ideology that they hoped for or expected, they mirror the ideologues on the other side of the spectrum who act from an impulsive rage, a desire for vengeance, and an impassioned but poorly considered desire.

Obama is unique as a modern President. He is not an ideologue. He is seeking effective and practical solutions to the nation's problems and will choose the methods that are most likely to work--rather than acting from a felt obligation to a particular ideological movement. Yet, although he is bringing in the best of knowledge and technology, he is not a technocrat. His grounding as a community organizer, and a fundamentally unifying philosophy, with an undergirdng of actual understanding of human need and how human change occurs is the human firmament from which the choices and strategies derive.

This direction is non-ideological and an exceptionally broad foundation for change. let's hope that the choices are right, that he is well served, and not diverted by the noise around him.