Chris Berry On The Net

I am not a sentimental person by most measures, but as our nation anticipates the inauguration of our first black president, I cannot help but be moved by the historic significance of the event. I was born the same year as Mr. Obama, and during our lifetimes we have witnessed a seismic shift in attitudes regarding the role of minorities in our society. In a few short decades, we’ve gone from I Have A Dream, to the ultimate realization of the dream.

Mr. Obama’s improbable rise to the most powerful office in the world was made possible by his ability to inspire confidence and hope for the future. As he prepares to take office, our nation is facing a crisis of confidence, and we will look to him to restore our collective faith in the institutions that drive our economy. His presidency will be defined early on by his success or failure in dealing with our economic troubles.

Unfortunately, our broken economy is going to require more than inspiring rhetoric to recover from a deep recession. While I cannot think of a better person to lead our nation from a purely inspirational standpoint, I have virtually no confidence in the policy direction Mr. Obama intends to take us.

Everything I know in my gut tells me that massive government intervention in the free market will only serve to make matters worse in the long-run. I know with absolute certainty that the way to undo the damage caused by misguided and corrupt government programs is not by introducing additional misguided and corrupt government programs. I have no doubt that raising taxes on the most productive members of society will only serve to slow our economy further. History has shown us that government funded works programs are temporary solutions at best, and will do nothing to fuel a longer-term recovery.

I know these things with the same degree of certainty as many of the right-wing ideologues who can’t wait for Mr. Obama to fail. The difference is that I hope I’m wrong. I value the prosperity of our nation more than I value my own personal beliefs, and I have no desire to see the crisis prolonged for the sake of proving a particular ideology. Our politics have been driven for too long by rabid partisanship, and too many of our elected leaders would rather watch the opposition fail than to see our nation prosper under the wrong party banner. Mr. Obama has demonstrated a sincere desire to work with members of both parties to develop solutions to our economic problems. Regardless of our individual beliefs, we should all hope that he is successful.