Obama's Decisions So Far...

I have never made it a secret that I supported Obama and I'm thrilled that he was elected. It was strong statement from the majority of the country that we had gone too far down Bush and Cheney's rabbit hole of cronyism, abuses of power, warrentless wiretaps, torture, mismanagement of this war, etc.

So now that he's in office how do I feel about it and his decisions so far?

1. The Inauguration - I was not a fan of Obama picking Rick Warren to give the prayer. Warren is a bigoted evangelical nut who stands contrary to everything Obama was running against. But I think Obama understands this and is a smart guy who's not going to burn bridges. As Andrew Sullivan put it, "He realized that Rick Warren was an egomaniac and wanted some kind of platform, so he gave him a largely symbolic role at the inauguration and allowed Warren to preen" When the LGBT cried out (and rightfully so) he brought in other less divisive ministers rather than oust Warren and cause a row within the christian right. I still would have preferred no prayers at all since this is a secular government but that will remain my wish for now. At the VERY LEAST he mentioned non-believers in this speech which was a baby step in the right direction. But don't be surprised that Huckabee and Fox News managed to make an issue of it and try to stir controversy where there was none.

2. Appointment of Timothy Geithner for Secretary of Treasury - Over all I'd say it was a smart pick. The guy is extremely talented and has unique skills for the job. Do I believe for a second that he didn't know he should pay taxes? Absolutely not. But he has at least paid it back with interest and if we weren't in the economic crapper I'd probably not support the appointment. But it sounds like we need this guy. Besides, I would much prefer Obama's picks based on experience and skill to Bush's picks based on who had been his buddy the longest.

3. Dennis Blair for Director of National Intelligence - His hearings before Congress only threw up one red flag with me and that was his refusal to classify water boarding as torture. He did say that under his watch there would be no torture and no water boarding but wouldn't say that one was the other. The suspicion is that he doesn't word it this way because it would be giving more weight to the argument that CIA operatives who water boarded prisoners are guilty of war crimes and should be prosecuted. I have a feeling this kind of thing will come out in the wash anyway and if they are guilty then they are guilty and Eric Holder will prosecute. Oh and if you're really naive enough to not think it's torture try reading these accounts by two guys who, for whatever reason, put themselves through it.

4. Revoking global gag order on all funding to international groups that support, promote, or even mention abortion. This was a smart move. This is a very short sighted and narrow minded policy to begin with. In many cases it would remove budget support to a group even if the money was directed only to health care practices. It didn't matter. But that's the problem with many issues around abortion and reproductive rights. People have trouble seeing it in shades of gray. Their church tells them that a fertilized cell is a person and suddenly they're comparing it to the Holocaust (something I find endlessly insulting to the people who lost their lives in Nazi Germany). Never mind the violence of killing doctors or blowing up clinics. In this video you see the kind of disconnect in their logic. They haven't even considered the logical conclusions of their own convictions. If it were as clear cut as they say they believe then why do they have difficulty answering the question?

5. Closing Gitmo - This was a LONG time coming. Bush should have done the right thing and closed it but he couldn't because then where would he put his 'enemy combatants' and still torture them and hold them indefinitely without trial. These military tribunals were the biggest cluster f*ck I've ever seen. And the fact that Gitmo was rife with accusations of torture and other human rights violations is more than enough reasons to close it. If I hear another conservative mouth piece compare closing Gitmo to giving the prisoners more comfort or sinking into hyperbole like O'Reilly (something about giving them all a Laz-E-Boys and wind chimes) I think my ears will start bleeding.

This has never been about making them more comfortable. It's about basic human rights and holding true to the values and the Constitution of the United States. Guantanamo Bay is a black eye on the country. The rest of the civilized world has less respect for the US for allowing the abuses that happen there. Maybe if supporters of torture and Gitmo would stop watching episodes of '24' and read some research in interrogation or talk to actual intelligence experts they would learn two things. Torture isn't an reliable way to get accurate information. And holding terrorists in a 'special prison' with no rights turns them into martyrs for their ilk and energizes them. It won't be easy because it's tough to prosecute someone when the evidence you got on them was through torture. In fact you can't do it at all. But the ones we know are guilty should be put in a regular maximum security prison and prosecuted with all speed. Those that are innocent should be set free. There are other cases that would have to be considered by military justices. This fixes both problems. It starts repairing the damage to our reputation as a civilized nation that respects human rights and it turns these terrorists into common criminals in the eyes of their sycophants. Of course they won't be common criminals but they'll be locked up just like everyone else who breaks the law and will meet justice.

So 'all in all' I'm happy with where Obama is headed. If he keeps his promises to increase funding for basic science (and give it some proper respect) and restore funding for stem cell research I'll dance a jig. The country has finally elected someone intelligent enough to lead the country back to the middle and restore some integrity to the office and on top of it he's a unifying persona who actually energizes and inspires people. Last time I checked this was a quality to be admired, not bemoaned.