Progressive agenda slowly unraveling

I might be wrong, but I'm beginning to sense that the accumulation of progressive schemes has simply become too much. I read a lot of blogs and watch the tv news shows, and the energy is gone from the initial excitement over the progressive's big win in the last election. The media played it up and many of the faithful were riding on Obama's popularity -- the historical greatness of it all -- the FDR-like pledges to transform the country, not only for immediate relief but for years to come so that no great financial crisis would ever again get us in this position.

Like at the end of 20s and the beginning of the 30s, what we needed was a short and painful adjustment to an over-heated economy, but what was promised was a 30s-type transformation just like FDR put into place. The problem is that now there is more information and many people are sceptical about such grand government schemes, as well they should be.

I think most of the hoopla was manufactured -- never a real widespread embrace of a radical, progressive agenda. Now that the hoopla is losing energy and the administration and congress are unraveling, the banal reality of incompetent government arm-waving is sinking in and people are becoming restless with the constant manipulations which seem to be making the recovery slower than necessary.

From all indications healthcare reform is falling apart with the Democrats at each other's throats, and cap and trade doesn't seem to have a chance. Most people want the government out of the banking and auto businesses, and they seem to want a rational, common sense approach.

Obama's speeches are no longer working and the image makers are out of ideas. Foreign policy is now the challenge facing the president as people also grow restless with the continuing wars and the lack of a reasonable response to Iran, Russia, Venzuela and China which all threaten to drag us further into some global brouhaha. The country is not in the mood for more foreign intrigue -- it's in a mood to get back to work and slow down the prospects of major government changes to their way of life. I think people want stability, not major upheaval and change.