Buyers' 'Messiah' Remorse

Toronto Star columnist Thomas Walkom writes re an all-too-human and fallible Hopeychanger:

There are no messiahs. If the humbling of Barack Obama demonstrates anything, it is this.

Canadians, who just two short years ago yearned for an Obama of their own, would do well to keep that in mind.

Obama is not the only political idol revealed to have clay feet. Nonetheless, his case is instructive — particularly for the many in this country who once worshipped him.

When he burst onto the scene, Obama seemed too good to be true. He was young and articulate. His oratory was inspiring. And in a nation scarred by centuries of racial strife, he was black.

Some grumps (including this one) noted that his rhetoric lacked content — that he spoke eloquently of change without specifying what would be different.

The more level-headed reporters covering his campaign pointed out that Obama’s history was that of a typical Chicago pol — that he had succeeded through a combination of ruthlessness and compromise, without ever being too bothered by principle.

If Obama’s supporters had accepted him as he was, they might have been less disappointed. But they wanted Jesus Christ and, in the new president, thought they had found him...

If Obama's supporters had accepted him as he was, he would never have gotten to be president.