Unprincipled & hateful politicians.

Young people who flocked to Barack Obama's campaign two years ago aren't so enthused any more. They feel let down. And I can't blame them. I always feel let down when it comes to the political realm. Politicians are bastards. Some of the most gawd-awful people in the world. Dishonest. Liars. Ego maniacs. Manipulators. Untrustworthy. Obama thought he could cope with them. Deal effectively with them. And bring about significant change in Washington. He may still do that. Unfortunately, Obama underestimated the task. And the hatefulness he would face from Republicans. They are out to destroy him. To block his agenda every step of the way. That's how the game of politics is played. It ain't fair. And Obama naively thought that if he played fair, so would everybody else. But it doesn't work that way. One must be ruthless. And to be more ruthless than a Republican, it takes cunning. It takes dirty tricks. It takes gutter-fighting. One must abandon moral principles. And apparently Obama isn't up to the task. He's too nice. Too decent. He's a philosopher. An academic. Not a traditional politician. Maybe that leaves some of us disappointed. That Obama is a man of principle. It won't serve him well in Washington. The place stinks. It's full of unprincipled and mean-spirited politicians. --Jim Broede