Comments on: Mr. President, tell us a story http://fictionwritersreview.com/blog/mr-president-tell-us-a-story fiction matters Tue, 22 May 2012 07:22:25 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8 hourly 1 By: Celeste http://fictionwritersreview.com/blog/mr-president-tell-us-a-story/comment-page-1#comment-3491 Celeste Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:53:00 +0000 http://fictionwritersreview.com/?p=6303#comment-3491 Natalie, that link is broken, but I think this is the essay you were referring to: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/01/opinion/01friedman.html Natalie, that link is broken, but I think this is the essay you were referring to:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/01/opinion/01friedman.html

]]> By: Brian Ralph Short http://fictionwritersreview.com/blog/mr-president-tell-us-a-story/comment-page-1#comment-3478 Brian Ralph Short Fri, 29 Jan 2010 03:08:47 +0000 http://fictionwritersreview.com/?p=6303#comment-3478 Hey y'all; too much hype/attention, too little data? Just a thought. Great article/link, thanks Anne! Hey y’all; too much hype/attention, too little data? Just a thought. Great article/link, thanks Anne!

]]> By: Natalie http://fictionwritersreview.com/blog/mr-president-tell-us-a-story/comment-page-1#comment-3472 Natalie Thu, 28 Jan 2010 13:09:13 +0000 http://fictionwritersreview.com/?p=6303#comment-3472 Thomas Friedman also addresses this idea: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/01/opinion/01friedman.html. Thomas Friedman also addresses this idea: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/01/opinion/01friedman.html.

]]> By: Paul Dorell http://fictionwritersreview.com/blog/mr-president-tell-us-a-story/comment-page-1#comment-3467 Paul Dorell Wed, 27 Jan 2010 22:40:12 +0000 http://fictionwritersreview.com/?p=6303#comment-3467 I wish it were that simple. It's true that Obama hasn't come up with an effective narrative to sell his programs to the public. But that isn’t to say that the opposition deserves much credit. Obama's problem is that he's trying to act democratically and truthfully. Democracy and truth are of little interest to the people who disseminate death panel and tea party propaganda. Because Obama has principles, he doesn’t resort to lying and mudslinging. That puts him at a disadvantage, because most of the public, most members of Congress, and even most members of the Supreme Court are, to put it bluntly, ignorant. This is apparent in the so-called Wall Street versus Main Street story line. Basically, Wall Street had to be rescued in order to prevent a major world depression. The populist narrative that is being used against Obama ignores that fact and inappropriately directs attention to corrupt cronyism that probably never occurred. As an observer, I find it embarrassing that Obama has to repeatedly explain the obvious. If people can’t understand the basic economic causes of the recession and the steps that were taken to fix it, if they don’t realize that major reform of the health care system is critical to everyone’s future health, what do they understand? Very little, I think. I hope I don’t seem too pessimistic for you, Celeste. Actually I’m a realist. Obama is an incredible talent, and I still have high hopes that he’ll be able to pull it off – preferably without resorting to pure fiction. I wish it were that simple. It’s true that Obama hasn’t come up with an effective narrative to sell his programs to the public. But that isn’t to say that the opposition deserves much credit. Obama’s problem is that he’s trying to act democratically and truthfully. Democracy and truth are of little interest to the people who disseminate death panel and tea party propaganda. Because Obama has principles, he doesn’t resort to lying and mudslinging. That puts him at a disadvantage, because most of the public, most members of Congress, and even most members of the Supreme Court are, to put it bluntly, ignorant. This is apparent in the so-called Wall Street versus Main Street story line. Basically, Wall Street had to be rescued in order to prevent a major world depression. The populist narrative that is being used against Obama ignores that fact and inappropriately directs attention to corrupt cronyism that probably never occurred.

As an observer, I find it embarrassing that Obama has to repeatedly explain the obvious. If people can’t understand the basic economic causes of the recession and the steps that were taken to fix it, if they don’t realize that major reform of the health care system is critical to everyone’s future health, what do they understand? Very little, I think.

I hope I don’t seem too pessimistic for you, Celeste. Actually I’m a realist. Obama is an incredible talent, and I still have high hopes that he’ll be able to pull it off – preferably without resorting to pure fiction.

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