Obama raises a long-neglected concept: sacrifice

[Celebration]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6099726.html

One word, nestled amid the eloquence of Barack Obama’s victory speech, lingered long after the cheers subsided.

Sacrifice.

It’s a word too long absent from the political discourse, one that speaks to the change that Obama claims his presidency will represent.

We cannot fix our finances without it. We can’t address our foreign oil dependence without it. We can’t repair our broken health care system without it.

We can’t simply shop our way through the crisis, and we can no longer afford to delude ourselves into thinking we can.{/div]

Obama seemed very solemn at his press conference.

[NRaleighLiberal]

1. Sacrifice - one word Bush never tried to mangle.

[ben_meyers]

2. True, but what president since FDR has actually

suggested sacrifice? The last one I remember is Carter, sitting in front of the fireplace wearing a sweater and telling us to turn down the thermostat. He lasted 1 term.

[PennyP]

4. Unlike Carter, I'll bet...

That Obama will put his money where his mouth is and live by example as he asks us to sacrifice.
I bet the white house becomes energy efficient pronto, and asks washington and corporations to sacrifice too. People have been hungry to hear how we can help since sept 11th when shrub told us all to just go shopping, and Carter was no Obama. People will react much differently this time.

[charlie]

5. Uh, Carter did make changes to the White House

He mandated adjusted thermostats for the entire civil service structure and installed solar panels on the White House.

[PennyP]

7. Wow, that sounds tough. That must have kept him busy busy.

The changes Obama will make will likely include a bit more-- but if they don't, then yeah, like Carter, He'll be out in 4 years.

[charlie]

8. No, it sounds correct

As opposed to your assertions that "unlike Carter" Obama will make the White House energy efficient and "ask" for sacrifice in Washington. Carter did do those things, so chill the 'tude. Of course, Obama can do more, public receptiveness and technology is 30 years different.

[PennyP]

9. Actually no it doesn't.

Cuz I mentioned he needs to ask corporate America to pitch in too.

Yes, Obama will be able to do more because the times are more advanced, but sorry, there are plenty of people who like Carter the man, but don't think he was an especially effective president. Get over it.

[charlie]

10. I knew it

"Cuz" you mentioned corporate. You win! Take a lap.

Cripes. You ever hear of CAFE Standards? Government mandated corporate automobile efficiency? Increased by Carter?

His subsidies for alternative energy? No?

Oil consumption was so drastically reduced by his policies they caused an oil glut in the middle of Reagan's terms. If Reagan had not rolled back CAFE Standards and conservation had continued at the same pace, we would not be importing ANY oil from the mideast today. Think about that. No excuses for our military tear assing around the middle east these past decades.

Go read Carter's so-called "malaise" speech. If you didn't know what it was, you'd swear it was written yesterday. Carter had the misfortune of being a man out of his time when it came to the environment and energy. He wasn't a slacker, he did "live by example", as you put it.

Get over yourself.

[PennyP]

11. I agree that Carter was ahead of his time and he did have some good policies....

But a president does more than make policy, a president must be a leader and a communicator. Jimmy Carter didn't do as good a job at this IMHO. Reagan did but sadly he communicated lies.

Carter inherited a tough deal, and did some good things for the economy, but in the end was unable to win the public's trust-- and as a result, the nation swung to the right for a whole generation. Whether anyone else could have done better is up for debate, and I'm not gonna try and figure that one out.

I just hope Obama will have both good policies and the ability to inspire people to believe in his policies, since he has inherited a situation as bad or worse than Carter took office in, and there are tough times ahead. If he doesn't, he will be voted out, and if his successor does a better job (at least in the eyes of the majority of the voting public) then in the end will have done more harm to progressive principles than good.

[charlie]

12. That's fine

But Carter's effectiveness as a communicator or leader wasn't the point. My objection was to the notion that he didn't "put his money where his mouth is." He did. It cost him the presidency. His calls for sacrifice, which is what this thread is about, got him characterized as a hectoring pessimist.

[Dover]

3. I don't think many will feel moved to sacrifice unless the graft, theft & corruption

are taken on first. I don't see how real change can happen if we don't tackle that first.
For instance, if big finance continues to dump their sludge in the river upstream while inspired
volunteers are attempting to clean it up downstream, it's a wasted effort with only the illusion of
achieving something worthwhile. No accountability for corrupt behavior and poor performance is
simply enabling more of the same.

I think people feel they've 'sacrificed' quite a bit with a treasury sitting empty, their
tax burden increased 1000% by weak laws that allow individuals and corporations to hide their
money offshore to avoid taxes, their jobs sent overseas, etc, ETC.


So Obama will have to take that on if he is going to ask the American people for more.

[Warpy]

6. Exactly. Most of us have spent our lifetimes sacrificed on the altar

of corporate greed and think it's high time the corporate types are asked to make a few sacrifices themselves, like sharing the wealth with workers and maybe not poisoning us with the garbage they make.

Things are going to have to get one hell of a lot better for folks on the bottom of the corporate pyramid before sacrifice sells at all.

[Xenotime]

13. Ah..excuse me but I didn't vote for "sacrifice" I vote for "Change"

I am already having to "sacrifice" to get by. This is bullshit if you ask me.

[tuckessee]

14. Let's see the politicians "sacrifice" first. After all, they are the "leaders".

It would be a good example for us rabble, little people, peons & peasants.

I love it when millionaires connected to the most powerful cliques in the nation tell us we have to sacrifice while they live large, often on taxpayer money.

[Hannah Bell]

15. I'm tired of sacrifice. Let the big shots sacrifice.