I think I'm going to have study up on Harry Truman. Maybe, I'll read David McCullough's biography, Truman. Or maybe I'll watch the PBS American Experience biography.
Why? Harry Truman seems to be much upon the minds of many these days. The Current Occupant-In-Chief fancies himself like Truman because Truman's popularity ratings were low due to a stand on a war abroad that no one liked. I think Sarah Palin fancies herself like Truman because he was a "common man" from a small town. I also read a newspaper piece recently where a voter in small town America yearned for a President like Harry Truman because he was the last one with a high school education.
I'm sure that Harry Truman was, in many ways, an "ordinary joe". I think someone once commented (in regard to Truman) shortly after FDR died that "after too much champagne and caviar, it's good to get back to steak and eggs." Yet, that can't be the whole story.
I get the feeling that though Harry Truman was of limited education, he was not of limited intellect or experience. Yes, he only went to high school... but he'd read every book in the local public library by the time he'd graduated. He'd been a soldier in France during World War I. He'd been a small businessman, and a politician on the state and local level for nearly 20 years before he became Vice President. He knew how to be bold, and when to apply common sense. Yes, he was unpopular due to a war... but it was partly due to the fact that he would not widen the war, or pursue the nuclear option.
So, to say that Sarah Palin or the Current Occupant are like Harry Truman... well, I think that seems more like wishful thinking than actual fact.
said drgeek
on 2008-09-14 at 7:55 a.m.
|
The Wayback Machine - To Infinity And Beyond
|