This article was written with SBY as its main target, noting that SBY should learn from Obama's experience, that he needed to lead, to be out there in the front, not just coming out in the end when the battle was over.
What I did not expect was the accompanying letter to the editor attached in the end of this article by someone named Gerald. I had fun reading it. Too bad it was published much later so I didn't pay attention to it - I only read letters to editor section in case I need some entertainments, otherwise I'd ignore it. Had I known about this, I'd frame it and hang it.
The letter was amusing because it suggested since I was not a US citizen, I did not have the rights to criticize Obama. He noted that foreigners should mind their own businesses. Well, I'd guess he hadn't heard the names such as Mr. Ben Anderson, Mr. Jeffrey Winters, Mr. Ruth McVey, Mr. George Kahin, Mr. R. William Liddle, Mr. Daniel Lev, Mr. Herbert Feith, Mr. Donald K. Emmerson, Mr. Clifford Geertz, and various other great scholars on Indonesia who criticized Indonesia's political system.
I always find it amusing that it seems that for Obama lovers, there's a freedom of speech except for anyone bashing Obama. I think it is fortunate that he could not (or have not) read my analysis on Obama's victory in Seputar Indonesia, otherwise he'd get a heart attack.
Well, after all this time, I actually wanted to ask him, "so how's that hopey-changey thing working out for ya?" I am not a Palin fan. In fact, I hate her, she is overstaying her welcome and she should fade away. The sooner the better. Still, I do like that phrase.
Anyway, this kind of stuff make me bitter, so I think I will cling to my guns and religion.
What I did not expect was the accompanying letter to the editor attached in the end of this article by someone named Gerald. I had fun reading it. Too bad it was published much later so I didn't pay attention to it - I only read letters to editor section in case I need some entertainments, otherwise I'd ignore it. Had I known about this, I'd frame it and hang it.
The letter was amusing because it suggested since I was not a US citizen, I did not have the rights to criticize Obama. He noted that foreigners should mind their own businesses. Well, I'd guess he hadn't heard the names such as Mr. Ben Anderson, Mr. Jeffrey Winters, Mr. Ruth McVey, Mr. George Kahin, Mr. R. William Liddle, Mr. Daniel Lev, Mr. Herbert Feith, Mr. Donald K. Emmerson, Mr. Clifford Geertz, and various other great scholars on Indonesia who criticized Indonesia's political system.
I always find it amusing that it seems that for Obama lovers, there's a freedom of speech except for anyone bashing Obama. I think it is fortunate that he could not (or have not) read my analysis on Obama's victory in Seputar Indonesia, otherwise he'd get a heart attack.
Well, after all this time, I actually wanted to ask him, "so how's that hopey-changey thing working out for ya?" I am not a Palin fan. In fact, I hate her, she is overstaying her welcome and she should fade away. The sooner the better. Still, I do like that phrase.
Anyway, this kind of stuff make me bitter, so I think I will cling to my guns and religion.
--------
SBY and Obama’s healthcare fiasco
Yohanes Sulaiman, Jakarta | Tue, 02/23/2010 11:08 AM
On Feb. 8, a Marist College survey reported that US President Barack Obama’s approval rating had sunk to 44 percent, with 57 percent of the independents disapproving of his performance.
On the same day, Gallup noted that only 36 percent of respondents approved of Obama’s handling of the economy and healthcare, the main priorities of the Obama administration.
The problems of Obama, more or less, are also being experienced by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) in his second term.
Obama learned this the hard way. Last year, he was practically the most popular and revered person in the United States and the world, snagging the Nobel Peace Prize for doing nothing in the meantime.
He pushed his liberal agenda, healthcare reforms, with a philosophy that can be summed as, “We’ll shove this down people’s throats, they will see how good this is, and they will like it.
I’ve got the mandate anyway, since my popularity rating is at 69 percent [as of Jan. 22, 2009].”
Obviously, the economy was a major factor. At this point, unemployment was still hovering at around 10 percent. Regardless of whether Bush or Greenspan’s failed policies were to blame, the buck still stops at Obama’s desk. Voters simply did not see him spending much time on fixing the economy.
While it is possible to claim that it is unfair to blame Obama completely for the economic problems, the White House shares much of the blame for Obama’s freefall from popularity.
There are two biggest factors for this mess.
First, Obama simply did not lead when he was needed the most. When the healthcare bill was stalled, Congress was lacking direction, and people were confused, Obama was not there to lead.
He did not cajole leaders; did not try to build a coalition of the willing, and compromise. He did not inform people honestly about what was in the healthcare bill. In fact, he seemed to be content to let things move along.
Instead, he simply set arbitrary deadlines, which repelled even the moderate Democrats and Republicans, such as Senators Ben Nelson (D-Nebraska) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), who had earlier agreed to jump on Obama’s healthcare bandwagon (Bloomberg, Dec. 18, 2009, AP Jan.20, 2010).
This lack of leadership, especially in crafting a coalition of moderates, directly created the second problem, which was the lack of trust from people toward Obama’s healthcare bill. As the political elite bickered and squabbled in Washington, people no longer saw the bill as something positive.
As noted by Feaver and Gelpi in their very interesting book, Choosing Your Battles (2003), which was about the American public’s support of military intervention, support from the public increased when the political elite all (or mostly) agreed on the goal of the intervention.
They saw this as proof that the project would be successful and worthwhile.
When the political elite disagreed, however, people started to see the bickering as a signal that something was wrong, that the intervention was going badly. While the book is about military intervention, the logic works for the healthcare debate.
The partisan bickering in Washington about the healthcare bill signaled to the people that the bill was probably not that good.
If it was that good, why would people fight over it? Moreover, the bill was created in secret and rushed by the Democrat-dominated House without any input from the opposition Republicans, further increasing the suspicions.
These factors led to the emergence of the popular protest group called the “Tea Party”, energized the Republicans, while discouraged the Democrats, leading to the Republican victory at the special election in Massachusetts in January 2010.
At the same time, Obama was not seen as presidential; he seemed to be reacting to problems, instead of trying to seize the initiative and to lead.
Currently, President Yudhoyono in Indonesia is walking on the same path as Obama. While the economy is still good (which helps in bolstering SBY’s approval rating), his lack of leadership is worrisome.
Ever since SBY was reelected, the country seemed to be dominated by political problems, from the incompetence in arresting Noordin M. Top, to the failed efforts to frame two commissioners of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the Bank Century bailout
scandal.
In all these problems, only silence emanated from Cikeas, the President’s private residence.
The President did not show himself as willing to lead, to seize the initiative and to push his agenda.
As a result, the first 100 days of SBY’s second term was devoid of anything worth celebrating.
There was no bold breakthrough, no strong governmental action in trying to solve national problems from law-enforcements reforms to the high poverty rate.
When the President declared that his first 100 days was a success, only yawns and jeers were heard as a response.
President SBY probably relied too much on the fact that he won a landslide victory in the last election. The only thing President SBY could rely on was good governance and strong leadership. Obama hopefully has learned his lesson. It is hoped that President SBY will show much stronger leadership in tackling national problems.
On the same day, Gallup noted that only 36 percent of respondents approved of Obama’s handling of the economy and healthcare, the main priorities of the Obama administration.
The problems of Obama, more or less, are also being experienced by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) in his second term.
Obama learned this the hard way. Last year, he was practically the most popular and revered person in the United States and the world, snagging the Nobel Peace Prize for doing nothing in the meantime.
He pushed his liberal agenda, healthcare reforms, with a philosophy that can be summed as, “We’ll shove this down people’s throats, they will see how good this is, and they will like it.
I’ve got the mandate anyway, since my popularity rating is at 69 percent [as of Jan. 22, 2009].”
Obviously, the economy was a major factor. At this point, unemployment was still hovering at around 10 percent. Regardless of whether Bush or Greenspan’s failed policies were to blame, the buck still stops at Obama’s desk. Voters simply did not see him spending much time on fixing the economy.
While it is possible to claim that it is unfair to blame Obama completely for the economic problems, the White House shares much of the blame for Obama’s freefall from popularity.
There are two biggest factors for this mess.
First, Obama simply did not lead when he was needed the most. When the healthcare bill was stalled, Congress was lacking direction, and people were confused, Obama was not there to lead.
He did not cajole leaders; did not try to build a coalition of the willing, and compromise. He did not inform people honestly about what was in the healthcare bill. In fact, he seemed to be content to let things move along.
Instead, he simply set arbitrary deadlines, which repelled even the moderate Democrats and Republicans, such as Senators Ben Nelson (D-Nebraska) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), who had earlier agreed to jump on Obama’s healthcare bandwagon (Bloomberg, Dec. 18, 2009, AP Jan.20, 2010).
This lack of leadership, especially in crafting a coalition of moderates, directly created the second problem, which was the lack of trust from people toward Obama’s healthcare bill. As the political elite bickered and squabbled in Washington, people no longer saw the bill as something positive.
As noted by Feaver and Gelpi in their very interesting book, Choosing Your Battles (2003), which was about the American public’s support of military intervention, support from the public increased when the political elite all (or mostly) agreed on the goal of the intervention.
They saw this as proof that the project would be successful and worthwhile.
When the political elite disagreed, however, people started to see the bickering as a signal that something was wrong, that the intervention was going badly. While the book is about military intervention, the logic works for the healthcare debate.
The partisan bickering in Washington about the healthcare bill signaled to the people that the bill was probably not that good.
If it was that good, why would people fight over it? Moreover, the bill was created in secret and rushed by the Democrat-dominated House without any input from the opposition Republicans, further increasing the suspicions.
These factors led to the emergence of the popular protest group called the “Tea Party”, energized the Republicans, while discouraged the Democrats, leading to the Republican victory at the special election in Massachusetts in January 2010.
At the same time, Obama was not seen as presidential; he seemed to be reacting to problems, instead of trying to seize the initiative and to lead.
Currently, President Yudhoyono in Indonesia is walking on the same path as Obama. While the economy is still good (which helps in bolstering SBY’s approval rating), his lack of leadership is worrisome.
Ever since SBY was reelected, the country seemed to be dominated by political problems, from the incompetence in arresting Noordin M. Top, to the failed efforts to frame two commissioners of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the Bank Century bailout
scandal.
In all these problems, only silence emanated from Cikeas, the President’s private residence.
The President did not show himself as willing to lead, to seize the initiative and to push his agenda.
As a result, the first 100 days of SBY’s second term was devoid of anything worth celebrating.
There was no bold breakthrough, no strong governmental action in trying to solve national problems from law-enforcements reforms to the high poverty rate.
When the President declared that his first 100 days was a success, only yawns and jeers were heard as a response.
President SBY probably relied too much on the fact that he won a landslide victory in the last election. The only thing President SBY could rely on was good governance and strong leadership. Obama hopefully has learned his lesson. It is hoped that President SBY will show much stronger leadership in tackling national problems.
--------
Letters: On SBY and Obama's fiasco
| Mon, 03/01/2010 1:38 PM
This is a comment on an article titled "SBY and Obama's healthcare fiasco," (the Post, Feb. 23) written by Yohanes Suleman.
As an American citizen living in Indonesia I did not favorably read your rather biased point of view on US President Barack Obama and the multitude of problems he faces, most all from the previous Republican administration.
Your commentary I found to be the same old conservative party line. The conservatives (Republican's) are quick to criticize but never come up with any constructive ideas or solutions. For some in the US, the Republicans are known as the "Party of Nope" (no to any and everything).
I have to assume you are not an American citizen but yet you feel perfectly comfortable pontificating on our political issues. It seems to me you might be a bit more humble and partial to the country that gave you your fine education.
Rather than malign the political processes in another country I should think it better you use the skills you acquired in America to resolve the many problems Indonesia faces.
I am quite sure if I were to write a critical essay on your government, your president, that Indonesian citizens would be quick to tell me to mind my own business and they would be correct.
Gerald
Canggu, Bali
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