No messiah {en}

One of my coworkers, the other day, was saying that M. Obama has betrayed his electors sending troops in Afghanistan. In fact M. Obama never said during the campaign that he will pull out of Afghanistan, he promised even to fight this war with all the might he could, saying in July 2008 that: "this is a war we have to win". My coworker's opinion was not a kind of disillusionment but more of an anti-american schadenfreude. In the US, despite the polls which are in favor of this surge decision, a number of liberal talking heads expressed their disillusionment with M. Obama. This was bound to happen from day one, M. Obama is no messiah and despite his Nobel Peace Prize (another wishful thinking process) he has to be realistic. He can't restore the economy, mend global warming, close Guantanamo immediately, impose the public option in healthcare etc., with a magic wand and good will. It's foolish to think so. M. Obama is a politician and a good one, that is why he is president. He has to be reelected in 2012 if he wants to do what he wants to do. And we should be grateful to have a realist, a pragmatist at the White House, a guy who thinks hard before taking a decision and believes that things evolve gradually, incrementally and by consensus. It's a big change after years of gut thinking, blind idealism and quick fire decisions.