Midway upon the journey of our life I found myself within a forest dark, for the straightforward pathway had been lost. – The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri

America is living its own ‘Divine Comedy,’ and as with Dante’s original story, there is nothing to laugh about. The right path has been lost to us because we lack direction.  We are half-way through our collective journey with President Obama, and our country has strayed from the righteous path; we have wandered into a darkness of mystification that Obama cannot see through because he lacks the vision of a principled leader .

Leaders do not employ ‘hope’ as a methodology to enact ‘change’ at a time of crisis.  Leaders put priorities into play and translate words into deeds. Leaders do not always see the exact crisis, but experience tells them what works and what does not work. Leaders know that sometimes their public perception should reflect the importance of the crisis.  And for those of us who have been blessed to witness great leadership first hand know that one person’s calm is merely another person’s cluelessness.  What America is witnessing with Obama is a community organizer, who is armed only with a naïve temperament, who has suddenly been thrust into a world consumed with peril.

For far too many, the gift of leadership is a greatly underappreciated asset. The presidential election of 2008 is a perfect example of how artificial leadership skills can be greatly exaggerated to win over voters who lack insight of the true character of leadership, and recent events make it crystal clear that real, proven leadership is needed for the Office of the President of the United States. An unproven academic theory applied by untested underachievers does not make for great leadership; it only makes for dismal failure.

Leading up to the general election in 2008, time after time people pointed out that candidate Obama had never led anything, and time after time Obama supporters proclaimed that he is running a great campaign. It should be of no surprise too many that President Obama is failing at almost every crisis. Leading a campaign and leading a country are two uniquely different beast.  Just because you own a cat doesn’t make you a lion tamer, and just because you convince enough people to vote for you does not mean you are ready to lead.  Candidate Obama ran a seemly good campaign; President Obama is in way over his head. What would it matter if President Obama ‘showed some emotion (as some have suggested)’ when all it would be is misdirected irritation, and in no way an indication of leadership.

Watching President Obama these past few months trying to deal with the BP oil spill, North Korea’s overt acts of war, Iran’s continued defiance, the international community’s ‘ganging up’ on Israel, misspeaking (or butting in where it does not belong – Cambridge Police, Arizona immigration law), and an economy in chaos, one almost feels sorry for President Obama…almost.  President Obama own narcissism and arrogance, fueled by willing enablers (from birth to oath), is how we find ourselves off the pathway of righteousness.

There are many people like President Obama.  The halls of academia and the streets of despair are crowded with those who look at the world through the prism of underachievement, and believe that success can be achieved if only the bar was really as low as they thought it was.  Ask the ‘you’ of 21 and the ‘you’ of 40 what it means to be a leader, and the answers would astound you. Is it any wonder that Obama’s resume of mediocrity was seen by fellow underachievers as the resume of a proven leader.

Every generation or so, America mistakenly tries to redefine what virtues make a great leader; and every time we realize that virtues such as integrity, commonsense,  self- reliance, real world experience, confidence – balanced with humility, and a commitment to a cause higher than oneself are the intrinsic worth that makes a great leader.

America deserves a great leader every time they elect someone as President.  But what Americans have failed to realize for far too long is that the President is nothing more than the extension of the country, and that it is the citizens that are the true leaders.  In the end we must remember the straightforward path is our way out of the darkness of the forest, and as we have demonstrated in the past, leadership grows and gathers it strength from the people. It is time once again for the people to lead.

Live Free or Die