Comments on: Obama as ex-community organizer http://psychoanalystsopposewar.org/blog/2008/09/07/obama-as-ex-community-organizer/ Thoughts by Stephen Soldz on war, peace, politics, psychoanalysis, and research methods Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:57:45 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: Edward Brown http://psychoanalystsopposewar.org/blog/2008/09/07/obama-as-ex-community-organizer/comment-page-1/#comment-200428 Edward Brown Mon, 08 Sep 2008 18:59:38 +0000 http://psychoanalystsopposewar.org/blog/?p=1601#comment-200428 If political genius can be ascribed to Barack Obama, it would be most appropriate. Saul Alinsky's "Rules for Radicals" outlines how community organizers build coalitions by taking the most salient concerns of a community and building the organization around those concerns. Alinsky warned that the factors had to be numerous enough to maintain the organization over a period of time or else the people would cease to support initiatives that were too narrow, particularly after the objective had been met. What about community organizing caused Obama to become disillusioned? Was it the changing dynamics of community interests? Or did he determine that he could not get his needs met as the community got theirs? Based on his choice to run for president, it's logical that the latter was the case. And a good thing for him! Recently, it has come to light that Mother Teresa had her moments of doubt about the divinity of her mission. Like many individuals who've dedicated their lives to altruistic causes, it comes a time when they question their effectiveness and long term happiness under tumultuous conditions. Only professional agitators like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have learned to have it both ways: 1. Pretend to altruistically speak for the masses, 2. While threatening corporate America with the wrath of their constituency. The fusion of the charismatic leadership model arouses emotions, but in their case scares the corporate citizenry. Obama rejected the Jackson/Sharpton Model because: 1.It stems from the 1960's model as a genesis of Martin Luther King, Jr. 2. Obama isn't viscerally tied to the Civil Rights Movement. He, in fact, is the recipient of its spoils. Obama fused the political demagoguery of John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton, with a truncated version of Alinsky's "Build a coalition around salient issues" ( Anti-war, People First and Change Washingtonian Politics). In the end, he could inspire, lead and avoid the economic upheaval faced by community activist by becoming wealthy. Everyone would get what they wanted. Finally, what had he learned about human nature through community organizing as well as politics? Invariably, no collective institution can save the population based on its endless needs and complexities. Obama's solution, "Give the people hope for them to pull themselves up by their bootstraps to solve their own problems." His experiences lead him here, but he couldn't outright express it for fear of sounding like a Republican. Under the American credo that's all he knew to offer, which was a rallying cry for the American populous as well as to himself. Edward Brown Core Edge Image & Charisma Institute If political genius can be ascribed to Barack Obama, it would be most appropriate. Saul Alinsky’s “Rules for Radicals” outlines how community organizers build coalitions by taking the most salient concerns of a community and building the organization around those concerns. Alinsky warned that the factors had to be numerous enough to maintain the organization over a period of time or else the people would cease to support initiatives that were too narrow, particularly after the objective had been met.

What about community organizing caused Obama to become disillusioned? Was it the changing dynamics of community interests? Or did he determine that he could not get his needs met as the community got theirs? Based on his choice to run for president, it’s logical that the latter was the case. And a good thing for him! Recently, it has come to light that Mother Teresa had her moments of doubt about the divinity of her mission. Like many individuals who’ve dedicated their lives to altruistic causes, it comes a time when they question their effectiveness and long term happiness under tumultuous conditions. Only professional agitators like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have learned to have it both ways: 1. Pretend to altruistically speak for the masses, 2. While threatening corporate America with the wrath of their constituency. The fusion of the charismatic leadership model arouses emotions, but in their case scares the corporate citizenry.

Obama rejected the Jackson/Sharpton Model because: 1.It stems from the 1960’s model as a genesis of Martin Luther King, Jr. 2. Obama isn’t viscerally tied to the Civil Rights Movement. He, in fact, is the recipient of its spoils.

Obama fused the political demagoguery of John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton, with a truncated version of Alinsky’s “Build a coalition around salient issues” ( Anti-war, People First and Change Washingtonian Politics). In the end, he could inspire, lead and avoid the economic upheaval faced by community activist by becoming wealthy. Everyone would get what they wanted.

Finally, what had he learned about human nature through community organizing as well as politics? Invariably, no collective institution can save the population based on its endless needs and complexities. Obama’s solution, “Give the people hope for them to pull themselves up by their bootstraps to solve their own problems.” His experiences lead him here, but he couldn’t outright express it for fear of sounding like a Republican. Under the American credo that’s all he knew to offer, which was a rallying cry for the American populous as well as to himself.

Edward Brown
Core Edge Image & Charisma Institute

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