"An American Gorbachev"

Last weekend, during the Asia-Pacific Economic Summit taking place in Hawaii, President Obama raised the hackles of more than a few Americans with his comments about the country and our actions towards attracting foreign businesses and international investment to the US....

The U.S. is still the largest recipient of foreign investment in the world, Obama said, "but we've been a little bit lazy, I think, over the last couple of decades."

"We've kind of taken for granted (that), well, people will want to come here, and we aren't out there hungry, selling America and trying to attract new business into America," Obama said.

Obama said he has assigned federal officials to work with state and local governments to help attract foreign investors.

No one likes being called 'lazy' - and this is just a continuation of the President's habit to not only reflect poorly on the United States, but to deflect the blame for the current economic challenges from his policies and himself to others....in this case, the American people.

Stephen Green, Vodkapundit, at PJ Media wrote an excellent analysis of the President's comments, his history of similar comments, and a historical reference to the President's comments.

What this is, is the opening shots in the inevitable decay of a Socialist economy. When productivity starts dropping and there are fewer resources available for redistribution, the leadership notes that the people aren’t working as hard as they used to. The obvious conclusion is that the people have gotten lazy, and the nomenklatura then start on a campaign to get people to work harder and more effectively. Look up some political posters from the USSR of the Twenties and Thirties for examples…

…When Gorbachev assumed power in 1985, one of his first acts as General-Secretary of the Communist Party of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Commies do like their titles), was to launch an anti-alcohol campaign. Americans, we eat too much and watch too much TV. Russians, they drink until they just can’t drink anything more. And then that’s when they peel the foil top off the really cheap hooch. “Vodka” comes from the Russian for “little water,” and they’re not kidding.

This is one of those 'Read it all' essays.

I contend that the concept of a decline, as in the decline of the US in power, influence, and economics is not a case of destiny, but one of decision.  A number of decisions being made on our behalf have set the country on a path that many see is one of decline.  This decline is not inevitable.  Nor is it irreversible.  We can make new decisions, different decisions, to put this country on a different path - a path that is based on the same traditional American values that catapulted this country from its small start to be not only the only superpower, but a beacon for much of the world.