Stand in the place where you live

President Obama,

A lot of your critics says that you do not take a stand on issues. That you vote "Present" a lot or are too busy playing golf to actually know that something happened. Over 60 days in to the oil spill, you decide to meet with BP Executives. After over a year in office, you decided to meet with Generals about Iraq and Afghanistan. You have not always shown leadership when it has been needed.

However, today I am going to point out to your critics a different view. That you have chosen to take a stand on tough issues. That maybe you didn't answer the phone at 3 a.m., but you had someone read internet reports about the phone call and held a press conference to discuss it.

Now face North.

You have taken a stance on illegal immigration. You have identified one families' farm in Vermont that sits on the dangerous Canadian border that is crucial to the security of our country. A border entry point where three cars may cross a day. Your more than generous offer of under fifty thousand dollars for the 4.9 acre farm went unappreciated by the land owners, so you now see fit to use eminent domain to seize private property. Thank you for protecting our borders and keeping those Illegal Immigrant French Canadians out.

Now face West.

Sarah Palin has made several cutting remarks about your weaknesses on nuclear defense. However, you were quick to take a stand and point out that "Last I checked, Sarah Palin's not much of an expert on nuclear issues." How dare she make the suggestion that the United States be open to defending itself by any means necessary. Good for you standing up for yourself and telling the world that the United States is the only Nuclear Country that will not use it's weapons.

Now face South.

You have taken a tough stance on "rouge" states seeking to strengthen and enforce existing federal laws. It is understandable how no one in your administration has time to read a 16 page document when you have pressing issues like listening to all of those Blagojevich tapes. It is important to tell states that it is the job of the Federal Government to ignore it's own laws and they can go and make their own laws to enforce. Until then you are not going to allow States to use fundamentally flawed documents such at the Constitution to try to justify their actions.

Now face East.

You took swift and decisive action on dealing with General McChrystal, once the Rolling Stone article was published. A Commander-in-chief cannot have his military experts in the field disagreeing with his policies when he has been busy ignoring that there is still a situation and continues to not visit or meet with any military personnel. General Petraeus was an obvious replacement and seemed to be an automatic choice after being portrayed as "General Betray-Us" by the Democrats. But now, General McChrystal who had the support of the Afghan authorities is now going to be sent back to the United States where he will no longer be in a war zone, surrounded by insurgents who want to kill him and having to justify a flawed set of rules of engagement to the troops that he is trying to keep alive.

You have not had an easy job to undertake. But, when times get tough and your teleprompter cannot find the right words to comfort you, you can always come here for re-assurance. So stand in the place where you live, think about direction and wonder why you haven't before. If wishes were trees the trees would be falling. Listen to reason, season is calling. Your feet are going to be on the ground, your head is there to move you around. So stand.


Your friend,

Jason Sanborn
From the soon to be former State of Texas