I must say, that for all the praise heaped on Obama's speech giving talents, I find his style quite ponderous, annoying even - I certainly don't see what all the fuss is about: he comes across as both pedagogical and messianic - or, possibly closer to the point, as a person who sees or fancies himself as one ordained by a higher power to teach true lessons and lead lost souls out of the wilderness. When I listen to him, whether at the lectern or just giving an interview, I find myself thinking that there's probably any number of charismatic college professors/baptist preachers in the country with the same shtick and capable of more convincing performances. There's something about all this high praise that has nothing to do with his putative talent and more probably to do with what people want to believe they're hearing. That the man has political talent goes without saying - but that can amount to a very superficial thing after all - and any person who argues that Obama's depth has been adequately demonstrated is simply not being honest with themselves.
Still, the man did say he would not be pressured into buying a girls dog and that gets him a lot of credit with me. I'll give him his chance...
