BLISSFUL THINKING?

Eight years ago, Democratic nominee Al, and his spouse, Tipper Gore tried to create a loving moment at the Democratic convention. The nation was not prepared for the five second spectacle it was about to witness.

In a staged attempt to show the nation an example of a loving couple, what the nation actually got was a kiss of such nauseating magnitude, a show so staged and ludicrous that it transcended true affection into a fake carnal "can't wait to get back into the motel room" make out scene.
Now known as "The Kiss," it marked a new era in political acting, transcending even his former bosses audacity to hold the hand of his spouse, a woman who was publicly humiliated by ex-President Clinton's continued, and persistent philandering.

The Obama's seem to be quite the opposite to the casual observer. They seem to share a common affection for each other, and a genuine shared likability factor, a quality much more uncommon than love for long married couples. There is a genuineness that exudes when seeing these two together.

In fact, the only times you can really see the measure of the man behind the scenes of our next President is when he is sitting next to his wife. In public, Obama parses his words, and each phrase is carefully measured, so much so that the Obama hesitations when speaking off the cuff, are becoming legendary to comedians everywhere. It may be the one tick impressionists can capitalize on.

But when the Obama's are together in an interview (most recently interviewed by Barbara Walters over the weekend on ABC), it is Mrs. Obama that seems overly careful about her words, and Barack seems more than willing to crack a joke, or show his real personality. Her presence seems to give him a self confidence, an ease, which may be altogether unwise for a president, but it is there.

On the fluff subject offered up by Walters concerning a dog, Barack called Walters dog (a Havanese), a "yappie" dog, and "girlie." He discussed his parental style, and claimed not to be "too soft" on his children. He smiled, he laughed, and they seemed to be very much in love without the sickeningly sweet political need to hold hands or smooch on camera. They came off as very real and very much in love with each other.

So, why should we care? Because the nation as a whole has lost its moral compass, and the last two generations have been marked with the continuing decay of the American domestic family. This down slide has manifested itself in many ways, most importantly with higher crime rates among our youth, and a ever increasingly higher rate of poverty among the one parent families. Not to mention the moral effect on discipline and family values adversely effected by a one parent household. The single parent is so preoccupied with providing for the family unit financially, it inevitably results in a lack of parental supervision, and a decreased sense of belonging to the family unit among the children.

As important as this is to the nation as a whole, these pronounced circumstances have devastated the black community. For African-Americans, the image of a powerful black couple in love is particularly meaningful. In the 2005 census, 51 percent of American women reported they were living without a spouse. Among African-Americans, this number rose to 70 percent. With such a high percentage of black people unmarried, everyone is looking for images of black love. The Obamas personify that. It makes people say, "Wow, we want to be like them."

Will the Obama family start to bring about a new wave of family values with their example of the black nuclear family? I hope so. It is a daunting task, but one that I am certain has crossed the minds of each of the Obamas. We have lost the family unit to a certain extent, and one might argue, so has the White House itself. Not since the Kennedy's have we had a President and First Lady seemingly in love with each other, and even then, their relationship was marked with the repeated grumblings of his alleged cheating.

The Obama's may signify a new appreciation for the nuclear family unit, and loving partnerships unknown to Pennsylvania Avenue in quite some time. In testimony to this, I end with a quote from Barack; certainly a risky thing to say for a Presidential candidate to be sure, but here it is...."Michelle is one of the smartest people I know. She is my chief counsel and adviser. I would never make big decisions without asking her opinion."

The Obama's; seemingly a genuine partnership based on love, and mutual religious convictions. The question is, will anybody notice, or even care?