U.S. Economy: Hope? Nope. Change? Not so much.

So.

Who is this "Barack Obama", really?

He's a former Illinois politician.  We know that.  And what do we know about politicians in Illinois?

Well, since 1961, half of their governors have ended up being convicted of some form of corruption:

-- Rod Blagojevich -- Governor from 2002 through 2009, when he became the first Illinois governor in history to be impeached. Convicted of numerous corruption charges Monday, including allegations that he tried to sell or trade President Barack Obama's old Senate seat. 

-- George Ryan -- Governor from 1999 through 2003. After leaving office, was convicted of racketeering for actions as governor and secretary of state. In November 2007, began serving 6 1/2 years in federal prison.

-- Dan Walker -- Governor from 1973-1977. Pleaded guilty to bank fraud and other charges in 1987 related to his business activities after leaving office. Spent just over a year and a half in federal prison.

-- Otto Kerner -- Governor from 1961-1968. Resigned to become judge, then was convicted of bribery related to his tenure as governor. Sentenced to three years in prison.

So.  Not to say Obama is corrupt.  Not to say that there aren't moral politicians coming from Illinois.  But it's a coin toss, really.  The chances of an Illinois politician being dirty, somehow, appear to be about 50/50.

And so now, when we see Operation Fast and Furious beginning to capture the attention of the press, Americans are asking "Why were we sending guns to Mexican drug dealers?" And, "How high did this go?"  And we're seeing denials from Barack Obama that sound eerily like Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, denying complicity in Watergate and the Iran/Contra affair.

And, while the President and his Attorney General play cute with demands for explanations, the U.S. economy continues to suffer.

Joblessness still runs at 9%, the deficit is out of control, Congress is paralyzed.

And, really, as yet another failing U.S. President struggles with the muck and mire of that office - a trip to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue begins to resemble a trip to the heart of darkness.  Those who once, perhaps, saw Barack Obama as the second coming, are now wondering if he is beginning to sit, angry and brooding, like Colonel Kurtz, alone in his thoughts.

And reminiscent of Dennis Hopper's character in Apocalypse Now, as the Republican nomination process begins to take hold, the babbling liberal media tries to make sense of the senseless direction their country is going, and where their leader is leading.  Soon we will see the editorial page of the New York Times print something like this:

In Canada.. we have no such excitement.  We have the Canadian government experience.  Stephen Harper, Conservative, boring, no "Hope" or "Change We Can Believe In" T-Shirts. 

The somewhat quiet - some might even say dull - Stephen Harper stands at the bridge of our ship.

And our press, hardly enamoured with our Prime Minister, merely reports on our dull Canadian reality:

The Star

July 8, 2011

Canada created more jobs last month than U.S. did

The Canadian Press

OTTAWA—The Canadian economy created 28,000 jobs last month, helped by a gain the part-time jobs to post its third consecutive month of growth.

By comparison, U.S. employers added just 18,000 workers in June, the fewest number in nine months, as unemployment unexpected rose to 9.2 per cent and the tepid American labour market continued to threaten the economy recovery south of the border.

Hope and Change?  No thanks, we're doing just fine.