Respect the office ......

no matter what you think of the man in it.

Tomorrow there will be a coronation in Washington. The man is shameless - he is pulling out all the stops, playing the race card, tugging the heart strings, posing in all the right locations and generally playing to the world stage. Already it is evident that a majority of US citizens are ready to give him a chance by closing ranks around the office, no matter what their personal feelings about the man occupying it may be. We could learn from that example north of the border.

Nobody short of Jesus Christ himself could possibly live up to the expectations that the world has for Obama. Nevertheless he seems bent on building the expectations even higher. Ultimately the whole so-called global financial crisis is nothing more than a collapsing ponzi scheme. Markets work because people believe that they will continue to work. Capital has value because people believe that it has value. Let's all hope that the sudden worldwide rush of enthusiasm for this previously little known senator from Illinois provides the impetus necessary to restore international confidence. If it doesn't, God help us all because the man's grasp of policy is as thin as rainwater.