Fox News often does some interesting things. Today it is taking an Internet Poll on whether or not Obama should conform to some, all or none of some "principles" formulated by a Tea Party group. I can hardly wait to read the responses to this one.
The reason I'm so interested is that I have a suspicion my "fellow Americans" don't know that principled thought requires a pre-determined base of knowledge about how things are. Obama doesn't believe in that nonsense. He is a pragmatist.
By definition pragmatists rely only on the facts of the present moment and act based on the "cash value" (William James) believed to be inherent in the situation.
Therefore, we have for President a man who thinks based on situtional ethics, or relativism if you prefer, and then pragmatically makes his decisions. When that worldview makes decisions you get what our President has said: (1) I will close Gitmo, and (2) We can't close Gitmo. Or (1) Charging the underwear bomber as a criminal was the right thing to do, and (2) who was the idiot who made that decision he is a terrorist. This list could go for the length of time Obama has been in office, so I'll just leave it at that. Pragmatism and principle are diametrical worldviews - they can't mix.
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