Barack Obama: Black & Lucky
by Special Correspondent Wendi Muse
I recall hearing once that success is where preparation and opportunity meet. Apparently this expression is not suited for the President of the United States. Obama’s moments of success in office, according to some, are occurring simply because he is, well, black and lucky . . . just like Felix the Cat:
President Barack Obama reminds me of Felix the Cat. One of the best-loved cartoon characters of the 1920s, Felix was not only black. He was also very, very lucky. And that pretty much sums up the 44th president of the US as he takes a well-earned summer break after just over six months in the world’s biggest and toughest job.
This quotation comes to us hot off the presses and a hop, skip, and a jump across the pond from columnist Niall Ferguson of London’s Financial Times. He has even blessed us with a nice little image in case some of the Financial Times readers are too young to know about the housecat named named Felix who is a cartoon and not a great club DJ:
“Felix the Cat, the wonderful, wonderful cat! Whenever he gets in a fix, he reaches into his bag of tricks!”
So IS President Obama simply black and lucky like our lovable cartoon friend? Or is there actually something he learned during his academic experience and political career that may have helped him along the way? I am not sure what to think, really, or even how I am writing this article. After all, being literate must be a good case a luck, right?
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For more info, check out these pieces in The Huffington Post and on The Cartoon Brew. Also, check out this follow up on the Joker piece: “Listen Up, Lou Dobbs: ‘Socialist’ and the N-Word” by Carlos Watson.
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of
Joy wrote:
I wish I could say that I can’t believe someone (an actual journalist, not the usual randoms) would compare President Obama to Felix the Cat.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 12:17 pm ¶
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist wrote:
ugh, what bullshit. but to be fair, George W. Bush was often compared to a monkey or chimp…
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 12:18 pm ¶
Amused0472 wrote:
I just finished reading Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers and I tend to think if we looked at Obama’s pathclosely, we’d find there was a perfect storm of events that allowed him to achieve POTUS. People could just focus on one thing like luck or fate, but I never believe it’s just one thing. And given all the hostility rising over healthcare reform and the economy, I don’t know that I would characterize his status as lucky. I’m glad he has the education and political savvy to take on the hardest job in the world.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 1:00 pm ¶
Matt wrote:
Jeet Heer provided, as far as I’m concerned, the definitive take on this.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 1:28 pm ¶
Hicham Maged wrote:
I think POTUS isn’t only black and lucky; he’s a man who have a vision, and try to put action plans for his vision with his carisma + the working team arround him.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 4:20 pm ¶
NancyP wrote:
Ferguson is being a twit. However, never turn down sheer luck. “Chance favors the prepared mind”. It helps to recognize the luck and have a plan for leveraging it.
DIMA, Bush isn’t black, so the “monkey” comparison doesn’t have the same connotation as it does for those whose recent ancestors were often regarded as being of a different and lower species akin to monkeys. (There’s a ton of history of science and history of religion work tracing the black = monkey motif to well over 200 years ago).
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 4:37 pm ¶
Sapna wrote:
…sigh.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 4:38 pm ¶
RCHOUDH wrote:
Oh yes Obama didn’t get to where he is today because of his own hard work and dedication, he was just damn lucky like all other POC’s who achieve success/sarcasm!
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 4:44 pm ¶
ashlynn wrote:
You know, I had a principal in high school who sounded very much like this man. In her office, we had a conference regarding me wanting to drop a(needless) independent study course, a conference in which she said to me, “It’s a shame you don’t want to care. You are lucky to have what you do now- you’re a young black woman and colleges just want to throw money at you because of that.” I’m paraphrasing, but trust me, the original sentiment was far more biting and out of line. I remember going, “Oh gee, never mind that I taught myself to read, or worked my ass off to acheive despite my gaping disadvantage, I am just soo lucky that Massa had pity on me and gave me permission to suceed. Now, do you want me to shine your shoes before I kiss them?”
To which she threw me out of her office.
But anyway, my point is that this man has some gall to say that Obama’s achievements and persistence and determination- which he largely shares with the millions who worked and fought and encouraged right alongside him- are the products of sheer dumb luck. Because when Washington and Lincoln and Reagan and all the rest did it, they had such great mountains to climb.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 5:15 pm ¶
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist wrote:
haha, good one, Ashlynn, I’m proud of you for getting thrown by the arrogant prick of that principal out of her office
*high five*
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 5:24 pm ¶
Lisa wrote:
Wow! Looking at it from an outsiders perspective I’ve always felt the opposite – that a person such as Obama, with so much intelligence, ability and charisma was actually a bit UNlucky to have to come in and be left with all that mess to clean up from the incompetent corrupt lot that came before him!
But I hope, for the sake of US citizens, that he turns out to be lucky, because he’ll need a bit of luck to stand half a chance of fixing things up a bit!
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 6:32 pm ¶
PPR_Scribe wrote:
Same ole same ole. Just like in sports, high achieving Blacks have “innate” ability while White athletes who perform well are hard working and intelligent…
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 6:58 pm ¶
Nick wrote:
I’d read some of Niall Ferguson’s work and I have to say this doesn’t sound like his style.
However, I can’t get through the FT pay-wall so I can’t really comment.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 7:11 pm ¶
Jo wrote:
And it is the likes of Niall Ferguson teaching the future of America at Harvard University. God help us all
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 7:44 pm ¶
silverkris wrote:
Gawd, is this the same Niall Ferguson who is an apologist for British imperialism? I’m not surprised.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 7:46 pm ¶
Titanis walleri wrote:
“ugh, what bullshit. but to be fair, George W. Bush was often compared to a monkey or chimp…”
Mostly because he really does look like one…
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 7:53 pm ¶
ktrujillo wrote:
A pound of pluck is worth a ton of luck and President Obama is clearly one hard working, driven individual. To deny him his fair due is like so many AA critics who claim that successful women and minorities are just “lucky” since the system works unfairly in their advantage (as if). It’s the same with Sotomayor whose countless accomplishments are reduced to an ‘undeserved handout’. When you point out their stellar records you’re met with a…well they just had it handed to them…what luck! It couldn’t possibly be earned…could it?
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 8:51 pm ¶
dot wrote:
Is that literally a knapsack of some sort of lucky privilege that they”ve illustrated there?
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 9:25 pm ¶
octogalore wrote:
I think everyone who’s been president has been lucky in some ways, including Obama. I don’t think he’s been unique in that regard. He was lucky in the final analysis that the economy became more critical than foreign policy, and he came after a Repub president and had an opponent who were both clumsy, with Bush being a disaster, on that issue.
What Obama shares with other presidents is ambition. He, like Clinton, mapped out his career well in advance and had the academic resume to back it up an the team to sell his lack of experience as refreshing. This isn’t luck.
Obama also has a great speaking ability and sales ability — from a campaigning standpoint, less so from a nuts and bolts policy standpoint. But, the former was the critical factor in becoming president, and he has great strength there.
So, while not a fan, I don’t think he was lucky. He had more of the criteria needed to win elections than his opponents, and positioned himself, with the help of some good advisors, to take advantage of the time at which those criteria could be best mobilized.
Posted 14 Aug 2009 at 2:06 am ¶
pm wrote:
Niall Ferguson thinks the British Empire was a good thing and that we need more imperialism. He’s the house historian to the neo-cons, so its hardly a great shock that he writes a bad column – he’s supported at least one catastrophically bad idea.
Being literate is surely in part down to luck though – luck to have been born and educated in a part of the world where literacy is the norm.
Posted 14 Aug 2009 at 2:15 am ¶
Wendi Muse wrote:
pm…i am black, so i was being sarcastic when i said that my literacy must be solely a case of luck.
Posted 14 Aug 2009 at 5:31 am ¶
ACW wrote:
When an individual says, “I consider myself lucky,” it’s acceptable because it’s a way of demonstrating one is humble or saying one, while well-prepared and hard-working, acknowledges also being in the right place at the right time.
For someone *else* to call an individual ‘lucky’ is just plain rude. It insinuates that the person succeeding has not worked hard and prepared well, and __is intended to humble the person described__.
Posted 14 Aug 2009 at 10:41 am ¶
ashlynn wrote:
@DIMA
Yes…thanks! *high fives* Getting blacklisted for the sake of progress is a dirty job, but someone’s gotta do it!
Posted 15 Aug 2009 at 4:47 pm ¶