Originally Posted by Libertine

While affirmative action might not work, people using it to their advantage might still be very capable. Just like beautiful women and handsome men usually use their looks for advantage.

A friend of mine, a rather pretty girl, got into one of the best universities in the world and got accepted for several high-profile internships. She's definitely intelligent, but by no means a genius. She's successful not just because of her intelligence, but also because she makes the most of her looks, her gender, her background and her social skills.

For Obama, it's pretty much the same. His intelligence, while significant, is only a part of his success. He exploits opportunities when he sees them, whether they be his charisma, his speaking skills, his looks, his background, policies like affirmative action - anything that can help.

That's not a bad thing. If he wouldn't use all his advantages to his benefit, he'd be a fool.

What I dislike about him, though, is what I dislike about contemporary politics on the whole. Style, these days, greatly exceeds substance in importance. The ability to enthuse a crowd is far more important for one's political success than things like knowledge, qualifications and insight.

That's a problem.

While I prefer Obama over McCain, the fact that he's going to be the next American president has very little to do with his qualifications, experience, knowledge, or political record. He's getting the world's top job because he's charismatic.

Think about that for a moment - the person who will be making the most important decisions in the world a few months from now only gets the job because he's able to present himself well.

For me, that's a frightening prospect.