"I, BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA..............."

It will be difficult for me not to sound just a little biased in my views of the following news story. However, my real objective is actually to to find out what the rest of you here at Gather think about it and to see if my perspective on all this is anywhere near the target.

I think this is another one of those carefully written news articles and subtly orchestrated policy moves that was announced in such a way as to cause the people who support Obama to say, "Right on!! Great move!! About Time!!," while at the same time causing those who are against Obama to say, "See?? We told you so!! We knew he was really an Islamic sympathizer!!"

Anyway, direct from Yahoo News at: www.news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081210/ap_on_go_pr_wh/obama_interview;_ylt=AokD76K7L_ImDyhpbD_MVmKs0NUE........ Here is the story.............

(All capitalization is mine, by the way............)

 
OBAMA HOPES TO REBOOT US IMAGE AMONG MUSLIMS

 WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama says he will try to "reboot America's image" among the world's Muslims AND WILL FOLLOW TRADITION BY USING HIS ENTIRE NAME - BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA - IN HIS SWEARING-IN CEREMONY.

The U.S. image globally has taken a deep hit during President George W. Bush's two terms in office, primarily because of opposition to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, harsh interrogation of prisoners, the indefinite detention of terrorist suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and mistreatment of inmates at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

Obama promised during his campaign that ONE OF HIS TOP PRIORITIES would be to work to repair America's reputation worldwide, and that one element of that effort would be A SPEECH DELIVERED IN A MUSLIM CAPITAL.

He pledged anew to give such a speech, though he declined to say whether it would happen during his first year in office.

"It's something I intend to follow through on," Obama said in an interview published Wednesday in the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times. "We've got a unique opportunity to reboot America's image around the world AND ALSO IN THE MUSLIM WORLD IN PARTICULAR. So we need to take advantage of that."

Obama said his message would be twofold: that his administration will be unyielding in stamping out terrorist extremism but also "unrelenting in our desire to create a relationship of mutual respect and partnership with countries."

"I think the world is ready for that message," he said in the interview, conducted Tuesday.

During the campaign, Obama repeatedly faced questions about whether he is a Muslim, particularly in whisper campaigns that noted his middle name, that his father is Kenyan, and that he lived for a time as a child in Indonesia. Obama is a practicing Christian.

Asked if he would drop his middle name during his inauguration on Jan. 20, the president-elect said HE WOULD NOT.

"The tradition is that they use all three names and I will follow the tradition, not trying to make a statement on way or another," he said.

I personally find this news story to be very interesting and, at least for me, to be extremely revealing regarding who Barack Obama really is and how he really feels and what he really thinks. I know already that all the loyal members of the Church of Obama will rabidly and vehemently disagree with me, but that is to be expected.

All I can say about that is, if I am wrong and merely jumping to erroneous conclusions, then the next few months or years will certainly prove me to be wrong. On the other hand, if I am right, then those same next few months or years will just as suredly vindicate me and prove me to be right.

If you are willing to express an opinion, how does this recent development appear to you?? Am I simply making a mountain out of a molehill or do you think there is a lot more than meets the eye behind Mr. Obama's actions and decisions here??

By the way, if you think that this post is about Obama's name, then you have missed the whole point of the article..............