Letters to the Editor
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@ unschooler
"I don't think so much about a person should be explained by their gender and by gender politics. We are way too complex a product of the interplay between our genes and environment for that."
Agreed.
"BTW I think personality/intellect-wise Barack's power comes from a unique blend of high analytical, creative, and emotional intelligence, including deep empathetic understanding of diverse points of view."
Yes! I definitely respond to this in him. He really seems to respond genuinely to criticism and to different perspectives.
The fact that he went out of his way to acknowledge the legitimacy of white resentments about their perceptions of being short-changed by affirmative action speaks volumes about him. He really does have empathy.
It's so interesting to me how we can have such varied perceptions of the same guy. You and I see emotional intelligence, creativity and empathy, detractors see phoniness, vagueness, lack of substance, even duplicity.
Actually, from a certain point of view this makes sense: the ability to empathize necessarily means the ability to shift perspectives.
Perhaps this kind of shifting strikes some people as duplicitous or as lacking a core.
To me, he has a strong core, and it's just what you point out. It's not squishiness at all, but rather a bedrock confidence in who he is that allows him to listen to others without the fear that doing so is somehow a sign of weakness.
What can I say, this guy is truly special.