When it comes to political discourse and social protests, social media has changed the landscape.  Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and Youtube have provided outlets for the average person to vent, pontificate, and act as pseudo-journalists on all subjects.

Very often, a video or posting on Twitter and Facebook goes viral as people that agree or disagree forward and re-post the the original posting.  Such was the case after President Obama’s State of the Union speech. In the wake of the president’s speech, a list of his accomplishments went viral on Facebook.

Similar to a popular website that details real and imagined accomplishments of our current president, the list gives a rosy picture of the current state of the Obama administration.   The problem with the new tools of social media, however, is that the authors often have conclusions based more on emotion and ideology rather than facts, and readers often do not check the facts.

Below is a list of things that went viral on Facebook the night of the speech.  In response is a second list that offers an alternative view with links to real factual data.

My President: A Liberal View

1. Osama Bin Laden… check
2. Unemployment rate 8.5 percent… check.
3. 1.6 million jobs created with no GOP help… check
.
4. 22 months of job and economic growth with no help… check.
5. Ended war in Iraq… check.
6. DADT repeal… check.
7. Not one tax hike in 3 years… check.
8. Brought out racism in the GOP… check.
9. Still carries 80 percent of the black vote… check.
10. Same wife for 15 years with no extramarital affairs… check.
11. Can flat out sing… check.
12. Saved auto industry and 1.5 million jobs… check.
13. Assisted in ousting Ghaddafi… check.
14. Only active president to receive Nobel Peace Prize while in office… check.
15. Mortgage modification to prevent homeowners from losing their homes… check.
16. STILL fighting for middle class families… check.
17. Reform affordable healthcare… check.

Rosy, indeed. I decided to put together a more comprehensive and fact-based list.

My President: A Realistic View

1. Killed Osama Bin Laden… check.
2. Net loss of two million jobs… check.
3. Unemployment rate of 15 percent for his biggest fans, African-Americans… check.
4. Had the House and Senate majorities and still could not get his own people (Democrats) to back all his ideas. Seeks blame elsewhere… check.
5. Campaigned against $500 billion deficit created by President Bush, but increased deficit to 1.4 trillion in under two years… check.
6. Spent more money in two years than all of the previous presidents combined… check.
7. Increased debt to $15 trillion… check.
8. Has left my goddaughter and all newborn Americans a debt load of $50,000 per person before they even get out of diapers… check.
9. Uncovered the left and African-Americans’ obsession with racism as a shield against his own failures… check.
10. Race relations worse than in 50 years… check.
11. Still carries 80 percent of the black vote, proving African-Americans will support anyone that is black and has a “D” after their name… check.
12. Proves that African-Americans no longer care about the content of one’s character, but the color of one’s skin and political party… check.
13. Still protects Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the causes of the financial collapse… check.
14. Received Nobel Prize before taking office. Sends 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, violates Pakistan’s borders to kill Bin Laden, and increases drone strikes. I do not have a problem with any of that, but I am not sure that is what the Nobel “PEACE” panel had in mind… check.
15. Mortgage modification plan to help homeowners, who bought houses they should not have, keep their homes.  Plan has not worked… check.
16. Fighting with unions to stop jobs in South Carolina. Fighting against unions to stop jobs with Keystone oil project. Still not helping middle class, but talks a good game… check.
17. Unconstitutional power grab to force me to buy health insurance that is more expensive… check.
18. Second worse president after Jimmy Carter… double check.

Which list is correct? The truth lies not with the information in the lists itself, but in how you wish to view the president. The first is one that ignores a lot because of a liking for President Obama. The second is not personal, but uncovers a deep truth about what has transpired in the last three years.

At the end of the day, the primary questions that remain is if America is better off today than it was three years ago, and will what has transpired be financially viable in the future. It does not take a dislike of the president to answer that question. It takes a $10 calculator and a dose of common sense, which leaves a very unpalatable taste in your mouth, especially if you voted for President Obama the first time.

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