A Cat's Eye View

Baxter here. My Female Human and a lot of other People have been Dithering a lot about President Obama's recent Actions or lack thereof. There was the Rendition thing, and the Problems with his Cabinet Appointees who didn't pay their Taxes, and various other Kerfluffles.

I say Chill Out, Everybody. I have been watching this Obama Human since the very Beginning; way before my Humans decided to support him, I was on his Side. You know why? Because we Cats can recognize Cat-ness in others. The Obama Human has always been very Catlike.

He is kind of a Loner, likes to kind of watch things from a Distance, and takes it all in before making any Big Decisions. This is what we Cats do. You never see a Cat rush in and chase a bunch of Birds like a Dog would. They stalk them. Quietly. Keeping their Cool. Until at the last Moment, they Pounce.

The Obama Human is very similar. He managed to play all his Cards right and get Elected; kept his Cool all along. I am not giving up on him. I say that his Delays on things like Don't Ask, Don't Tell and eliminating Rendition are just another Example of his Cautious, Catlike way of dealing with Things. Give him some Time, it hasn't even been a Month yet.

Now admittedly, there have been some Bumps in the Road - mainly because he's been trying to be Nice to the Republicans and make them Feel Welcome. This was his one Mistake. He put in all those Tax Breaks into that Stimulus thing, hoping to win over the Republicans. But it was No Dice. And when it finally passed, not one of those Republicans in the House voted for it, and only three in the Senate did. Lesson learned.

I think the President will now understand that his bi-partisan Efforts are in Vain and he may as well just do what he Wants without trying to Compromise. I know that's the Lesson a Cat would learn, and this Human seems to be good at learning Lessons. If a Cat is Treated Poorly by someone, the Cat will not deal with that Person again if they can Help It.

I think what he was doing Wrong was trying to be too much like a Dog. Dogs can have Packs that are "Teams of Rivals" but it takes a lot of Fighting first in order to establish Who is in Charge. And by that time too much Blood can be shed and it's just not Worth it. And the Head Dog always has to watch his Back or one of the Underlings will Challenge him when he least expects it.

Cats want Nothing to do with their Rivals. Sure, a couple of TomCats can come along and sometimes be forced into a Fight, but in general Cats go by the adage, "He who fights and runs away lives to fight another day." We look out for Ourselves and make sure we Get what We Want.

Looking Ahead, it's time for the President to make sure he gets what he Wants from now on without worrying about whether those stubborn Republicans are going to vote for it. In the Coming Weeks he has a lot on his List. He plans to address the Foreclosure Crisis, appoint a Health & Human Services and a Commerce Secretary (if all goes Well - Fingers Crossed) and deal with Medicare and Social Security while unveiling the new Budget. Let's hope this all goes more Smoothly than the Stimulus Bill did.

In other News, I was Happy when Stump the Sussex Spaniel won Best in Show at Westminster at age 10. It was a great Comeback for this Dog and even though I am not usually Fond of Dogs, as you Know, I couldn't help but have a Warm Feeling when I heard of it. I am no Spring Chicken myself, as I am over Seven Years Old, so it is Nice to know that being Older doesn't keep anybody Down!

A lot of People have been making a Big Deal out of the Woman in California who gave birth to Octuplets recently. The Woman, who is Single, had 6 other Kids; all 14 of her Brood were conceived with In Vitro Fertilization. Now People are questioning why the Fertility Clinic would Allow this to Happen and wondering if she could possibly care for Them All. I can't help but wonder too; that's more than most Cats have in their Litters! Sometimes not all the Kittens make it if there isn't enough Food. I hope this doesn't happen for this Woman's Children.

There was also a lot of fuss in Great Britain recently when a 13-year-old boy became a Dad; the Mom is 15. According to this Article, the boy was 12 when the Baby was conceived and he said,

"'I didn't think about how we would afford it. I don't really get pocket money. My dad sometimes gives me £10. When my mum found out I thought I was going to get in trouble. We wanted to have the baby but were worried about how people would react. I didn't know what it would be like to be a dad. I will be good, though, and care for it.'"

Well, we'll see. In Honor of this Young Couple, here is Puppy Love, performed by Paul Anka, featuring Real Puppies:



With that I will wish you all a Happy Valentine's Day. I hope I will receive some Catnip for the Occasion!