Is Obama's new normal good or bad?

          At this point in the election, Obama's projection as the favourite by a majority of speculators is clearly fortunate news for the Democratic Party. Ross Douthat, of the New York Times, however, characterizes Obama's lead within a certain demographic to be alarming. In his article, "Why Obama is Winning", Douthat associates Obama's lead with the economically struggling demographic, which of course, is not what he describes as alarming. It is the "new normal", which Douthat explains as "a dreadfully slow growth". As Douthat elaborates on this description, he states, "these signs of resignation are good news for the White House, but they’re bad news for the country’s future. Even if a rich nation like ours can learn to live with 8 percent unemployment and slow growth for now, the costs of persistent joblessness and sustained stagnation could be devastating in the long run". While Douthat cozies to this idea early in the article, he proceeds to identify it as a mindset that is detrimental to the country.

          Douthat portrays this idea of a new normal as an epidemic that will run the country to the ground; however, from another standpoint, this idea is simply a growth of realistic expectations. What is not considered in this article is the possibility that voters are not simply lowering their expectations of their ideal situation, but perhaps they are only realizing that the idea of either Barrack Obama or Mitt Romney stepping into office and swiftly creating an economic boom on all facets is highly unlikely.

          On a more personal view of this situation, Douthat's interpretation of this "new normal" is simply over pessimistic. Rather than seeing it as a growing content for economic failure, perhaps this new normal illustrates the willingness of people to follow what they know. Although an economic growth is shown to be dreadful and slow, it is what this very demographic is seeing before their own eyes - a solid plan. Douthat, however, seemingly confuses that with what this demographic sees as their "ideal", which I honestly believe, it isn't.

          So why is this "new normal" working for Obama? Douthat persists that the relationship between this "new normal" and Obama's success is caused by an overall lack of trust that many Americans have for the Republican party. But perhaps the struggling demographic would rather stick to what they know is slowly working, than to commit to an alternate plan, in which the results are uncertain. I wouldn't drive this explanation to the extent of saying that a newly elected Mitt Romney [hypothetically speaking] would be a gamble, but it just isn't as certain as what this demographic has already seen and experienced under Obama's [slow and dreadful] plan. Most importantly, this situation is not the ideal, but an indication that many Americans have confidence in their familiarity with Obama's plan.

Douthat, Ross. (Sep. 2012) "Why Obama is Winning". The New York Times. Web. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/30/opinion/sunday/douthat-obamas-new-normal.html?_r=1