Just read your latest analysis of the president's achievements and areas in which objectives have not been fully met. As someone near the center politically, but leaning left, and a strong Obama supporter, I admire his tremendous effort this year, battling upstream against enormous odds.

I joust sometimes with folks to my left and right on Facebook, and through my blogs, write letters and an occasional Op-Ed. In fact, having studied his writings and important speeches, life history and legislative history, I was never under the illusion that Obama would govern from the left. By temperment, I see him as more of a centrist and a pragmatist, but with liberal ideals, also as a man of integrity, authenticity, intelligence, creativity and courage. That is a personal assessment.

Do I agree with his every decision? Of course not. He should take a stronger tack with China, in my opinion, for example. I am very concerned about human rights abuses in that country, especially Tibet. I disagree with him on the death penalty. And there are other areas of disagreement, particularly in the field of education.

But he has made a strong effort to bring our economy back, reform health care, and address the critical problem posed by climate change. He has affirmed the independence of scientific inquiry and research from government intrusion. This is a very important statement on his part, pretty much ignored by the media. He has made a strong moral/ethical statement, prohibiting the use of torture and committing to the closing of Guantanamo. And the list goes on...

Having been driven toward the center by what I see as unreasonableness by some of my friends on the left and virtually everyone right now on the right, I find myself in the strange position of sometimes feeling what Obama must be feeling--relentlessly attacked from both sides of the political spectrum. (However, I do appreciate the many civil debates I have had with liberals and a few conservatives)

I am very critical of the mainstream (cable news) media and some of the columnists that seems to fuel a negative mindset, promote adversarial thought and conduct, and eschew balanced and objective analysis. I now watch zero cable news; on the other hand, I read the New York Times daily, online, feeling that I get the clearest picture of what is actually going on in the nation and world.

Thanks again for your good reporting and analysis. At the moment, I feel that a dark cloud hangs over this country, politically. Good journalism helps to cut through the swath of exaggerations and outright lies, and bring us back to reality--what is really going on in the nation and world.

Thanks for listening.

Patrick Frank
Poet-essayist-songwriter
teacher-counselor
advocate for the poor

Kingstree, SC