'Numba Ten' headache

President Obama likely has a "Numba Ten" headache, to use a slang term from the Vietnam War era. Can you imagine conducting war and nuanced diplomacy while being hounded, cross-examined, second-guessed and graded by Talking Heads of every stripe on every news platform, 24/7? And that's on top of the endless "What Obama Should Do" editorials that newspapers lord over him from coast to coast. George W. Bush went through this madness, too, especially after the 2003 Iraq invasion. Don't get me wrong: Vigorous criticism and "advice" is both healthy and necessary. But the sheer volume of chatter (not to mention the degradation of the signal-to-noise ratio) has increased by several orders of magnitude since Bush passed the baton to Obama.

Right now, I'm listening to David Gergen and his knitted-brow brethren express concern that the Libyan rebels are a rabble (News Flash: This condition has bedeviled these would-be revolutionaries since day 1). In this case, the pundit talk is reasonably learned. Still, it is about as useful as discussing the Dow Jones Index midway through the trading day. In isolation, it's kinda meaningless. Daily troop movements during the ebb and flow of combat is discussed like so many stocks or bonds. (OMG! They're retreating! Sell!) The meaning of this advance or that retreat is typically exaggerated or misinterpreted. Half the time, the pundits are merely guessing since few possess insider knowledge or expertise.

The sum total of this relentless chatter ferments relentless (and often irrational) pressure on the White House. Hence, Obama's constant migraine. He can't ignore it entirely. For good or ill, politics is always in the room when he devises or shapes policy. Amazingly, Mr. Spock has not let any of this force his hand. Must be that Vulcan blood. Just keep gulping down the Excedrin Extra Strength, Mr. President.