For those of us who were hoping for real change, this couldn't be a worse time to be "fooled again." The game seems to be turning out to be the same old one: winning, with just a few (very few) new faces.
Obama apparently thinks he wins by offering what are really token gestures at "reform", thus maintaining a populist reformer image with a substantial portion of his voter base (still quite helpful even in a titular "democracy"). But, he does so while, in fact, appeasing those in control of what's left (quite a lot actually) of the real money/power base.
This basic principle may be best illustrated by the glaring fact that our Reformer-in Chief has yet to even ask one, single, official (or regulator) at any financial institution to step down (let alone send any to jail) for the unprecedented mismangement of our financial system. This despite the fact that, we the people, are now major shareholders,and/or outright owners of the offending institutions.
Furthermore, the "Change We Can Believe In" apparently does not include introducing a single piece of legislation aimed at ending these same abuses, even though they have resulted in the virtual unraveling of the very fabric of this country.
