Seem –verb (used without object)

1. to appear to be, feel, do, etc.: She seems better this morning.

2. to appear to one's own senses, mind, observation, judgment, etc.: It seems to me that someone is calling.

3. to appear to exist: There seems no need to go now.

4. to appear to be true, probable, or evident: It seems likely to rain.

5. to give the outward appearance of being or to pretend to be: He only seems friendly because he wants you to like him.

In my late teens and early 20's I worked at a few places that attracted all sorts of people. Places where almost anyone could get a job. Anyone from kids in high school saving money for college or a cool car, to 20-somethings whose main goal was to make just enough money to stay high or get drunk all weekend, to 30-somethings who had spent their 20's getting high or drunk, to ex-convicts.

Years ago I worked with a guy who seemed like one of the nicest guys in the world. He Seemed like you could trust him with any thing. He seemed like the most sincere and genuine guy you could ever hope to meet.He seemed like someone you'd want to be friends with.

I never liked the guy myself. I didn't trust him. Even though he had never given me a reason, I just didn't like him. Maybe it was the story on his arms told through the tattoos he had collected over his years in prison. He never displayed them... always wore long sleeves. I happened to see them once when he changed into another shirt after work one day.

Now don't confuse me for a prude who thinks tattoos are evil. I have my own as well. But there's a difference between a parlor tattoo that your average law abiding citizen might get for whatever reason and the story board displayed by someone who has lived a life of law breaking and prison terms.

Anyhow, not sure if that's what made me wary of him or just exactly what it was, but in the end my skepticism of his seemingly genuine outward appearance was justified. Turns out that he and a buddy of his had their own sport that they got off from. They liked to befriend people that they didn't like. They'd gain the trust of this unsuspecting individual, get them out drinking with them and then beat the living hell out of them. It was sport to them. No rhyme or reason. They just got off doing it.

I worked with another guy who made no secret of the 4 years he had spent in prison prior to working with me. I'll call him Larry. Again, seemingly one of the nicest guys you could ever meet. He took a liking to me and my girlfriend. He was a very talented artist, and would draw these fantastic pictures for us. We got along great, and our relationship never extended outside of work. I knew he had been in and out of prison all his life,but for some reason was never wary of him. It just never bothered me.

At that time we also worked with a guy named Freddy. He was one of those 30-somethings who has spent his 20's getting high. That's all I'll say about Freddy. There's not much more to say about him. He's dead. I knew him for all of 3 months or so before the night Larry stabbed him 37 times over money owed for, I think, cocaine...

...so, Larry's serving life in prison, Freddy's dead, and I don't know what ever happened to the other fool who got off beating the hell out of unsuspecting people for sport is.

Yes, there is a point to this story. The point is that people are almost never what they seem, and that's especially true for politicians. I was reminded of all this when Rush played an audio clip of this woman- Geri Punteny- from Iowa who was sobbing over having met Barack Obama . She was being interviewed by David Greene of National Public Radio . She was sobbing as if this guy (Obama) is some sort of savior to her.

PUNTENEY (crying): Well, I've seen the commercials, and he just seemed (sniffle) sincere, and that (sob) he is for people like for my mom, my brother (sob), and me.

GREENE: A lot of people would say a politician is the last place to turn if you -- if you really need help. But you -- but you -- seem confident.

PUNTENEY: Yeah, I mean, he just seemed like he really cared and, um, you know, and I never had anyone... (voice going higher) pay attention to me and my needs. (weeping) And he -- (sobbing) he held my hand!

Obviously this woman has a lot of emotion caused by the tragedies of losing one of her brothers who died as a result of being burned in a fireworks accident, the death of her father and another brother who is suffering through cancer. I can completely sympathize with her. I think most of us can. After all, most all of us have tragedies within our own families and our own lives. But give me a break Geri! Barack Obama and his socialized health care is not going to save your brother from cancer any more than disabled people would have gotten up from their wheel chairs and walked if Kerry and Edwards had won in '04 !

But, "...he just seemed sincere..." Of course he did. He could probably sell yellow snow as snow cones to global warming researchers in Antarctica too!

Don't let your emotions create a false Savior for you based on the fact that he "seems" to be sincere. That doesn't apply to just Obama either. It applies to ALL politicians. Especially those running for the presidency.

Yeah, I'm sure I'll get an e-mail or two asking me if I'm really comparing the murderers and degenerates I've worked with over the years to politicians. The comparison is in the fact that people are almost never what they seem. If you don't get that, then you probably won't, no matter how I describe it. So save me the headache and yourself the time of complaining about it. At the same time we'll also ignore the unnerving trail of dead bodies following the Clinton's in their seemingly sincere aspirations of a "better" America. We'll also forget about the fact that Obama has no problem with the murder of unborn children . None of that has anything to do with the comparison above. Forget all of that, and focus on the fact that people, especially politicians, are almost never what they seem.

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