I am amazed by the attitude of the Americans here, they seem to believe that Mr Obama can snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, instigate change and reverse the economic and social decline.

This American, for one, does not believe that for a second. Boss Hog is systematically squeezing out the middle class, and Obama is complicit. The intent is to return society to a quasi-feudal, pre-WWII, robber baron oligarchy.