Around our house we joke that Obama is the Antichrist.

“Did you hear the news?” my wife will say. “Obama was at some foreign conference, and everybody loved him. He must be the Antichrist.” (For those unfamiliar with New Testament eschatology as commonly understood by many evangelical Christians, read the Left Behind series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. Very entertaining, I’m told. There’s also a series of DVDs, of which viewing the first was enough to keep me from watching any more.)

I have an interest in Obama not being the Antichrist because before he was elected, I wrote that he was not. If it turns out that he is, then I will have to eat crow.

“That doesn’t prove anything,” I say. “Lot’s of presidents have been popular.”

“Name five,” she says.

We are, perhaps, a little uncharitable.

I like Obama. (“See? He’s drawing you in, too.”) I like listening to him. He sounds intelligent, which is a big improvement. He seems careful and deliberate, which is another change for the better. I hate some of his policies. I hated some of Bush’s policies. I guess I’m one of those people you can’t please all of all the time.

People have notoriously bad memories. Look back at news articles from 2002. Bush was immensely popular. The nation was still reeling from 9/11, and Bush seemed like someone we could trust to save us. Even in 2004, when he was re-elected, he was still riding that wave of popularity. Now Obama is our current savior, helping us out of our fiscal disasters. Wait until 2016. If he is still as popular seven years in the future as he is now, I really will eat crow (properly prepared, of course, roasted over charcoal, slathered with barbecue sauce, and served with grilled vegetables).