We're Known By The Company We Keep

Barack Obama played golf with a couple of long time buddies in Hawaii today. It's the 156th time he's hit the links since becoming president. My personal belief about this is "I don't care" because if he's in the Oval Office, the South Side of Chicago or Hawaii nothing positive gets done, anyway. One interesting aspect of his round were his playing partners. A longtime friend of his from high school days came along. His name is Bobby Titcomb. Mr.Titcomb is a regular golfer in Barry's foursome when he goes to Hawaii. I recognized his name from a 2011 arrest but I had to go back in the files to do some further research to make certain I was on target. I was. You see, Mr. Titcomb was the subject of a sting operation with three other guys for soliciting prostitution. In the big scheme of life this may not seem like much but it does add to the old adage, "we're known by the company we keep". Titcomb falls in line with other Obama friends of dubious character; Bill Ayers, Jeremiah Wright and Tony Rezko among a myriad of others. The listed three are real bad dudes. It further adds to what Rodney Dangerfield said when describing his personal associations in his life: "I hung around with people who did me absolutely no good". When Dangerfield uttered those words it was funny. I don't find Obama's friends as being overly funny.
There's an even larger aspect to Obama's associations, be it the 'hooker uppers' or  avowedcommunists. In my wildest dreams I cannot imagine coming home to see my ex-wife(see blog 12/15/13) and trying to explain my male relationships of dubious character. The ex-Mrs. MJ Hawkeye: "Where have you been"? MJ Hawkeye: "Oh, nowhere special. Just out with a couple of my friends". The ex-Mrs. MJ Hawkeye: "Who"? MJ Hawkeye; "Oh, Bobby Titcomb. You remember him. He was arrested for soliciting a prostitute". Next sound: KA-THUMP! Frying pan upside the head of MJ Hawkeye. With wives this crap doesn't fly.
It can't be only me who doesn't see the benefit of having known terrorists(Ayers), outright crooks(Rezko is in jail for fraud) and a Black Liberation Theologist(Wright-communist) as friends. I do not believe that I have ever associated with a big-time criminal, communist or terrorist. Furthermore, I know I haven't. Since I was a child of the 60's I'm sure I came across one or two at Coe College as we passed each other going in opposite directions.
But I doubt I'd have walked across the street to share a beer with a devotee of Che Guevera. For one thing, I didn't own a green pea coat, wear sandals or wire rimmed glasses. I didn't have a lava lamp, either. The only time I took pills was when I had a cold or fever so that about counts me out as a Timothy Leary follower.
I may have written this in blogs past. I most likely did. There were eight groomsmen best man, etc. in my wedding in 1969. The ex-wife had eight bridesmaids and such. Some have passed on but all sixteen never had more than their original spouse. That says a whole lot about the company we keep, doesn't it? It's not that we were special nor were our friends. It's just the way it was supposed to be.