As I type this, President Obama has yet to deliver his State of the Union speech, an annual message addressed to Americans usually in the last Wednesday of January.

According to the White House website, Obama’s speech this year is titled “Winning the Future,” an ambiguous theme that doesn’t really tease at all. I’m not sure a president would want to dub his speech, “Future’s Looking a Little Shaky — Hang on Tight!”

In his 2010 address, the president said: “One in 10 Americans cannot find work. Many businesses have shuttered. Home values have declined. … These struggles are what I’ve witnessed for years in places like Elkhart, Indiana; Galesburg, Illinois. I hear about them in the letters that I read each night.”

His speech probably hit close to home for many people in our area. Hearing a local town mentioned in the head of state’s biggest speech of the year puts a spotlight, whether it’s wanted or not, on your little place in the world.

When asked on the Star’s Facebook page what readers wanted to hear in Obama’s speech, one reader posted the simple reply, “Silence.”

I don’t know what the president plans to say in his speech — even if I wanted to, the transcript isn’t available yet.

But I know what I would like to hear, and I know that hearing a promise or a plan and seeing that promise or plan enacted are two different things. It’s not because I like or dislike Obama or have a distrust of presidents in general.

I just know that we all set out to do something with goals in mind — a finish line, a target, a deadline to reach — and obstacles may jump into our path. A president is not the sole decision-maker in our government, and I think that plays a huge factor into what he will accomplish or not accomplish in his tenure.

I think the most recent election showed how quickly a president’s plans may be run off course. The Senate had the biggest gains for the Republican Party since the 1994 election. Long-time Democrats were uprooted from their seats in every level of government. America wanted change, and they sure got it.

I’m going to predict that Obama will not use some of his favorite campaign words like “hope” and “change” —words that helped inspire voters to check his name on the ballots in 2008, and words that inspired voters to check Republican candidates’ names in 2010.

I don’t believe State of the Union speeches really mean much. One can’t encompass what he wants to do in the upcoming year of presidency in just 30 to 80 minutes (Bill Clinton was exceptionally windy, with all addresses more than an hour; Richard Nixon wasted no time, clocking in at 28 to 42 minutes). I believe the addresses are all posture and publicity, conducted to remedy sagging public approval ratings and pump up citizens for changes on controversial issues.

I will commend Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder for a realistic, inspiring but not “rah-rah” address last week. He gave concrete facts, ideas and plans, and I hope our president will do the same tonight.

Katie Rohman is the managing editor of the Niles Daily Star, Off the Water, Cassopolis Vigilant and Edwardsburg Argus. She can be reached at (269) 687-7713 or at katie.rohman@leaderpub.com.