Obamaism Isn't

That is, isn't an ism. An ism needs a superstructure. Somebody has to write a tome with postulates and world-historical-profound conclusions, and there has to be a "program", and "historical context", and then, "a way forward" --makes no difference if it makes any sense or not, but for there to be an ism there has to be a text, something the believer can study and memorize and recite --otherwise all you've got is mania. If you can recite you can always be superior to those who haven't studied the master, but if there's nothing to recite you've only got emotion, and emotion is up-and-down and in a down moment not much protection against those who scoff, so the emotion leaves. A mania leaves, only an ism is forever. Poor Barack is only a mania.

So Barack will fade and bomb, but hopefully not until Dracula is dead.

I also think Obamamania is an accident. I think his intent was just to make an apperance, that things took off was a surprize, that's why there will be nothing more in the playbook down the line. Just "hope & change", but once Hillary's gone every bit of change he stands for that means anything will have been achieved and only about 10% of Democrats will still find him exciting and the rest will simply have to make do with what they've got.

It's hard to imagine a candidate who will mean less three months from now. The people who will hurt him the most are the people who now support Hillary. They'll say: You're our candidate now, be specific; and since he will be their candidate then he will have to be specific, and then he will no longer be exciting.

Just hang in there, Barack, through the convention. We need you.

-------------------
4:15AM

An Empty Suit Can Wear Any Costume

Barack is upset that a photo is being circulated of him wearing traditional Somali attire:

"Everybody knows that whether it's me or Senator Clinton, or Bill Clinton, that when you travel to other countries they ask you to try on traditional garb that you have been given as a gift," he told WAOI, "The notion that the Clinton campaign would be trying to circulate this as a negative on the same day that Senator Clinton was giving a speech about how we repair our relationships around the world is sad. We are going to try to stay focused on what will make a difference in our foreign policy, including bringing the war in Iraq to an honorable end. "

He noted that he believes Americans are saddened when they see "these kind of politics."

And so on, and a great deal of offense taken by many in the blogosphere at this sort of "dirty politics".

A couple of things come to mind: The guy has zero sense of humor. He's wearing a rag and a diaper; that's funny. Secondly, it's extraordinary that a rag and a diaper can suggest to the average American that he's Muslim. I'm sure in fact that he's a very ordinary liberal Democrat, as firmly patriotic and deeply Christian as Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid or Dick Durban. But what's marvelous is that he's such an absolutely vacant vacuous entity... that nobody really knows. There's so little substance there that any suggestion of substance of any kind is as good as any other, and as convincing.

This guy is the very definition of absolutely nothing at all. I wonder if there's any possibility that "Barack" could become synonymous with "dumb blond"? That would be rather "unifying".

And of course, as a political tactic it falls under what's called "The Dumb Hat Rule"; you wear a dumb hat and your opponent can fairly take advantage of it. It was established forever as a traditional part of American politics when Michael Dukakis wore a tank commander's helmet; on him, with his goofy grin, he looked as mighty and as military as Mickey Mouse. Undoubtedly cost him twenty points in the general.

-----------
Correction:
I've looked at a full photo and Barack is not wearing a diaper; he's wearing some sort of flouncy dress made out of diaper material. My mistake.