The Return of the Icon

The election of Barack Obama was a statement of persona. It was an unmistakable testament to the power of individual personality in American culture. In an era of economic crisis, war, and extreme ideological difference, voters selected a character, NOT a platform.


I spent two weeks canvassing (without pay) for the Obama campaign, not simply because I wanted to support his cause, but because I wanted to find out what people thought about him-that is, people other than Bill O’Reilly and Keith Olberman. I walked the streets of my small town like a Jehovah’s Witness, knocking on doors of liberals and conservatives alike. I spoke to young and old, males and females, affluent and cracked-out. Only one thing remained constant in my conversations: People did not mention issues.


One elderly woman I spoke to, whom I immediately identified as a life-long Democrat by the assortment of JFK portraits and crucifixes spanning her living room walls, told me that she considered Obama the greatest hope for America since Franklin Delano Roosevelt. When I asked her if she had any questions on policy issues, she informed me that issues are "for the birds," that the only thing that matters in a president is his ability to negotiate, an ability she passionately believed that Obama possessed.


I came across another Obama supporter on the sidewalk. He was a young man, likely in his mid-twenties, with long, wiry hair and broken glasses. He was not a registered voter, nor was he on my official list of "targets" for the day, but I struck up conversation anyway. He immediately and emphatically let me know that he was a racist, but that John McCain seemed "crazy and old," traits which scared him on a personal level even more than the thought of a black president. When I asked him what he thought about the war in Iraq, he responded that he didn’t care about it as long as combat remained "over in the desert." Other common reasons for Obama support included, "My union told me to vote for him" and "I like his smile."


But personal characteristics were not only reserved for supporters. The majority of anti-Obama sentiment I received also had little to do with policy.


One man literally chased me down the street as soon as I identified myself as a volunteer for the Obama/Biden ticket. In crude terms, he questioned my sexuality, my intelligence, and blasted an array of racial slurs in my direction as he drove me through his garden of POW-MIA flags and away from his property. I did not, however, hear him mention anything about foreign policy or economic bailout in the course of his tirade. I would later realize, after a quick check of my list, that I had the wrong address in the first place. Oops.


Another man said that he feared that Obama could be the Antichrist. He cited the book of Revelation as his primary voting prompt. In his mind, Obama’s popularity in the midst of dismal world affairs was a sure sign of the oncoming Rapture. He advised me to beware of the future and to pray regularly before we parted ways.

For more information regarding Obama’s role in the End of Days, you can follow this link: http://www.newsweek.com/id/169192


My sample may be relatively small, but I have seen overwhelming evidence that postmodern America has returned the executive branch to its original status as an office of men (and now, women) with Barack Obama playing the lead role. This notion may be supported in the coming weeks as the cabinet is assembled, particularly if key Republicans land top offices. For now, however, there remains hope that party politics may finally be set aside in favor of old-fashioned American reason.


Don't hold your breath,


Mr. Cleveland