In fact, in recent days, Obama himself has insisted that John McCain is trying to “stoke anger and division” against him – a meme that Obama’s friends in the mainstream media have obediently adopted. The always self-indulgent Maureen Dowd has accused John McCain and Sarah Palin – in Latin, no less – of “rabble rousing” against Obama, thereby making his Secret Service agents nervous (“nervosissmi”); the always-understated Frank Rich charges the Mccain Palin ticket with “inciting vigilantism,” wailing that “each day the mob howls louder.”
Certainly, all decent people can agree that no threat to the safety of any candidate should ever be taken lightly, and that inciting it is always wrong. So it’s heartening to witness Obama’s and the media’s new focus on the danger of political “rage.” After all, they’ve sat complacently by over the last eight years as the current President has been called a Nazi, a traitor, a moron and more. “Entertainment” like “Death of a President” (a fake documentary portraying the assassination of George W. Bush), “Checkpoint” (a novel including a discussion about assassinating President Bush), and now Oliver Stone’s “W” have been treated as mainstream and acceptable – even garnering some favorable press.
It’s also worth noting that there’s no record of “angry” Republicans advocating violence of any kind. No one on the right has seriously threatened that riots could result from Obama’s election – in contrast to some on the left who have raised the specter of widespread civil strife in the wake of a McCain victory. Given all of this, it seems more likely that the stated concerns about GOP “rage” actually mask another agenda.
Finally, the left’s strategy of denouncing “fear-mongering” and “rage” sets a troubling precedent for the future. If Republicans accept the idea that even legitimate criticism of Barack Obama exposes him to grave risk, they are essentially forfeiting their free speech rights for the duration of an Obama presidency. Concerns about his safety would only be exacerbated by his election; should he win, criticism of him would “up the ante” by purportedly endangering America’s president, rather than a sitting senator and presidential nominee. In the final analysis, to the extent it’s sincere, the fear of Republican “rage” expressed by Obama and the press is irrefutable proof of their elitism and insularity. Perhaps if they were better acquainted with regular Americans – yes, the ones “clinging” to their guns and religion – they would better comprehend the nature of and the reason for the “anger” they’re denouncing.
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