Today is Obama Birth CertificateD-Day in the Supreme Court, which will most likely not vote to hear the various claims that Obama was not born in the United States (or that even if he was, that he's still not "natural born").
The continuing efforts of a fringe group of conservatives to deny Obama his victory and to lay the basis for the claim that he is not a legitimate president is embarrassing and destructive. The fact that these efforts are being led by Alan Keyes, a demagogue who lost a Senate election to the then-unknown Obama by 42 points, should be a warning in itself.
Horowitz doesn't think the movement is conservative so much as it is "sore loserism,"
and quite radical in its intent. Respect for election results is one of the most durable bulwarks of our unity as a nation. Conservatives need to accept the fact that we lost the election, and get over it; and get on with the important business of reviving our country's economy and defending its citizens, and -- by the way -- its Constitution.
They won't, though. Conspiracy theories appeal to people who want things made easy.
At the core is emotional satisfaction. If you're unhappy or you feel screwed, it's more appealing to imagine a great plot than grapple with ordinary, often tough-to-explain realities that are sometimes little more than quirks of fate. It's like waiting in miles of congested freeway; it always helps to know that there's an accident and where it is -- not just miles of traffic. People want to find explanations, enemies, and malignant causes. (The mapping and charting instinct, perhaps?)
That's why, if Barack Obama is an alien who "stole" the election, it's much more satisfying than if he was born in Hawaii.
posted by Eric on 12.08.08 at 11:15 PM
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Вот странно: все пишут в блогах на такие разные темы, а о любви и чувствах к близким так мало. Такое впечатление, что в сети все стали такими безчувственными :(
Nevertheless, this particular group of truthers has identified a real actual clause in the constitution and has requested that the governmental body logically vested with enforement powers enforce it.
It's an outrage that something that should be automatic every election cycle (establishing the eligibility of the president-elect) is not only a big battle, but one with so many people saying, "no, this part of the constitution should be ignored. Only a nutjob would want the constitution enforced in areas where I and other right thinking people find the constitution an inconvenient bother."
The Truthers are on the right side of the issue even if they are on the wrong side of Obama's birthplace. And as I go around the web-o-sphere, I am surised and disappointed again and again at the number and type of people who seem to think the constitution doesn't matter and are perfectly comfortable painting as nutters people who say the constitution should matter.
tim maguire · December 9, 2008 10:17 AM
I agree with Tim. I am disappointed that so many individuals, especially libertarians, so casually dismiss the birth certificate issue.
All Americans have the right to demand their representatives prove eligibility for office. The people have the right to petition the government for a "redress of grievances". When government dismisses petitions like these without fair hearing, and when citizens acquiesce to such dismissals because the petitioners seem "kooky", then we have conspired to repress peaceful avenues to the resolution of political questions.
The Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler
Don?t bang your head!
Вот странно: все пишут в блогах на такие разные темы, а о любви и чувствах к близким так мало. Такое впечатление, что в сети все стали такими безчувственными :(