I tuned into right-wing talk radio last night (the host’s name was “Shawn,” so maybe Shawn Hannity, if he has a radio show?), and I noticed that literally every time he talked about Obama, he called him “The Messiah.” He’d add it to the name, or even say, “I don’t think Obama is the Messiah like everyone on the left does.”
It’s no secret that the right wing in this country is terrified of a legitimately progressive (though still awfully centrist for my taste) and black president, and that in their Newspeak reality, positive things - like the fact that Obama is the first inspiring and hope-filling president in many people’s lifetimes - are somehow reframed as negatives (the whole “celebrity” candidate thing, which has been turned into the far more inflammatory “Messiah”).
It’s no secret that many on the wacko religious right actually think that Obama is some sort of Antichrist or harbinger of the end times. As such, the mocking use of “Messiah” by pundits and those on the right is directly attempting to tap into this and incite violence against him on religious war grounds.
Er… I would imagine that he was using it to lambast many of the left’s lionization of Obama. I think you’re making a massive leap to his critique (however warranted or unwarranted) of Obama to bea subtle hint to some religious fanatics to assasinate him.
I see the real danger being that legitimate criticism of Obama as a President is somehow muted or censored for a variety of potential slights, real or imagined.
There’s a lot of rhetoric out there that’s worse than this sarcastic use of the word messiah. The Ayers terrorist thing was worse, and so was the socialist thing, and both are more likely to provoke people.
Yes. At another board posters are shrieking like rabbits being butchered. Obama wants to turn the U.S. into North Korea. This is The End Of The United States! Obama is going to take their money and give it to Black people! Secret Police are going to go door to door confiscating guns! Gays will get married! Dogs and cats sleeping together! :eek:
The concept of a Messiah does not necessarily include the idea that the messiah will be a martyr. True, christians believe jesus was the messiah and was killed, but they blieve that was a good thing overall and that he will return and not be killed. Also, jews and muslims have a messiah concept that does not incude the inevitability of martyrdom. So, your argument doesb’t hold much water.
Name calling is all they have. As always the repubs show they can not govern. After this mess they have to divert your attention. Calling Obama a socialist and scaring the gun nuts works on some of the people.
Rush is bitching about the Obama recession. There’s some right wing logic for you.
?? The hell? What planet are you living on, where any criticism at all of Obama is muted or censored in any way? Hell, there are internet banner ads all over the place telling me to “kiss my paycheck goodbye” because Obama’s going to be President.
No criticism of Obama, however rabid or frankly delusional, appears to be off-limits, and much of it is enthusiastically welcomed by many right-wingers, no matter how offensive, inflammatory, or batshit insane it may be. Where are you imagining that this “real danger” of stifling anti-Obama remarks is going to come from?
If he’s assassinated, it will be because he’ll meet with some crazy 3rd world dictator with a bad sense of humor who will have a hand shake buzzer on his hand. When Obama jerks his hand back, the SS will overreact and take out the dictator. Then the dictator’s body guards will take out Obama.
It will then be the party gag industry’s direct responsibility.
I think the OP was saying that by calling him a messiah, they make it more likely that a religious lunatic will decide Obama is the antichrist and kill him for that reason. I don’t agree either.
Some idiot GOP congressman just compared Obama to Hitler (really!). That kind of thing is more likely to motivate some nut with a rifle, despite the congressman’s later semi-apology.
The OP is true only in the sense that "directly responsible " is exactly synomous with “one contributing factor among many and by far from the most important.”
Disagreement with those rabid and delusional criticisms are considered censorship by those making the outlandish comments.
Coworker1: “You know he wasn’t even born here. They found out that Hawaii birth certificate isn’t real.”
Syntropy: “No, that’s just a rumor that went around the internet. It’s been proven false. His birth certificate has been verified by the state of Hawaii as legitimate.”
Coworker1: “Well, sure! They’re gonna get a big fat pork spending check, you just watch.”
Syntropy: “…”
Coworker2: “and I don’t care what they say. He’s Muslim.”
Syntropy (beyond exasperated with the Muslim thing): “How long does he have to be Christian until you actually believe he isn’t? Is ‘since birth’ not long enough?”
Coworker1: “Nevermind, coworker2. You can’t say anything about this guy unless it’s singing his praises.”
Syntropy: “You can say whatever you like. If it isn’t true, I’m going to call you on it.”
Coworker1: “See?”
It seems being able to criticize isn’t enough. Unless said criticism no matter how outlandish is agreed with, it’s censorship.
The right wing’s “Messiah” meme is not based on any genuine description of how Obama is perceived by the left (the accusations that Obama supporters hold any irrational adoration of him is completely made up), but is a coded appeal to the prevalent and quite genuine belief among many religious righties that Obama is literally the Antichrist. There is absolutely no one on the left who sincerely thinks Obama is a Messiah. There are thousands (if not millions) of people who sincerely believe he is literally, no kidding, the Beast of Revelation.
I have heard this allegation discussed seriously and without ridicule on mainstream conservative radio, and while most of the big name talkers won’t publicly and officially cosign the idea, they’re careful not to dismiss it or mock it either. The Hannitys of the world don’t want to completely marginalize themselves from the mainstream by explicitly endorsing pure, uncut batshit, but they don’t want to discourage the idea either, and they surreptitiously encourage it by trying to hammer words like “Messiah” and “Chosen One.” They want to reinforce the (completely fabricated) notion that Barack Obama is displaying some kind of unnatural arrogance – that his popularity should be seen as disturbing and scary – that he is not just politically wrong, but deeply evil – and not just humanly evil but supernaturally evil.
The literal demonization of Barack Obama is overt and unashamed on the internet. On the radio, it’s more covert and circumspect, but it’s there. I don’t know if their intentions are purely political or whether they have darker motivations, but we already know that threats against Obama spiked when McCain/Palin was at its most inflammatory, and it would surprise me a bit if some nutburger tried to take a run at Obama thinking he was the son of Satan. I also think that the increasing lack of responsibility on right wing radio and the increasingly hyperbolic villification of Barack Obama could easily be contributing factors. These guys know they’re yelling fire.
I think Freejooky carries his argument a bit farther than I would have. That being said, I become, uh, concerned when people compareObama to Nicholae Carpathia. Carpathia is the Anti-Christ in the Left Behind novels. He rises quickly to power and is assassinated 3.5 years into his reign. In September, a radio host in Minneapolis referredto Obama repeatedly as Carpathia. I’m not going to dig too deep into these kinds of places while I’m at work, but it’s probably safe to say that this kind of dialogue is unhealthy.