Homework for the Fearful

I suspect that most of the people who voted for John McCain were feeling OK when they woke up on November 5. They probably share our pride that we elected the first African-American to the White House. And while they wanted the other guy to win, President-elect Obama's approval ratings are high enough to make me think that most McCain voters aren't drowning in their sorrows.

But there is a group -- a pretty big group -- of McCain supporters who are absolutely devastated. The true believers, the Palinistas, the right-wing radicals are in a state of panic. We can't forget what these people actually believe: that Barack Obama is a Muslim terrorist with a hidden agenda to destroy the United States.

How do we convince them that this belief is wrong? You can't reason with the fundamentally unreasonable. You can't list the facts or show them Obama's agenda or speeches, because those can be explained away as part of the deception. The only people they believe are themselves and their fellow travelers.

And that's exactly who is going to have to convince them: themselves.

So I'd like like to offer a homework assignment to the people out there who think we've condemned our country to certain doom by electing Barack Obama.

Write down everything you think President Obama will do, contrary to his stated plans, to undermine our democracy, our economic system, and the American way of life.

I'm not talking about the parts of his plan you don't agree with. You may not want the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy to go away, and you may think that making health care available to all Americans is tantamount to socialism. That's too bad -- that's Obama's agenda, and if he follows the right advice, that's what America's going to get.

But if you believe he has been hiding his Muslim faith, that he has always had a plan to get into the White House and use his position there to destroy America, what exactly do you think he'll do as president to advance the goals of (as I think you'd put it) radical Islamofascist jihad?

Make your list, seal it in an envelope, and mark it "Not to be opened until President Obama leaves office."

Then on January 20, 2013 or 2017, when the 45th president takes the oath of office, I want you to open that list and see if any of your predictions came true.

Fear is a powerful emotion. It can twist your facts and confuse your priorities. It drove a the most intense opposition to Obama's campaign. Millions of Americans think Barack Obama is the monster hiding under their bed. I urge them to crawl under there and give it a good look. You'll be surprised at what you see.

Comments

[Lilly-G]

I live in Oklahoma and anti-American, Muslim, terrorist beliefs - all under the guise of Christian faith - is rampant in this part of the country. My sister believes it - I always knew she was ultra-religious, but had no idea she actually believed in the right-wing rhetoric. She sent me every silly thing she could find to get me to change my vote. A photo of Obama holding Zakaria's book was proof he was Muslim, photo of him not saluting the flag was enough to convince her he was a terrorist. This is all it takes for this nut-jobs to believe in something. The religious right have formed quite a network to spread these lies to each other and its gospel to them - no matter what other proof you provide to the contrary. I know, I've been doing 'battle' with her for a month now. My husband, McCain supporter, is a hunter and bought into the 2nd Amendment arguement completely. Its been tough to be a Obama-supporter these last few months - I could care less what they now think of me (hard to know since neither are talking to me now), I voted with extreme pride and joy for Obama - totally worth the BS I've had to deal with.

I've seen what religious right is capable of and its very scary indeed. You can't argue with them cause they are right - no matter what. It shows how completely ignorant people can become when religion is

[viewfromuphere]

the trouble with this proposition is this.....the assumption that these people "think"

they believe what they believe cause that's what they want.....any excuse to cover up the fact they just don't want a black man in the White House..

[Octoberon]

I think this kind of "time capsule" thing is a good idea everywhere. We're living in a media-driven world with long-term memory loss - except that the long term is just a month or two. I mean, soon you Americans will have forgotten all about George W. Bush, just as we over here in the UK have started forgetting Tony Blair.

This is why these nice old traditions of releasing government documents after so many years become so intriguing - but 50 years or so is too long a period of time. I want to be reminded of what I thought just last year, or the year before that.

What if that nice Mr Obama is really a Hawaiian counter-revolutionary, who's going to make all Americans wear hula-hula skirts? Now that wouldn't be so bad.

[Shieldmaiden]

You can't reason these nutjobs. Just let them drown in their ignorance and fear.

[llisa]

Excellent suggestion. But MY fear won't let me pass this on to the willfully fearful of Obama. I know several who already think of me as the enemy because I have a small Obama pin on my purse. And I am surrounded by far too many of them.

They rejoiced in the passing of Prop 8. Besides the beliefs you listed above, they think Obama has personally ordered babies to be killed. They are too far gone for anything like this to help.

And they fan the flames of fear in each other lest any of them come to their senses. And they are raising their little ones to be afraid of people like me (because I don't think people's rights should be taken away, and I am happy that Obama won and hopeful for America's future).

I don't know if there is a cure for them. Being outnumbered, I just try to stay away from them.

[Kerris]

So if they think Obama is a "radical Islamofascist" on a "jihad" -- what do they make of the Rahm Emanual appointment then? Hardly the choice that anyone would expect a "one man terror cell" to make, now is it?

[berkeleygirl1962]

Perhaps they could look at it this way: there is no religion that REQUIRES more PUBLIC piety than Islam. "Stealth Muslim" is, therefore, an oxymoron.

Then again, so is "logical idiot."

[gbrooks]

I'm not one of these people you're looking for, but from back in my days on a libertarian site, there was one person there who was a total Palinista. She was exceedingly religious, older, and believed in all that "end of days" sort of stuff.

I think they simply see Obama through a haze of irrational thought, Book of Revelations-type logic, which has something to do with protecting Israel (not because they like Jews or anything either), and so they get into fits about Muslims, apparently because they are the enemies of Jews or Israel or something like that.

They see Palin, who has a similar faith as them, as, I guess, being their leader when Jesus comes back. Seriously, there's not much logic behind it. I'm finding it difficult to even explain it. It boils down to something about the apocalypse is all I know.

How about the next milestone for presidency be an atheist president?

[django707]

Home Of The Brave.

[jsgaetano]

If Obama truly hated America, he would just keep doing the exact same thing Bush and the Republicans have been doing for the last 30 years.

[Oregon Ivy]

Snap.

[Beaux510]

SNAP INDEED.

[Travis2008]

Well said. I've stopped trying to reason with the fearful. They can't see past their fear.

I'm going to try suggesting this approach. It may not help them address their unreasoning fear today, or tomorrow. But maybe someday it will.