Too Much Fear

Over the past few days, many on the left have drawn solace from what appears to be the frenzied death-rattle of the McCain campaign, but the race has been giving me another, very American feeling that is not usually associated with the political season, but rather the subsequent holidays. This is the feeling of looking down at my overstuffed belly after a particularly delicious meal, and wondering how did I let this happen? How pathetically easy it can be to replace dignified, grown-up self-restraint with a third of pie.

It's the same sick, panicky feeling I get when I see John McCain and Sarah Palin scaring people on television with their bloated, paranoid rhetoric, offering themselves as the safer, more familiar and trustworthy option. Have over two hundred years of democratic tradition left America with a political culture so thin that our next president will be elected because he scares people less than his opponent does? I wish we could do better than that, but I would be lying to deny that despite all my serious reasons for supporting Barack Obama, fear of a McCain-Palin administration is right up there. How did we let this happen?

I'm afraid of McCain and Palin, I guess because if we know one thing to fear, it's fear itself, and fear seems to be their big selling point. Like its sister technique -- terror -- fear undermines serious, rational conversation, and it stifles dissent. Serious political debate could be happening right now, but McCain won't hold up his end of the conversation, but rather keeps on drumming up questions about whether Obama is friends with terrorists. Obama has responded by taking out an infomercial. This is not dialogue.

Obama's speeches are vigorous and inspiring, but they lose significance when they are part of a bigger picture in which our democracy lacks serious debate. McCain's failure to make a serious case for his side has victimized the whole country because now, whoever wins this election won't have won because of ideas or vision, but because fewer people are worried about the threat he poses to our way of life.

Weight-loss strategy can be of use, here: to change an outcome, identify problem behavior. What is making us particularly vulnerable to fear today? Well, people on the left feel our democracy has been deliberately and systematically destabilized by the current president's consolidation of power to the executive branch, and we are all affected by his administration's insidious tendency to justify foreign policy in personal terms (implicitly the president's), rather than, say, the interests of the country as a whole. I'm not sure many would disagree that the president signifies far more today than he did eight years ago, and that this has been done deliberately. Scary.

Insisting that America show things like resolve and determination, for example, has re-located our national character away from where it belongs, with the people and into the person of the president. The truth is, wanting to show "strength" and "resolve" is no more relevant a justification for military action than the desire to show "happiness" would validate buying every Iraqi a balloon. If this bothers Americans even at a merely subconscious level, that's a good thing, because such personification evokes the exact system of government that our nation formed in order to reject: monarchy. If we're still uncomfortable with that, all is not lost.

But can a people remain democratic and self-reliant when its choices are dictated by fear? Democratic government's great advantage lies in its ability to express the will of the people, but can a people even have a 'will' under such conditions, other than to survive? If so, it's barely appearing in the campaign coverage. We see voters on each side who are terrified that the opposition will destroy the country should he win, and other issues are all secondary, 'politics as usual.'

I am in the same boat, because I can't stop myself from fearing a McCain victory (any more than I can will myself to stop overeating at the holidays). Both McCain and Palin seem unpredictable, undignified, and barely in control of any situation. These are not traits that characterize an America I want to live in, and much as I oppose our monarchic turn, this election does feel like a moment in time when our body politic is about to switch heads.

While Obama may be a good candidate for new 'head', we are a nation founded in pursuit of self-reliance, and as such, the position should not be available. Whoever wins, we must find a way to thrive under his administration without being ruled by it (I doubt Obama would disagree). It is precisely because democracies do not mistake the desires of their leaders for those of the people that we don't tend to start wars. America has begun blurring both lines, and we need to stop.

It is looking like the Democrats are going to do very well in this election, which may help: a bigger government would necessitate the spreading of power. But it will be at our nation's peril if the new, left-leaning leaders interpret their victory, as Bush did his narrow 2004 win, as a clear mandate to institute the kind of broad social changes that so many of us liberals would dearly love to see. They need to restore trust in our democracy first, and to do that they have to restore our trust in government itself by resisting the urge to treat legislation like a game of tetherball, forcing as much through as possible while they're in control.

If Obama and Biden win, after all, it will be because conservative Americans feel they cannot trust McCain with all that power, and not because they have had a sudden change of heart about the estate tax. While I may be writing this from a position of fear, I believe it: those conservatives are going to save this country by voting Obama, and they should not be thanked having their values ignored. To do so would be to ignore the national conversation that has been taking place over the past two years, and they deserve better.

We all deserve better, because all of America needs a government we can trust--not love, but trust, so that, for example, campaign promises to shrink and weaken the government seem as ludicrous as they would in any other job interview. Once we don't need to rely on the president to embody all that we stand for, we can focus on his job performance and evaluate him accordingly without getting swept away in persona.

Such scrutiny makes leaders better leaders, and it is why democracy works. I hope our leaders start working to earn back the public trust in the next few years, so that our next elections feel a little more democratic, and a lot less scary, to everyone.

Comments

[Noworries2008]

Gracious winners and losers please.

[Jazzcomedian]

Fear is what the GOP does best. Remember, they were, and still are the party of Joe McCarthy--the unparalleled master of irrational scaremongering. Bluster, bravado, and scaremongering. That's the GOP way. It took Obama, both calm, and resolute during a time great national crisis, to finally make people see the current GOP as the frightened, small minded, mean party they've become. No hope, no ideas, no solutions, no compassion, no interest in the larger society--just tax cuts for tightwads. That should be the GOP slogan. At least, it would be honest.

[Rhetticent]

Sophia, thank you for your reasonable, thoughtful and gentle message. I'm a conservative, one who has been worried to the point of obssession about the sharp divide in our country, and I've attempted to dialogue with people with opposing viewpoints for years. I just have to tell you that I'm not voting for McCain out of fear at all. I've admired Sen. Obama since I heard him speak at the convention in 2004, and predicted at that time that he would be preternaturally successful. I simply do not want larger government, and view that as a bad thing. On that, we will probably have to disagree, but I wanted you to understand that there are many of us who admire Sen. Obama, and wish he was a conservative so we could support him with all our heart.

I will also extend to you this bargain: If Sen. Obama is elected, he will be my President, and I will support him. I have pledged to all with whom I debate issues that I will make every effort to restrict my disagreements to policy issues, not ad hominem attacks. All I would ask is that those on your side of the issues pledge the same.

At some point we HAVE to move past the hatred and vitriolic attacks. Let's treat ALL those who have the courage to try to lead this country with decency and respect.

[bethel1974]

Rhetticent with such an eloquent quote. The question I ask is why wouldn't you vote for Barack Obama. If you admire the man and speak so highly of him what is holding you back. How much bigger does government needs to get than what it is right now. I don't understand? You are voting for someone who has done nothing but divide and promote hate not only at democrats but those that just don't agree.

I don't understand? I just don't understand? Is ideology that important to you that it would override your choice for the better man. To move past the hatred and vitriolic attacks you have to vote for the one that expresses your desire to remove it. When those that express divisive party rhetoric see that some still voted for that type of campaign it will never go away.

[whatfreshhellisthis]

A quote from FDR (at a time even more bleak than 2008) seems appropriate now: "Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself"nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance."

And as George W. Bush leaves the White House, a quote attributed to France's King Louis XV is fitting: "After me, the deluge."

I believe that Obama is better suited than McCain to stem that deluge. Obama's calm, measured response to events calms my fears.

[MizztyG]

Very true! Unfortunately McCain's campaign has been a lot about fear. Terrorist, Socialist, Muslim,...
Having grown up in Europe, and experienced socialism closely, I can assure you that Obama's program is not about socialism.

Spreading the wealth around is about giving the middle class buying power, and I'm sure McCain doesn't understand the importance of this point. The middle class in America has been shrinking during the last 20 years or so, and when the middle class gets smaller, and looses it's buying power, the fundamentals of the economy is at risk, as we've seen in recent weeks.
A big middle class with buying power is the prerequisite for economic growth. For those who want to know more about this, see http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/09/18/introducing-this-blog/

BTW, another president that spread the wealth (from the rich to the poor) was FDR. Was he a socialist?

[Overd0g]

Yeah the middle class has been shrinking because it's been moving into the upper middle class.

[doyle005]

Really where is this occurring? I'd ask my neighbors but three of the four of them have had their homes foreclosed, wonder where they moved to now that they are 'upper-middle class'?

[vegas9999]

After 9/11 we were told that it was not if but when another attack would take place. If another had taken place it would have been W's fault but when it did not happen it was just luck. The democratic party has been taken over by the far left and that is why I am no longer a democrat. I did not leave the party, the party left me.

[RS]

Obviously you have totally succumbed to the "BE AFRAID--BE VERY AFRAID!" fear gong banging rhetoric that pours from Faux Spews Channel 24/7. Question: Do YOU have any loved ones currently serving in Iraq or Afghanistan? It wouldn't surprise me one bit if your answer is NO.

[vegas9999]

Your right, I do not. But I lost 2 loved ones in world war 2 . I do not understand what that has to do with anything. You obviously are a person that sees 10 year old children holding a rifle and the mother saying she is proud that her child wants to kill Jews and Americans and then after seeing that, you tell people not to be afraid. There is no real evil in the world.

[vigilantwarrior]

"But can a people remain democratic and self-reliant when its choices are dictated by fear?"

No, it cannot. But remember you are living in the quasi-fascistic twilight of a Republic that has crossed the Rubicon. "We the People" tolerate "leaders" who have wrought fraudulent wars of aggression, police state surveillance, open suppression of dissent and torture. We will soon know if this twilight is dawn or dusk.

http://michaelfury.wordpress.com/2008/10/16/confess/

[Overd0g]

You mean like fear of global warming, fear of constitutional rights be removed, and fear of being exploited by the evil rich. Good lord, look in the mirror sometimes.

[Scholar in Training]

It is downright embarrassing how low McCain has fallen. NPR is reporting that he's now campaigning by telling the middle class that Obama's plan will raise their taxes: http://www.acouplethings.com/blog/2008/10/can-mccain-stop-lying-to-our-faces-now-please/

[vegas9999]

Well, we did go from 250 to 150 in a couple weeks.

[dutch163]

you have said it well: America deserves better..and we can do better
And that is what Obama calls us to do
Watching McCain/Palin rallies and the fear-mongering, I think "Is that what we want? Is this what an AMerican is?" and that goes for both the candidates and the crowds
And then at an Obama rally , he will silence even the boos with "we don't need that"
Just like I did with my own kids "We don't behave that way in this house"
This country was founded on noble ideas and we can aspire to better
We need to, we have a lot of work to do to repair the damage done in the last 8 yrs
Can we do it?
you betcha!

[Pulemerci]

Do you actuall feel comfortable with a freshman senator with questionable associates? Are you comfortable with his VP choice and his propensity for gaffes? Despite Biden's assertion of his high IQ (who knows their IQ?). At the end of the day, I think the American people will choose the candidate with a proven record, and experience and not great speeches.

[Grett]

Reporter Barbara West said to John Biden, about "spreading the wealth around" and the communist phrase (Marx) "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need", that it shows that Obama is a socialist, or something to that effect.

That phrase was borrowed by the socialists (Marxists) from one of the greatest Catholic theologians from the Middle Ages, St. Thomas Aquinas, who used in his work On Charity (De Caritas). It was a well-known phrase from Aquinas' thoelogy on social justice and Christian solidarity.

Following West's logic, would that make Obama also a Catholic theologian or an Catholic fanatic as well as a socialist?? Would that make most devout Catholics, who believe the Church teachings to be infallible, would that make them communists?

In fact, Aquinas borrowed that phrase from the Greek philosopher Plato who first used it in his major work The Republic. I guess that, following West's logic of loose association of ideas, that would prove that Obama is a republican or a Classical philosopher.

Don"t forget Palin and all the Republicans who have been passing tax laws, that"s also spreading the wealth around.

[Pulemerci]

THe phrase was made famous by and is attributed to Karl Marx. Your comparison is similar to Frank Sintra's "MY Way." He made it famous but not many people attribute it to Paul Anka who also performs it and wrote it. Regardless, it's the core of socialism and apparently the core of Obama's economic policy. I didn't say spread the wealth around, Obama did.

[dutch163]

good points
in fact there are a few "Catholics for Obama" sites
his positions are more Catholic (and catholic =universal)
than McCain
even the controversial Roe Vs Wade is explained well
Obama's philosophies would reduce the need for unwanted pregnancies
(ie sex education beyond abstinence...see Bristol Palin)

[Rhetticent]

Grett: Couldn't agree with you more. However, I would suggest that St. Thomas intended that the giving be voluntary, from the heart; Marx suggested that it be done by the State, and be mandatory. That is a HUGE difference in the application of a principal. I've always felt that Marx advocated a statist and secular version of Chrisian ideals, only without the spirituality.

I disagree with the idea that government should take my income, pass it through an inefficient and costly government agency, to accomplish what is in essence charitable giving. I would prefer to do it myself, and fund those charities that help people in my community directly, without administrative overhead.

[dignityandhonor]

Sorry, but the American people recognize that this John McCain is not the one I voted for in 2000. America has heard about the "questionable associates" and has deemed that point a non-factor. Frankly, I'm surprised the Obama camp hasn't brought up Hagee, Palin's whack-job pastor, the AIP, etc. Spend any time in politics and you will have questionable associates. I, for one, am very comfortable with Biden and "his propensity for gaffes". Are you talking about verbal gaffes or the type of "sleeping with other women while married" gaffes from McCain?
At the end of the day Tuesday, this country will free itself from the reckless, fear-mongering Right and Palin can start her new job on QVC.

[NoMoFearNoMoHate]

ooooooohhhhh.... don't vote for the boogyman!!!

the fact is that people wanted to vote for the elder washington insider with anger issues but his lies and smear tactics, LIKE YOURS, drove them to Obama.

Obama '08!

[dutch163]

I know my IQ, it's 139 and I am voting for Obama
my choice: Havard law top of class vs bottom of class (594 out of 599)
thoughtful consideration vs erratic

I have been researching the candidates and issues since the primaries
not only has my belief in Obama's abilities risen, so has my respect for him personally
(at first I kept personality out of the equation, preferring an "intellectual approach" rahter than a "HS popularity contest"

it has come down to Obama and McCain
my former respect for McCain is gone...for his choice of Palin, what I have learned about his past (not all experience is good) and finally his awful temper, erratic behavior and treatment of others rules him out as a choice
in fact the thought of that duo in the White House scares me

[Noworries2008]

I do not trust the associations with radicals. New information regarding Ayers and dedicating his book to the person that killed Robert Kennedy. Why is it that these "friends" of Obamas are deemed not dangerous by the libs?

http://www.foxnews.com/video2/video08.html?maven_referralObject=3173221&maven_referralPlaylistId=&sRevUrl=http://www.foxnews.com/

[kayatarms]

"AMEN" very good! I share so many of the same sentiments! Fear however is the one sentiment I fear the most! That is palpable and keeps me up at night. Haven't felt this way since the Supreme court decision, I knew something would come out of that decision, hence Iraq war and all the chapters written to where we are now. This one, is the same dread I felt then and it's worse and I am too trusting that this is about what is best for this country. I think political affiliation takes a back seat. You will be voting for Bush again and this sidekick is a heartbeat away. Both spell worry and fear!

[tomas0808]

It's been going on for more than the last eight years. After the cultural changes of the sixties they (the right wing) had two choices. Become a viable force in American politics, try to compete fairly with the Democratic party, or always play the fear card. In the end it's all about the money. They thought that if they deregulated everything, they could conspire with corporate America to always stay in power. Occasionally they would let things slide, like eliminating the draft (they knew there would be more unjustified wars and so they canned the draft to appease people)

[scordsdu]

You have excellent points. It's common historical facts, from King Louis XIV to after the death of Louis XVI in 1793 that Weak Nations use psychology/psychiatry/metaphysics as an instrument for behavioral change and control of territories. "Terror is nothing other than justice, prompt, severe, inflexible" The first victim was ancient compared to Marie Antoinette. Wisconsinites were fearful of the Arab Obama! and McCain/Palin are instilling fear among others. We all deserve better.

[grandma58]

I was going to vote for Obama no matter what, however a deciding factor for me was the rejection of the fear mongering from Mccain. I watched the RNC convention out of curiosity and felt fear, my first moment of doubt about Obama. My question to myself was why am I doubting? Ah, McCain and especially Palin struck a vein of pure terror. Obama is offering a level headed approach to problem solving, rational thought, reasonable discourse and as interesting as he is, he puts me to sleep. Remember when you were a kid being read a bed time story after a bike wreck kinda day, well that is how Obama makes me feel.

[dutch163]

what a good way to put it!
now I have a description of how I feel

[llisa]

It is ironic that the same campaign staff that has caused so many to fear Obama as a Muslim, terrorist, socialist, anti-American, or you-name-it, has also caused many to fear John McCain as unstable, unpresidential, hot-headed, and very like Bush. McCain has allowed his own staff to derail his campaign and make him look like a mean, old man while trying to make Obama look like a threat to all we hold dear.

Throughout, Obama has remained calm, has refused to attack back (though he has defended himself a couple of times), and has looked very presidential. That's why more and more Americans are endorsing Obama. McCain tried to make Obama seem scary, and in the end, the one we are more frightened of is McCain.

[dutch163]

very good points..you are right
I have read "The mccain of 2000 would not vote for the mccain of 2008"