Many will argue this year that if you don't love Barack Obama, there must be something wrong with you--Jonah Goldberg on The Corner points out:
"...I caught the beginning of the Daily Show the other night and saw what appears to be a recurring segment: "Barackaphobia." This, as you might guess, is where Stewart mocks anybody who is overly concerned with Barack Obama's ideas, background, whatever. In short, anybody who takes stark exception to Obama or the cult of Obama is paranoid....The left loves to characterize conservative dislikes and disagreements as "phobias" and other maladies of the mind. Specifically, conservative "hate" is based on "ignorance" and "fear." Rhetorically, this tactic amounts to a way for liberals to avoid arguments on the merits. It goes something like this: Conservatives have an inordinate fear of Communism, gays, blacks, women, sex, fun, whatever, and so we don't have to deal with them for we are confident lovers of both truth and change! Barack Obama, as we speak, is being added to that list. If you don't love and embrace Obama, you're afraid of him (and, again, fear is the root of racism, etc etc.). You're fearful of change, scared of hope, terrified of progress. I think this will be, more than explicit charges of racism, the underlying theme of pro-Obama bias in the press this year. Conservatives "just don't get it." And "it" will never be sufficiently defined, because to do so would do violence to the assumed enlightenment of those who do get "it."
This has been even more true, historically, than perhaps Goldberg realizes. Back in 1964 Barry Goldwater was ripped by his opponents as psychologically unbalanced. After all, what else could explain his conservatism? Same kind of thing going on here. And that's not to mention those on the left who will denounce any criticism of Obama as racism. Conservatives, be ready.
