Rant: Obama

I don't get it. To say that the inauguration frenzy has reached fever pitch would be an understatement of colossal proportions. Four and a half million people expected to attend? There aren't that many Christians that would attend the second coming of Jesus, I bet. The deification has gone through the roof. We have seen our God, and his name is Barack Obama.

The hagiography was already in high gear throughout the campaign, but at the time, at least the mainstream press would include some substance in its coverage at regular intervals, making it at least possible to ignore the vaguely constructivist-looking blue and red posters – the less charitable among us might call them WPA-style, or, dare I say, Socialist-realist – plastered on walls. But now that the papers have moved onto things they are supposed to cover, like cabinet picks, Obamamania has got downright tawdry. In a nearby shopping mall, on the food court level, an enormous kiosk has sprung up, selling nothing but Obama souvenirs. The kiosk occupies the same spot where the Photos-with-Santa station was at Christmas time, and it's about the same size, if you include the tree. And that's in addition to the permanent gift kiosk a hundred or so feet away that a couple of months ago has switched from its normal mix of international flags, Washington Memorial calendars and FBI t-shirts to an all-Obama inventory. The examples go on on. Some people are using Obama's photo on their Facebook profile. Since we no longer seem to go to each other's houses much, but instead socialize on Facebook, this becomes the equivalent of hanging Obama's portrait in a prominent place in one's house. I can think of a very similar phenomenon. It's called Dear Leader.

The frightening thing is that unlike the North Koreans, we are not required to worship Obama. We do it all on our own. Yes, I appreciate the historical nature of his election. But come on – this is a guy whose only claim to fame is a brilliantly-run election campaign. I can't believe I even need to spell this out. Are we so desperate for an external source of moral validation that we make one up? Have we none left in ourselves?