Something is happening in American politics that seems to be taking the American left and, most notably, college campuses by storm. We all know it as "Obamamania."
But what is "Obamamania" exactly? "Obamamania" can be summed up in two of the leading buzzwords of his campaign: hope and change.
Barack Obama has done a marvelous job of selling this latest brand of socialism to the American people and our leftist college campuses by packaging his desires to redistribute wealth through becoming a modern day Robin Hood by using the buzzwords of hope and change. When it's looked at closely, however, we see that this is more of the same tired rhetoric from the American left except this time, it comes in a package with a picture of a smiling younger man who has hope and change on his side.
In that respect, we're urged to gloss over the promises of the largest tax increase in American history to pay for the numerous social welfare programs that he plans on installing.
Hillary Clinton, no friend of the conservative movement, said it best when she described Sen. Obama's naivety by giving a description of his campaign that is as follows:
"Let's just get everybody together; let's get unified. The sky will open. The light will come down. Celestial choirs will be singing. And everyone will know we should do the right thing and the world will be perfect. Maybe I've just lived a little long, but I have no illusions about how hard this is going to be. You are not going to wave a magic wand and have the special interests disappear."
I'm no fan of Clinton, but her description of Obama's campaign couldn't be closer to the truth.
Those of us who don't have blinders on know that Clinton is right. In respect to Sen. Obama, I believe in hope as well, but hope didn't get my Sun Devils a win over UCLA on Thursday night, and "hope" isn't going to "change" my chances of winning the lottery this week.
With this in mind, I must ask people what their infatuation is with a man who has served less than one term in the United States Senate and seemingly voted "present" more times than "yay" or "nay" in his time in the Illinois State Senate?
The question must be asked as to whether his supporters know that he is the most liberal senator in the United States Senate according to the nonpartisan National Journal. Another question is whether you Obamamaniacs out there agree with the notion that we should build up the weak by tearing down the strong instead of creating econmic circumstances where the weak could become strong in their own right. Do you believe that we should re-instill the words that used to define your proud party from its Jeffersonian lineage like hard work, self-sufficiency, accountability, personal responsibility, and perhaps most importantly considering the difficult economic times shared by all Americans, living within one's means.
I'll leave you with a quote from the 30th President of the United States, Calvin Coolidge. "The wise and correct course to follow in taxation is not to destroy those who have already secured success but to create conditions under which every one will have a better chance to be more successful."
That, my friends, is the course we should demand from our politicians. Only then will the "magic wand" be able to spread "hope" of prosperity throughout our land.
T.J. Shope is happy to be back at The State Press and is looking forward to all the nice e-mails he'll receive at: thomas.shope@asu.edu.
