This post marks the 300th post here at Ich Bin Ein Oberliner. Pretty badass if I do say so myself.
I've given the election some serious thought--that is, though other than Wow, a Democratic presidency and Congress. Here's what I've got. This election wasn't so much a referendum on Conservatism. I know, this might seem to put me in a camp with David Brooks et al., but let me explain. This was a referendum on a specific type of conservatism--that is Conservative Political Pentecostalism. This can be defined as A disdain for classic intellectualism and the epistimically responsible knowledge-gathering, marked by an over-reliance on "the gut" and an irrational distrust of "the elites" (for more, here).
President Bush governed this way. He did what he wanted, reason be damned. And Gov. Palin was, perhaps, the best example of this type of political persona in recent times. Shortly put, this was the American people rejecting the unfounded, counterknowledge of the Right.
How do I know this? Here's my thought. The polls have pretty clearly demonstrated (sorry all you Palin apologists) that Gov. Palin, while initially a boon for the McCain camp, ended up being a drag on his campaign. She isn't, I don't think, a stupid woman. She is, however, someone who is ignorant and proud of it. The McCain camp's decision to pick her was pandering directly to the segment of the Right that cares more about personality (Maverick!) than actual issue-based substance. McCain, in picking her, demonstrated that he was a part of this kind of personality-based campaigning. And, remember, all those attacks on Obama, designed to 'hit him where it hurts'--the Bill Ayers, the OMG he's black!, the whisper smears on his faith and heritage--failed. Miserably.
I think, eight years ago, they worked. Gore was painted an elitist snob, and he suffered for it. Now, though, these attacks didn't stick. Maybe it was the seriousness turn American Politics have taken after 9-11, Iraq, the economic crisis, and god knows what else. Maybe. I'm loathe to speculate (ha!).
Anyway, that is, I believe what this election was about. I'll try to flesh these ideas out more. Maybe I'll say something more coherent about it later.
And, lastly, I should be a pundit. Why? Because my electoral prediction was extraordinarily clost. Closer, indeed than Nate Silver (of fiveeightythree) and closer than most of my friends. My guess? 378. The result? Right now, it's at 364. W00t.
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