The Age of Fear has reached its end. The election of Barack Obama brings about the dawning of a new age, the Age of Hope (cue the "Age of Aquarius" song, but replace "Aquarius" with "Hope" and stretch out "Hope" so it fits the spot where "Aquarius" usually is).
Obama ran on a platform that was upheld by two key concepts: hope and change. The Bush administration functioned primarily on a platform of fear. By spreading fear amongst the American populous, the Bush administration could act rashly, harshly, and violently to carry out their agenda. That being said, to end the Age of Fear, Obama ran under the pretext of beginning the Age of Hope upon his election to office. His campaign essentially aimed to juxtapose hope and fear and thus polarize Obama from Bush, the Democrats from the Republicans.
For as much as I find Obama to be a dreamboat and exactly what America needs in a president, I do find his platform of hope and change to be somewhat problematic. The polarizing of fear and hope is reminiscent of a scene from Donnie Darko:
Just as Donnie argues that fear and love are not opposites, I argue that neither are fear and hope. To begin with, fear is implicit in hope. One can only be hopeful if there is an underlying fear--Timmy hopes he will pass his math test because he fears failing the class. Americans hope the Obama administration will fare better than the Bush administration because they fear more futile military campaigns and further detriment to international relations. The fear created by the Bush administration is implicit in the hope purported by the Obama campaign. They are not opposites.
That being said, in a way, Obama ran on a campaign of fear. The other keyword in his campaign, change, hinges itself on fear: if things do not change in America, the end result will be negative.
Another element of fear in Obama’s campaign was the usuage of the current state of economic peril and the looming recession. Although the fear of terrorism has begun to fade, the impending financial havoc of the receding economy has emerged as a new overarching fear.
Obama’s campaign used the doomed economy as a means to generate fear on the campaign trail. The Obama bid asserted that McCain's economic plan guaranteed certain peril for the lower and middle echelons of American society: tax breaks for large corporations and wealthy individuals. Ultimately, this tactic aimed to balloon the pre-existing disquietude Americans felt about the economy.
To clarify, by no means do I suggest that Obama or his aides have misled the American public. Nor do I suggest that he is an immoral man unfit to be president. Barack Obama is an articulate, intelligent, and charming man--precisely what America is in dire need of at this point in time. I simply wish to point out that his rhetoric is a little problematic. The Age of Fear has not come to a close, it has simply taken a new, less aggressive form. Fear is a fantastic marketing tactic and a presidential campaign that does not make use of it will most likely be an unsuccessful one. America lives in fear and will always live in fear. If it is not a fear of Communism then it is a fear of terrorism or the economic recession or Mad Cow or AIDS or the Boston Strangler. Hope and fear work together on the same side of the spectrum. The Age of Fear shall remain.
Just as Donnie argues that fear and love are not opposites, I argue that neither are fear and hope. To begin with, fear is implicit in hope. One can only be hopeful if there is an underlying fear--Timmy hopes he will pass his math test because he fears failing the class. Americans hope the Obama administration will fare better than the Bush administration because they fear more futile military campaigns and further detriment to international relations. The fear created by the Bush administration is implicit in the hope purported by the Obama campaign. They are not opposites.
That being said, in a way, Obama ran on a campaign of fear. The other keyword in his campaign, change, hinges itself on fear: if things do not change in America, the end result will be negative.
Another element of fear in Obama’s campaign was the usuage of the current state of economic peril and the looming recession. Although the fear of terrorism has begun to fade, the impending financial havoc of the receding economy has emerged as a new overarching fear.
Obama’s campaign used the doomed economy as a means to generate fear on the campaign trail. The Obama bid asserted that McCain's economic plan guaranteed certain peril for the lower and middle echelons of American society: tax breaks for large corporations and wealthy individuals. Ultimately, this tactic aimed to balloon the pre-existing disquietude Americans felt about the economy.
To clarify, by no means do I suggest that Obama or his aides have misled the American public. Nor do I suggest that he is an immoral man unfit to be president. Barack Obama is an articulate, intelligent, and charming man--precisely what America is in dire need of at this point in time. I simply wish to point out that his rhetoric is a little problematic. The Age of Fear has not come to a close, it has simply taken a new, less aggressive form. Fear is a fantastic marketing tactic and a presidential campaign that does not make use of it will most likely be an unsuccessful one. America lives in fear and will always live in fear. If it is not a fear of Communism then it is a fear of terrorism or the economic recession or Mad Cow or AIDS or the Boston Strangler. Hope and fear work together on the same side of the spectrum. The Age of Fear shall remain.
