Does Obama qualify as a "cult of personality"?

[aquarius dawning]

Poll question: Does Obama qualify as a "cult of personality"?

[anonymous171]

1. If anything Hillary has the cult of personality. At least we don't call him a "goddess"

[aquarius dawning]

9. I think the goddess of peace thing is metaphorical.

and suggests a shift towards a matriarchal society and the benevolent qualities generally associated with matriarchy.

[chascarrillo]

11. Obviously, given her vote for war, it ain't literal.

[aquarius dawning]

14. here we go again with that.

I think everybody knows who voted for what and who wasn't in a position to have to vote for anything. And I think we all know how Obama would have voted if it was the Sears tower that fell that day instead of the WTC, if it was his constituency jumping out of windows to their deaths instead of Hillary's.

[anonymous171]

16. That's not the question. Is war a matriarchal concept?

[John Q. Citizen]

40. So Hillary lied about why she voted for war? She claimed it was the WMD, not the towers.

I guess everybody knows Hillary lied.

[rodeodance]

74. you know shit

[JTFrog]

41. Your Magic 8 ball is seriously fucked up.

Either that or the questions you are asking it are seriously fucked up.

My guess is both.

:eyes:

[dchill]

68. So, you actually believe that an illegal invasion...

of Iraq was the right response to the death of constituents? Yes, I think I know how Obama would have voted on that. Here we go again with that, indeed.

[anonymous171]

12. Is war a matriarchal concept?

If you think that Hillary will do anything to that effect then you are sadly mistaken. Jane Fonda had some choice words for Clinton on this subject. Clinton's entire candidacy and yes, her career, has been based upon the Clintonian principle of "Strong and Wrong." That sounds like a patriarchal concept to me.

[aquarius dawning]

17. Listen, I'm talking about cults of personalities here, not goddesses of peace or IWR votes.

So kindly hijack another thread.

[Bongo Prophet]

43. As you said yourself in another thread, we are a bunch of "spellbound slaves"

So being in a "cult of personality" is almost a compliment, coming from you!

Thank you!


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5442284#5442361

[cali]

44. tough toenails,dearie

you don't get to dictate who posts what in a thread- even if you
started it.

[Eric Condon]

25. You call it "metaphorical," I call it "batshit insane, war-is-peace-level rhetoric"...

You say tomato, I say tomato.

[Alter Ego]

69. The way you phrased that made me shudder with revulsion.

I don't want a "mommy". I want a President.

[whatchamacallit]

70. I think the word you meant to use was 'comical'

:eyes:

[Unsane]

76. A goddess of peace who votes for war

[smalll]

22. You guys just produce posters of him looking like this:

Nothing deificatory about that at all. Not a smidgen. :eyes:

[anonymous171]

26. His supporters make those. Not the campaign. Sorry your candidate isn't inspiring.

[aquarius dawning]

29. It doesn't matter. It is still a cult of personality in that it represents the deification

of a political figure and, as such, it is against everything that the Democratic party stands for.

[anonymous171]

31. No. A cult of personality, per the wikipedia article, is

A cult of personality or personality cult arises when a country's leader uses mass media to create a heroic public image through unquestioning flattery and praise.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_of_personality

It's all about the leader pumping him or herself up.

[aquarius dawning]

33. Well, that still pretty much describes Barack Obama IMO

and, furthermore, you're selectively ignoring the rest of the article. Be that as it may, I think you failed miserably at making your point. Barack Obama is absolutely a cult of personality and, given his proclivity for associating with radical clerics who are all too quick to damn America and white people, I have serious reservations about him as my President on several levels.

[anonymous171]

35. You have no evidence to support your claims and have now resorted to making shit up.

Barack Obama is absolutely a cult of personality and, given his proclivity for associating with radical clerics who are all too quick to damn America and white people, I have serious reservations about him as my President on several levels.

This quote is a good reflection of your character.

Goodbye.

PS: Obama's Mother and Grandparents were all white. He was raised by white people. Obama himself is half-white. Remember that.

[aquarius dawning]

36. It's a better reflection of Obama's character and I've made nothing up.

face it, you have been spanked. Go to your room and cry about it now. :cry:

[aquarius dawning]

28. Nice. The sun rays clearly elude to solar worship which directly implies Jesus Christ himself

or any number of other deities which were themselves allegories for solar worship.

[atal]

42. That poster is awful!!!

Surely it wasn't done by the Obama campaign?!

[Clintonista2]

75. I've heard obama supporters on DU call him "Godbama"

Go look up some of Citizenrob's posts.

[DearAbby]

2. Obama called the "GODDESS OF PEACE"?

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. As much as Hillary and McCain... called Psychological campaigns

and if you are susceptible to the techniques you will fall for it.

So technically yes, with the rest of them

By the way, also see under marketing

By the way, in case you wonder I did not vote... I find these polls (on either side) ridiculous, but we need to call attention to it

[gateley]

4. No, and I love Living Colour! nt

[Beacool]

5. Definitely!!!!

What else is there to the guy? His record is as thin as a wafer.

[Bongo Prophet]

46. A record as thin as a wafer...hmm...a communion wafer! I think you may be on to something!

Just kidding, of course...
The OP thinks Obama supporters are like "spellbound slaves" - do you agree with that?

I think Hillary supporters are just democrats with a different opinion.
We may have a difference in style, or attitude, I think.

You can check his record, of course.
If it does not impress, that's okay.
Good luck, and we'll be working for the democrat to win in November.

[aquarius dawning]

6. I think he clearly does by the definitions I read.

cult of personality:
Noun
Intense devotion to a particular person
http://www.wordwebonline.com/en/CULTOFPERSONALITY

A cult of personality or personality cult arises when a country's leader uses mass media to create a heroic public image through unquestioning flattery and praise. Cults of personality are often found in dictatorships but can be found in some democracies as well.

A cult of personality is similar to general hero worship except that it is created specifically for political leaders. However, the term may be applied by analogy to refer to adulation of non-political leaders

Generally, personality cults are most common in regimes with totalitarian systems of government, that seek to radically alter or transform society according to revolutionary new ideas. Often, a single leader becomes associated with this revolutionary transformation, and he becomes treated as a benevolent "guide" for the nation, without whom the transformation to a better future cannot occur. This has been generally the justification for personality cults that arose in totalitarian societies of the 20th century, such as that of Adolf Hitler and Mao Zedong.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_of_personality

[anonymous171]

8. "Create a heroic public image"-Like likening oneself to Rocky?

Or fabricating a story about (heroically) landing under sniperfire?

[aquarius dawning]

10. I like the part about being the harbinger of change too and being the only one capable of bringing

about the change.

[anonymous171]

13. His message is "WE are the ones we have been waiting for" NOT "I"

Clinton, on the other hand, assures us that she is the only one who has the experience necessary to magically solve all our problems by somehow passing all her bills as is through the house and senate.

[aquarius dawning]

18. Please, Change change change change change change. He's a broken fucking record.

He has clearly portrayed himself as being the only candidate capable of bringing about the revolutions necessary to build a brighter future and he does it incessantly.

[anonymous171]

19. Hillary actually SAYS she is the only candidate with the neccessary qualities to be pres.

Where does Obama say that he is the only candidate "qualified" to be president?

[aquarius dawning]

21. I just pointed it out. read it again.

he is the one who can bring about the change that leads to a brighter future because Hillary did this or knows that person or accepted contributions from this person or because it was Bush-Clinton-Bush-and then Clinton, or becasue she's too much of an insider or any other number of reasons. Only he can change things, Only Barack Obama. Hillary isn't singing that tune. She's only claiming to have more experience than him. Big difference.

[anonymous171]

23. He may imply that but she actually SAYS that. There is no comparison.

[aquarius dawning]

24. Imply my ass. "Change we can believe in". WTF is that? Cult of personality, that's what it is.

[anonymous171]

27. No it's not. "Change" is not a person. Hillary: Ready to Lead.

[aquarius dawning]

30. It doesn't matter. It's obama directly stating that he is the only person who can bring about change

acccording to WIKI, that is evidence to support the claim that he is, in fact, a cult of personality.

[anonymous171]

32. Hillary says she is the only one with experience, therefore she is the only one qualified to lead.

So she has a cult of personality. I think you are mixing yourself up here. Take a break and come back later.

[aquarius dawning]

34. She's going at this as if it were a job interview. Obama is going at it as if he were the 2nd coming

[PA Democrat]

51. So Obama will be the next Adolf Hitler or Mao Zedong?

Okey-dokie. :eyes:

Ever hear of GODWIN'S LAW?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin's_law

[madwivoter]

77. Goddess of Peace = Apotheosis

Hillary supporters calling her a goddess of peace:

Apotheosis (from Greek ἀποθεόω "to deify"), deification or divinization is the glorification of an individual to a divine level.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apotheosis

[Asgaya Dihi]

7. In the context of the campaign, no

He does have a following, so did Dean, Gore, and a number of others. So does Clinton.

Early on I had the same impression of them, being a bit bright eyed and infatuated. But over the last several weeks we've seen the Clinton campaign argue as if the caucus system is brand new or something and argue theoretical "if the rules had been otherwise" premises that seem to depend on us accepting that in an alternate universe and under another set of rules she'd have been the winner.

Really? Might be, but we're here and the rules in this universe haven't changed much in decades, everyone knew them before the race started and planned their strats accordingly. After that performance and other events over recent weeks the Obama crowd looks downright normal by comparison.

[Writer]

15. After attending our caucus in Colorado, my husband and I were humming Living Colour's 1988 song...

by that same title.

[aquarius dawning]

20. Why is that?

[sudopod]

37. There's only one of him.

He'd make a very small cult.

[anonymous171]

38. Don't bother. They've already made up their mind.

See my discussion with them upthread.

[FrenchieCat]

39. Obama the candidate was able to come up with a powerful message

and has been consistent about making it heard throughout his campaign thus far.

Hillary doesn't really have a message, which is why she is losing.

Some folks are jealous of that.

It is not his fault that Hillary ran such a shitty campaign.

[dchill]

71. THAT is what this thread is really about...

It is about the jealousy felt within the Hillary camp that she just hasn't been able to become quite the "cult of personality" that Barack has. And one doesn't have to "make shit up" about what a flawed candidate Clinton is.

[Maddy McCall]

45. Yes, and even the most objective media have noticed.

[mmonk]

47. Interesting concept.

People who support Obama possibly from this and the people supporting Clinton could not possibly suffer from cult of personality. I just love double standards. Of course that double standard has been pushed by the Clinton campaign. Otherwise, how could anybody not support Hillary?

[DemVet]

48. Something new, bright and shiny...

[Orsino]

49. The folks who use the term rarely try to define it.

The rule is: your side's campaign is a campaign, and the other's is a cult.

[aquarius dawning]

50. actually, it was defined in the OP....

:spank:

[Orsino]

52. No, it wasn't.

But it rarely is, as I said.

[aquarius dawning]

53. post #6, check it out.

[Orsino]

54. Much better. But I don't think it applies.

Unless we apply it to pretty much any campaign. Is there any way to measure what you see in Obama's campaign?

[aquarius dawning]

58. Nearly half of the people voting do which is saying a lot actually

considering that Obama people grossly outnumber Hillary folks here at DU. I am actually quite surprised. perhaps they were confused by the question and/or misunderstood the implications. Perhaps they're finally being honest. that would be refreshing.

[Orsino]

62. I mean, how could we measure the devotion of Obama supporters...

...and by what standard could we declare it cultish?

[workinclasszero]

55. Yeah the goddess of peace nutcases are the cultists

Those Hillbots are some scary peeps!:scared:

[aquarius dawning]

56. I heard that Godess of Peace thing once from John Stewert & a couple of times here on DU after that

and that's about it. It's not the same thing as Obamamania by a long shot, it's a response to it if anything.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

57. I never heard Jon Stewart say goddess of peace.

I watch Daily Show every day. Maybe you mean Jay Leno? Some poster seemed to associate Leno with that.

[aquarius dawning]

59. I don't know. I thought it was John Stewart. Perhaps it was Leno though

I just caught a blurb of it on another news program. Then I saw it here a few times after that but that was it as far as I know. I really don't think it constitutes any kind of "Clinton cult of personality".

[SeaLyons]

60. Yes, He Does....

He absolutely does. He is not running on his resume - he's running on his words.

[PBS Poll-435]

61. He is also running on people's

subconscious obsession w/ the Clenis.

[DefenseLawyer]

63. Are we wheeling out the "cult" meme again?

It's played, Jerry. So played. The truth is Rev. Wright is the cult leader and Obama is his islamofascist automaton. Come on now Hillary supporters! Time to bring the serious heat. Don't hold back.
"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro."- Hunter S. Thompson

[Oilwellian]

64. Hmmm...

So you're saying the millions of people who voted for Obama are now a cult? You defy your own DU handle and have forgotten the meaning behind the "dawning of the age of aquarius."

:rofl:

[BadgerLaw2010]

65. Look at his posters, you tell me.

[redqueen]

66. Awww... and a few staunchly-unobservant Hillary supporters just yesterday

were trying to claim that they'd never seen any Hillary supporters use that term... that they only ever saw Obama supporters complaining about it.

[MethuenProgressive]

67. Absolutely. Rember the video of an entire room full of Obama backers who couldn't name ANYTHING

he had ever accomplished? An entire roomful - and not one could go deeper than "he's a great speaker," and "he's wondeful,"...

[SeaLyons]

78. ..

:thumbsup:

[loyalsister]

72. Is\was Bill Clinton?

Being villified in the media seems to have worked for him. He has some of the most strident supporters I have seen.
Hillary Clinton currently has a number of people working to try to help manage her media image. Is she?
Or is it simply the business of politics to take on qualities ripe with that accusation?

[BlooInBloo]

73. Nope. Just a politician. It's only his haters that try to make him into a fiction character....

... so that they can rip on his supporters for supporting a fictional character. It's quite stupid, but then you really don't expect much of Americans, I suppose.