So the Democrats are riding out the rush of victory. Not just a victory… but an ASS WHOOPIN’. And congrats to them for enough of a win that we don’t have to experience months upon months of whining and freakin’ recounts.

And the Republicans (as usual) are trying to figure out what the hell happened.

For what it’s worth Mike Duncan, what your party has done wrong (among other things) is insisting upon chasing the lame. The center. Hell… most the time it’s been left-of-center. And when you chase and desire the devotion of the lame… it’s all about mass marketing to them.

And there is already a party that’s got that down better than you guys and gals EVER will.

The definition of “lame” is: poor, weak, unconvincing and ineffectual

That focus and priority (I think the term was “bi-partisan”) left a huge mass of conservative-leaning independents that you’ve burned time & time again through lip-service and non action. For a multitude of reasons… you’ll have to wait at least an entire generation to even THINK about attracting back whatever piece of THAT pie you thought you had.

For the conservative-leaning, there are at least two very exciting aspects of the Obama Presidency to consider.

1. The landscape is more fertile than ever for true change. Specific change in the form of a movement (or new party perhaps) that represents an enormous mass of the unrepresented. We live in a world where brands can go from zero to 100mph in very short periods of time. We’ve just proven politically that branding is everything. Again… the landscape of the political marketplace is very different and fertile these days. It is a very real possibility. And that’s exciting.
2. There will soon come a day (likely 2 years from now) when there will be enough distance from where we are currently. There will be no more Bush Administration to absorb eternal fault. Liberal success will depend on foresight, strategy and execution. And the entire process will be documented and monitored beyond comprehension. It will provide a bounty of subject matter to-be-sure. And few case studies (ya think?) that will no doubt support non-liberal agendas.

There is another aspect that is both exciting, frightening and sad… all at the same time.

What Obama did brilliantly was tap into the “entitlement” mentality.

Sure… there is the enlightened hipster, academia crowd who supported the guy. But those people have always been there. And they were already engaged and on-board. They were there last time around. And the time before that…

The secret-sauce was engaging and exciting that other mindset. Because there is no shortage. And like government itself… the entitlement crowd is timeless and self-perpetuating.

There are no-doubt legitimate needy people in society who need assistance. And thank goodness we live in a country that makes attempts to take care of its own. There are occasional examples of the country falling short… but for the most part we strive to take care of our own.

There is another demographic. Separate from the true needy. That demographic is angry and unfulfilled. They need help too. Life is hard man. They’re owed something and gosh darn it… they want theirs. This demographic is significant enough to warrant having on your side. And man did Obama do a great job of rallying THOSE troops.

It could be argued that this demographic is where it’s at socially AND economically largely due to self-inflicted lameness. Again… to be clear to the enlightened academic hipster… the intended targets here are not the actual needy. Let’s all agree that we should all have compassion for the truly needy.

But…
*Note to the enlightened academic hipster: Like it or not … you share an ideology with the not-so-brights and their close cousins the not-so-motivated.

Again EAH’s, you are not being targeted or discussed in an unfavorable way. You have very legitimate and well thought-out reasons for supporting Obama. Got it. Understand it. Much respect for it.

The right has their rednecks..
The left have those people who go to Renaissance Fairs, watch 30 Rock and have a discarded DVD of “The Secret” laying next to their Lil’Wayne CD. They’ve got crappy credit too.

Hopefully can wrap your head around the attractiveness of Obama to this other demographic. Granted and acknowledged that they are attracted to Obama for very different reasons than the EAH’s.

But they’re unhappy too. And damn it… they’re gonna get theirs. And Obama’s schpeel sure sounded good to them as well. So it will be interesting for both sides to watch the inevitable “pay-up” thresholds that Obama will have to face. Also in line are several far-left elements that sank millions of dollars into support for the man.

They’ll expect favor at some point.
What is troublesome is the enabling of this mass of people. They are significant enough in size to influence the election of a President. Good or bad.

What happens if they really, truly get what they think they have coming to them? That’s a fair question correct?

More realistically… what happens if they don’t?

Obama will soon find himself being pulled into several opposing directions, all-the-while knowing the reality that he’ll have to govern close to center or he’ll find himself with approval-rating issues. It’s an interesting dynamic when compared to who he’s in debt to.