Reply #51: Wow, a really great question!

[lwcon]

A movement and a revolution are "about" something. People rallying together to seek real change.

Movements and revolutions may well also have some of the following properties. But these are among the salient characteristics that a cult, as I understand them, includes:

* Adoration of an infallible leader, typically with religious overtones
* Mass chanting of vague, feel-good slogans
* Mythologizing of small and non-existent achievements and goals into legends and pipedreams
* Viewing all criticism as incorrect and a sign of "hate" (already been demonstrated a few times up-thread)
* Ends justify the means (as far as I know, this hasn't turned violent, but the vitriol spewed at Hillary Clinton, such as in the trumped up charges of racism and countless conspiracy theories about her "machine," is worrisome)

There is probably more, but that's some that springs to mind. Thanks for asking.

What bothers me most about the Obama cult is that we really have/had a movement growing in this country, as shown by the 2006 elections. Most Americans want the GOP to be kept from the levers of power. This should be an easy election for us. And running on a pleasing but wrongheaded campaign that says, "hey, both sides are to blame, let's just chill, and it'll all be good," a campaign that pisses away public dissatisfaction with the GOP is self-serving (because it's unchallenging) and wholly inappropriate for the times.

America is ready for change. But I feel he's co-opting that real desire into a brand that inflates a decent-enough (and likable-enough) politician into a god, and opiates people into forgetting the real changes that are needed. People are putting all their eggs into one mythic basket, when they were already prepared to reject the "values" of the Reagan Revolution -- thanks to some terribly hard-learned lessons.

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