I noticed him while driving home from work yesterday. Bright yellow Dodge Vipers do have a way of catching your eye.
Then my eye landed on his back window and his political message to the world:
"Stop Whining -- You Voted For Him!"
The delusional neighbor with the penchant for expensive gas guzzlers strikes again.
See, I've seen this guy before. He lives just down the street, tucked away in a gated community, hidden away from the unwashed masses. For the last six months, during the nightly commute, I'd end up tagging behind his massive Hummer, emblazoned with this message:
"Today a Soldier Died For Your Freedom!"
While stuck in traffic, I often amused myself with fantasies of altering that message a wee bit:
"Today a Soldier Died So I Could Keep Driving This Tank!"
Pimping a petrowar in a fucking Hummer. Apparently my neighbor is rather oblivious to irony.
So I guess I shouldn't be surprised that his new ride came with an equally oblivious political message.
"Stop Whining -- You Voted For Him!"
Whining? Did I miss something?
Now, I can see why sports car guy is whining. He's obviously a douchebag Republican with lots of money to burn -- a primo target for a targeted tax hike over the next several years.
But widespread whining amongst the Obamacons? I remembered a recent online ad from an outfit called "Sodahead" that asked whether I was "Regretting Voting for Obama?" Maybe I'm just in a partisan bubble. Did I miss something?
Ah, a new ABC News/Washington Post poll. This should be revealing...
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as president?
Approve: 66%
Disapprove: 29%
Huh. Doesn't sound like widespread whining to me. Could it be that perhaps the masses are growing more despondent about the economy in general, even if they haven't turned on Obama yet?
Do you think things in this country (are generally going in the right
direction) or do you feel things (have gotten pretty seriously off on the wrong track)?
Right track: 42%
Wrong track: 57%
Oh noez! Mr. Yellow Sports Car was right! Oh... wait a minute...
Same question, January 16, 2009:
Right track: 19%
Wrong track: 78%
So "right track" has more than doubled since Obama took office. But the economy still sucks, right? Even if we're on the right track?
Do you think the nation’s economy is getting better, getting worse or
staying the same?
Better: 27%
Worse: 36%
Same: 36%
Not good... at least, until you look at cross tabs from January...
Better: 6%
Worse: 62%
Same: 31%
So consumer confidence has effectively quadrupled since Obama took over. Weird.
It has to be an outlier, right? Well, no... CNN saysthe poll's 66% approval rating "is in line with many recent national polls."
[Except, of course, for Rasmussen (Republican-tilting) and Zogby (an incompetent hack).]
So what the heck gives with Mr. Yellow Sports Car and his legions? How could anyone be that delusional?
He's not alone, that's for sure. Just last week, a Republican friend of mine crowed triumphantly at how the masses were turning on Obama, and how he was bound to be a one-term president. Seems like every message board is laden with Republicans convinced the nation is turning on Obama.
Then I remembered this guy... Mohammed Said al-Sahaf, better known as "Baghdad Bob":
In April 2003, al-Sahaf proclaimed that US forces were nowhere near Baghdad. Hours later, US troops captured the city. He became an international joke -- particularly among the biggest cheerleaders of the war, the Republicans.
In 2003, Republicans made fun of Baghdad Bob. Today, they are Baghdad Bob.
Like al-Sahaf, they digest only news that is tailored specifically to their world view. Faux News insists Obama's screwing up. Drudge double-flashing-light-headlines every minor faux pas as the downfall of the administration. The Wall Street Journal opinion writers proclaim daily he's going to be a one-term president, reviled like Carter. Glenn Beck tearfully assures every Republican that "we surround them."
And so a president with a 66% approval rating is transformed into an epic failure.
And it's why I'm not as worried about the Republicans any more.
You see, an opponent is dangerous when he knows he's in a desperate position -- when he knows he needs to shake up his strategy and attack aggressively.
But a weakened opponent who doesn't even realize he's on the verge of annihilation, who insists on playing as if he's defending a big lead? That's just pathetic -- the showboating player on a losing team you always taunt with the chant, "Scoreboard! Scoreboard!"
I suppose I should feel a bit sorry for my neighbor in the yellow sports car. After all, it can't be easy to realize your entire worldview stands discredited in its entirety, and that the vast majority of your fellow citizens have decisively rejected your political allies.
Would I be as defiant, were I in his shoes? Probably. Would I be as delusional about it? Maybe. Being on the wrong side of a tectonic political shift isn't fun. Think what it was like for a progressive in November 1984.
But then I remind myself that Mr. Yellow Sports Car is probably really rich. And he likes to flaunt his wealth and political ignorance in an environment of widespread suffering.
And so tonight I'll amuse myself with a fantasy of sticking a note on his car, one of these days...
"Enjoy your tax hike, asshole."