Obama and the Soft Machine

Past performance is no guarantee of future results, Part One:

In an interview with an Orlando TV station Thursday, President Obama said that the U.S. had “gotten a little soft” in the last couple decades, losing its competitiveness.

— Jake Tapper, September 29th, 2011.

Finally, the Obama Campaign Unveils Its Luxury Designer Item Collection

Nothing screams “I’m sensitive to the economic struggles of my fellow Americans” like purchasing an $85 Vera Wang–designed custom canvas tote bag at the BarackObama.com store.

Or the $45 t-shirt designed by Sean John.

Or the $95 scarf designed by Thakoon Panichgul of Thakoon.

Or the $85 wallet designed by Grace Tsao-Wu and Laura Kofoid of Laudi Vidni.

Remember, purchasing and flaunting these items is the very best way to show all your friends on the Upper West Side or Soho that you’re not like that snob Mitt Romney and the One Percent; you’re socially conscious and sensitive to the less fortunate and a proud opponent of the right-wing culture’s mindless consumerism and celebration of conspicuous consumption. Bring it to the next $40,000-per-plate dinner hosted by George Clooney!

— Jim Geraghty, this past Thursday.

Barack Obama’s campaign store now features a $45 T-shirt designed by Beyonce and Tina Knowles. And it tells you everything you need to know about this campaign’s confused and discombobulated take on the United States.

**************

“GREATER TOGETHER. GREATER TOGETHER. GREATER TOGETHER,” repeats a fifth slogan, in ever-increasing intensity. In Obama’s world, individuals mean nothing; the collective is everything. This is pure fascistic sloganeering – the word fascist comes from the Latin fasces, meaning a bundle of sticks that, bound together, create a weapon.

And, finally, the favorite slogan: “TRANSFORM A NATION TOGETHER.” The shirt actually creates an American flag out of this phrase. What is it about America that needs transforming? Not trimming around the edges … not minor changes. Transformation.

This T-shirt sums up the Obama campaign in a nutshell. Empty slogans, dangerously collectivist ideas, and transformative vigor, all wrapped into a chaotic conglomeration of anti-Constitutional incoherence. The Obama campaign’s biggest problem, though: under Obama, nobody has enough cash to pay for a $45 T-shirt.

— “Obama Campaign T-Shirt: ‘Transform A Nation Together,'” Ben Shapiro, Big Government, yesterday.

“Remember folks, Mitt Romney is an out of touch rich guy who just can’t relate to the struggles of ordinary Americans:”

— Mark Hemingway of the Weekly Standard, “The Devil Wears Obama,” from Friday.

Surprisingly Related: “I look back on my post from a year ago and recognise my ignorance: high-end prostitutes do have a unique skill-set.”