All together now, boys and girls: Sieg Heil! Sieg Heil! Sieg Heil!

We need an uninspiring guy like Barney Fife in the Oval Office

by Craig J. Cantoni

Amazing. Scary. Discouraging.

I'm referring to an email from a smart guy with strong libertarian leanings. In it, he said that he was supporting Barack Obama this year because Obama "understands that the most effective leadership is built on inspiration."

The guy went on to make this equally amazing, scary, and discouraging comment: "From what I know of him [Obama], he may well understand what it's going to take to straighten out the economy."

In the early 1930s, millions of Germans, including many intellectuals, said the same thing about Hitler, seeing him as inspirational and believing that his socialism would fix the economy, which it did in the short term but couldn't last without the use of ever-increasing coercion and central planning. Of course, Obama isn't going to suspend civil liberties, end liberal democracy, commit genocide, burn down Congress, and attack Poland and France (although McCain might).

As an aside, it's too bad about Obama's unwillingness to burn down Congress. Just kidding. No I'm not . . . yes I am . . . no I'm not.

Seriously, ever since sixth grade, when my school showed newsreels of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps, I've been trying to understand the human propensity to suspend reason, succumb to emotion, and follow a charismatic leader to the gates of hell. Hundreds of books later, I still don't understand it and remain frightened by it.

It's not over the top to say that the looks of adoration on the faces of Obama's fans are similar to the looks of adoration on the faces of the throngs cheering Hitler in Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will. In both cases, reason and substance have been pushed aside by emotion and style.



All inspirational leaders are not demagogues, but all demagogues are inspirational leaders. Rather than take the risk of an inspirational leader turning into a demagogue, I'd prefer to have an uninspiring person at the head of government. Calvin Coolidge comes to mind. So does Harry Truman.

Some would say that in times of trouble or danger, an inspirational leader is necessary to motivate the masses. That's nonsense. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Barney Fife could have been president and the nation still would have done what was necessary. Besides, a compelling case can be made that inspirational American leaders had precipitated Japan's attack through years of meddling in the Pacific.

If a homicidal maniac is breaking down my door, I don't need to look to someone else for inspiration to protect my family and shoot him between the eyes. If the federal government is breaking my piggy bank with its out-of-control spending, taxing and printing of money, I don't need to look to someone else for inspiration to know that I have to get my money offshore until I can vote the bastards out of office. People who need inspiration to get off their asses should be pitied and feared, especially those who are infatuated with a guy like Obama, who is going increase spending, taxing, and printing of money.

Obama is so inspiring that his cooing fans on campuses haven't noticed that he has said nothing about the $800,000 in unfunded liabilities that is being bequeathed to each American under the age of 18. Of course he hasn't: His economic policies will screw the very same young people who are cooing him.

George W. Bush proves the point that a leader doesn't have to be inspirational to motivate the masses. There isn't a more uninspiring guy (although many Republicans were inspired enough by him to anoint him as their candidate). Yet the masses fell into lockstep and supported his invasion of Iraq. Just think of what might have happened if he were inspirational: We might have also invaded Iran, Syria, and North Korea.

I'd be a lot more optimistic about the nation's future if Barney Fife were our next president.
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Mr. Cantoni is an author and columnist. He can be reached at ccan2@aol.com.