Obama’s Stairway to Where, Exactly?
By Pat Racimora on June 1, 2008 at 6:31 PM in Current Affairs, Obama

I found it difficult to reconcile the perceptions of those who swear that they see Barack Obama on the fast track and bounding up the steps to eminence and those who see him as simply spinning in endless circles devoid of meaningful content. Then I remembered the famous stair-step illusion that seems to satisfy both viewpoints.
But, the illusion concept can be mined deeper. I stumbled upon a revealing article by Fred Sigel aptly titled “The Illusion of Barack Obama.” Sigel does concede that the gaps between a politician’s words and deeds, exaggerations, embellishments, and lies presented as metaphorical truths are a staple of campaigns seeking to attract a large variety of constituents. So, in that regard, Obama is no different. “What makes it different,” according to Sigel, “is that there’s not just a gap but a chasm between his actions and his professed principles, which would normally kill a candidacy. And because his deeds are so few, the disparity is all the more salient.” Sigel concludes. “Obama, far more than the others, is the ‘judge me by what I say and not what I do’ candidate.”






















