Buying Obama

It's no secret that presidential campaigns have long been colossal marketing events. While this year's election will go down in history for the obvious reasons, there may be another reason to note this election in our schoolbooks: the Obama campaign stepped it up a few notches and offered the American public a slick and integrated brand that walked the hip path beaten not by previous candidates, but by companies like Apple computer. From the logo to the slogans to complete font control, the Obama campaign was a graphic designer's wet dream.

The keystone in the marketing campaign was a cleverly simple logo. You know how "they" say a picture is worth a thousand words? Here Obama, the sun, brings the promise of a new tomorrow to America: change. And everything that word might stand for in this screwed up country. This one image succinctly symbolizes the ideology of his entire campaign. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that Obama himself is an ideology, not a person.

So we bought it. Now we hope the product inside is halfway as remarkable as the packaging was. Either way, if the only choice was him or McCain, then good on us. But I saw some other brands on the shelf, albeit over there on that aisle where the light's burned out, on a dusty cracked shelf near the floor. It makes me ill that change, Obama's main talking point, would be much better served under the presidency of one of the many third party candidates who have agendas that differ wildly from the main two parties. I believe many of the Americans who voted for Obama want to see actual, major change. I believe they essentially wanted a third party candidate, but they won't be getting one. They're going to get the democratic party line: a slightly kinder business as usual.

-VictoryGrey