I wrote last night that the left is unique in having to turn their opponents into villains, that they were prone to believing conspiracy theories, not relegating them to the sidelines, and so on. At the time I blamed much of it on the nearly paranoid state that many on the left had been driven by the 2000 election and their conviction that the Republicans were part of some massive conspiracy bent on stealing elections.

Since then several of my readers have complained that I too readily dismiss complaints about Obama, and, thinking about some of the articles I have read recently, perhaps they are right. It seems that during this election, the right is turning into a mirror of the left. They are starting to turn into the equal of the left in conspiracy theories.

Perhaps I am a bit out of step, some might claim naive. I tend to believe that those on the other side are generally acting in what they think is the best interest of the people. Obviously, some politicians on either side are dishonest, corrupt, and greedy and acting for no other reason than to feather their own nest, but ignoring them, I tend to think that the sincere politicians are driven by a real desire to improve things, at least by their own lights.

Now, on both sides, politicians will engage in expedient acts designed to do nothing but garner votes, but I accept that. If a politician believes he is the best choice, the one who can best run the country, sometimes he needs to do things to stay in office so he can carry out his longer term agenda. But beyond those expediencies, I tend to think politicians are driven by a belief they are making things better for people. Their underlying theories may be wrong, their basic premises may be wrong, but they are still acting for the general welfare, not to enact some conspiratorial agenda for some small group.

But I seem to be in a shrinking group. The right, for some reason, is very open this election cycle to charges of secret agendas and sinister conspiracies. From theories about a secret Islamic connection to questions about forged birth certificates to claims of hidden meanings in his choice of mistakes (57 states mirroring the number of Islamic states, for example) and so on, the right has started to mirror the left. We have yet to become so crazed that we welcome the right wing analogy of the truthers into our ranks, and we still stand up against the more bizarre elements within our party such as Buchanan's affection for Nazis and Islamic extremists, but we definitely are developing more of a taste for conspiracy theory. Nowhere near the fondness for it that the left has shown, but we are heading in that direction.

Perhaps it is because there really is quite a strong network of groups supporting Obama. The largely Soros funded network of organizations and their allies created by the byzantine restrictions of the McCain-Fiengold laws definitely give the impression of a secret conspiracy, except that their agenda is scarcely secret. Soros has made no secret of his desire to "transform America", nor has he been quiet about the agenda of each of his group.

Or maybe it is because the media has acted as such a strong support group for Obama while claiming impartiality. Or maybe because the media tried to hide damaging connections , such as those to Ayers or Rezko. But that is not evidence there is anything more than simple corruption, or shared beliefs, the press hid those things because they would have played badly with the public. We need postulate nothing more to explain them than that. Yes, the press has been committed to supporting Obama, and yes they have still tried to pretend they are nonpartisan, but that is not a conspiracy, that is simply the outcome of living in a liberal bubble. The press, despite their actions to the contrary, really thinks they are being impartial, that all right thinking people should love Obama. It is yet another symptom of the same thought processes that gave us the "no one I know voted for Nixon" quote. They think liberalism really is moderate, and so they believe endorsing Obama really is impartial*.

But honestly, I think more than anything, the paranoia of the right is simply a response to the paranoia on the left. In all politics, the two wings seem to mirror one another. If the left charges corruption, the right shows where the left is more corrupt. If the right charges favoritism, the left charges more favoritism. We can even see it in both McCain and Obama charging one another with bringing up irrelevant character issues, while simultaneously running ads attacking one another's character. We are so evenly matched, and so equally entrenched in Washington (and equally corrupt, as well), that we find ourselves engaged in this perpetual stalemate.

And, worse still, our politicians are so afraid the other side may gain some advantage that we will not let a move from the other side pass without making a counter move.Democrats propose prescription coverage, Republicans must propose their own. Republicans propose Social Security reform, so do the Democrats. Each side must match the other , policy for policy, no matter how poorly the policy fits their ideology. And so we have Republicans proposing ever expanding socialized medicine and a bigger education budget, while Democrats want to bail out Wall Street and give middle class tax cuts.

And now, the right peddling the same paranoia that afflicts the left.

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* To be fair, some are probably aware of how partisan they are being, but think that it is justified because of the importance of the election. But I really do think many believe that Obama is so charismatic that no one could think of him differently than they do. You can see it in the articles ascribing all opposition to racism. Providing they are honest, and they surely sound sincere, thos epeople really think only redneck hicks out in the hinterland are opposed to Obama, and then only because he is "colored". If it sounds absurd, read some of the blogs by left wing media types, you will find a lot of support for this degree of self-delusion.

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POSTSCRIPT

This has nothing to do with the paranoia displayed by Ron Paul and other libertarians. Their paranoia predates the Democrats paranoia. It is more the result of a particularly bad interpretation of libertarianism which sees the government not as a necessity, but as an outright enemy which should be actively fought. As it leads to really absurd beliefs, I tend to avoid libertarians for the most part, since they give a rather bad name to a valid view of government.

POSTSCRIPT II

I wrote a long time ago that we have a tendency to need villains to explain mishaps. In that case it was to explain the oil crisis, but it may also explain all the conspiratorial thinking about Obama as well. As he has repeatedly been decreed a sure thing he is something of a crisis for Republicans, especially when the alternative is McCain who many dislike. So, perhaps, we are prone to looking for secret agendas behind everything, as we are not willing to face the crisis of an Obama presidency without a villain to blame.

POSTSCRIPT III

Looking at old articles, I imagine some will accuse me of conspiratorial thinking in ascribing anti-human sentiments to environmentalists. But that is simply not true. I am ascribing nothing, many of the upper echelons of the eco movement have made no secret of their desire to see man greatly reduced in numbers, involuntarily if necessary. You can't call it a conspiracy when the other side is openly admitting the goals you ascribe to them.