On Feb 5, 2008, at 3:24 PM, John Thornton wrote:
> Maybe people mesmerized into euphoria over a completely vacuous speech
> isn't creepy but if felt that way to me.
I suppose it has to be vacuous or they wouldn't be so moved. As Zizek wrote in his analysis of Jaws, people have a million interpretations of the symbolism of the shark. All of them are right, and all of them are wrong, because the shark is what you wanted it to be. If it were named, then it would drive people away. It's a lot like what J.D. Lorenz said of Jerry Brown's rhetorical strategy: the point was to create "an ambiance of possibility that gave the viewer space: space to project his fondest wishes onto Jerry, space to identify with Jerry...."