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The essence of political power is the ability to define. The ability to define "us" and "them". The ability to define what is "good" and "evil". The ability to define what is and is not a political problem. The ability to define political ideals, and the meanings of words. Hegemonic power is the ability to define without even trying, without anyone even noticing, much less objecting. And the first order of business of oppositional politics is to contest-not just a single definition, but the very ability to define.
"Don't piss on my leg and tell me it's raining."
That's what the NY Post did this week with its cartoon portraying President Obama as a murdered chimpanzee. First, the Post asserted its hegemonic capacity to define by publishing the cartoon. Then, when an uproar ensued, it asserted that capacity again, by denying what it had done. And then it asserted that capacity a third time, by defining itself as apologizing, when it was actually doing the exact opposite-continuing to attack those who called for the apology.
Hegemony matters, because, quite frankly, without challenging hegemony, Obama's presidency and the Democratic trifecta are ultimately doomed to fail. Hegemony is all-encompassing, touching on every aspect of politics, indeed, touching on every aspect of our culture, from which our politics comes. By proclaiming himself a "pragmatist" and eschewing ideological confrontation, Obama has placed himself at a distinct disadvantage. Arguably, he lacks a fundamental grasp of hegemony works. Either that, or he fails to appreciate how fundamentally it limits his options. Or he's playing 111-dimensional chess and he's getting all the rest of us to do his work for him. But any way you look at it, the response to the Post's cartoon is taking up the mantel of counter-hegemonic struggle, and raising it to the highest level.
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