Also, as others have mentioned, the idea that it is God's gift of discernment, as it pertains to Obama, is interesting. Maybe that's why so many of us are dumbfounded and frustrated that so many others are blind to the dangers of this man, and think he's a super swell, harmless, caring man, while we see just the opposite. I spend a lot of my internet time on an NFL message board that is kind of a free for all in the off-season as far as topics go, and I'm currently embroiled in several different discussions regarding Obama, and the vapid reasons for liking Obama that are given by people who I would otherwise consider extremely intelligent individuals, is maddening and useless, as no amount of reason seems to be able to penetrate their vision of Obama being some kind of personal savior who fills the void that atheism has left in their souls. These are people that vociferously argue against Christians, and having Christianity in any part of public life, yet they don't even realize that they're making their own God out of a politician by refusing to admit that the man might have even the tinyest of faults, let alone any glaring faults that would keep him, under "normal" circumstances, far away from the White House. Obama scares me, but his devoted followers scare me just as much, or more. He's only one person, while there are millions and millions of them.
The first time I saw him was when I went to visit my parents in Illinois for Christmas in 2005, and he was on the TV. I knew nothing about him except that my liberal parents loved him, and they told me that he was a shoe-in for the Dem nomination in 2008, which told me what side of the political aisle he was from, but not much more than that. Then he came on the TV and they sat staring at him with their unblinking eyes glazed over and this creepy smile on their faces, and as I looked at him, I just got this overwhelming feeling of dread, which has only increased with each passing month, and each passing year, as his recognition became more national. Outside of Illinois, most people had never heard of the guy until recently, but I knew of him 3.5 years ago, so you can imagine how I might feel now, as he's "climbed the ladder" for the last 4 years, coming out of nowhere, all the way to the Dem nomination. Ugh.
He did seem to just come out of nowhere.
I believe he owes much of his success to the media, who have carefully constructed him like they were building a monument.
I call him the Test Tube candidate of the MSM.