A Town By Any Other Name

What’s in a name? An age-old question with what’s become a rhetorical answer — character, beliefs and emotions cannot be masked by a name. However, as Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) continues along the campaign trail, it appears as if he doesn’t understand the concept of the metaphorical question, choosing locations for no other reason than to legitimize his speeches and hoping his locations’ names create the images his actions dispel.

When Sens. Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) declared their truce, they chose Unity, N.H., wishing the town’s name would camouflage the sour look on Sen. Clinton’s face. But declaring armistice in Unity did not transform Clintonites into Obama supporters, nor did it hide the trenches dug between the candidates during the primaries.

So now the senator moves his tour through Independence, Mo., as a way to somehow confirm his patriotism. Throughout this election cycle, critics have argued against Sen. Obama’s love for his country. His pastor condemned America. His lapel only bore a flag pin after criticism for its absence. Simply making a speech in Independence does not and should not prove patriotism. Would his message be different if he said the same words in Egypt? Texas? It shouldn’t be. Do the same criteria qualify other cities? Is he only serious about the economy if he speaks in Commerce, Ga.? Or alternative fuels in Energy, Ill.?

As he admitted in a recent speech, he’s made some verbal mistakes that have put his patriotism into question. However, showing up in a town with a unique name should not qualify as the action that clarifies his patriotism. Would a town by any other name be so patriotic? So Independence — or any American community — would; were it not called Independence.