Searching for the sinister

In response to Liberals Rush to Condemn Sexual Assault Victim:

Of course, they can’t just say a few random cranks said something unkind, because then there’s no collective purpose.  There has to be sinister intent to make these cultural conflicts politically useful.  There must be a powerful, shadowy conspiracy of evil, an organized Other that can be rallied against.

And of course, The Other is always right-wing in orientation.  During the flap over the Cheerios ad that got MSNBC in trouble for its institutionalized bigotry, I found myself thinking of the original story – a pile of nasty comments left on YouTube – and wondering why anyone would assume they all came from white racists who had a problem with the black husband depicted in the commercial.  

Tangentially, I wonder how anyone can be surprised that the beverage that brought us the “teach the world to sing” campaign back in the day would produce this one.  It’s not a shocking new direction for Coke, whether you like the ad (I thought it was cute, but it wasn’t my favorite of the evening) or not.