The Obama-as-Joker image that has crept into the mainstream is, if nothing else, a good marketing ploy. Everyone gets it, even if they don’t know anything about Batman. President Obama’s face (from one of his many Time Magazine covers) is overlaid with the makeup design from 2008's The Dark Knight’s interpretation of The Joker. The text from the magazine has been removed, but the red frame remains. Underneath the frame is the word "socialism" printed in black on a white background. The image has become the new rallying cry of the anti-Obama crowd, a much hipper and less cliché image that, say, Hitler.
From a visual design standpoint, it’s a nice piece of pop art. Everyone is familiar with The Dark Knight’s version of the Joker, even if they have not seen the movie, through the mass marketing of Joker shirts and other memorabilia. There are actually several online software tutorials for artists interested in creating their own Jokerized portraits (such as the Madoff portrait that graced New York Magazine some moths back.)
The message here, however, is unclear. The bold, black letters spelling out "socialism" have seemingly nothing to do with Obama's painted face. And what is the point of putting Obama in Joker-face a la Heath Ledger? Are they trying to portray Obama as a clown? Is it supposed to make him look menacing? Is Obama a likeable villain, like the Joker? Who knew the Joker was a socialist?
It was recently revealed that the person responsible for creating the particular graphic is a 20-year-old student, artist and Kucinich supporter. In fact, his creation was borrowed from online by an unnamed source, and re-edited to include the negative, "socialism" slant. He probably didn’t expect to become a hero of the paranoid, anti-Obama, government-fearing fringe of the right wing. And yet, that is exactly why Jokerbama has become so popular. The image is yet another way to package Obama as a boogieman. Of course, the political parrots of the movement have now incorporated the Joker meme into their ever-limited vocabulary (replacing, at least for the moment, "teleprompter.")
The Joker represents (and is represented by) the playing card that bears his image. Jokers, by definition, are wild. In any card game, the presence of a joker can completely change the rules of the game at any given moment. Anyone familiar with the Batman franchise knows that the Joker lives to create chaos for his own twisted amusement. The Dark Knight sharpens the character of the Joker more than any other interpretation has. In TDK, the Joker goes beyond the cartoonish villainy of past interpretations, and becomes a dark, mysterious terrorist intent on sending the public into anarchy as he commits his dastardly crimes. He wants to keep the people of Gotham confused and afraid. He looks for the mentally weak and impressionable to help push his personal agenda. He wants to convince the local government, its law enforcement, and its potential rogue heroes (like Batman) to abandon their supposed morals and ethics because they are no match for cold, violent human nature. In the Joker’s mind, everything is simply a game, and it’s only a matter of time before even the "good" guys join him in playing. Whether they play or not, the "good guys" (unlike the average citizens) also know the power of this game.
The Joker isn’t a socialist; he is nihilistic anarchist with a criminal mind.
Back to the health care debate in 2009 America. Who are the Jokers- the old people crying for the government to stay away from their Medicare? Single payer advocates? No. The real "Jokers" in this situation are the master manipulators, the ones perpetrating and promoting the deliberate nastiness and disinformation that has threatened to sabotage any and all pieces of the current administration’s agenda, not on any philosophical standing, but because they want to keep the rat race going.
The real Jokers will pretend to have some type of political or moral defense, but they only display the beliefs to play on the public’s emotions. They are not dumb. In fact, they know more about philosophies, beliefs, and fears than those whom they attempt to control. A Joker can take many forms and mean many things. They are the infotainment stars, backed by corporate money, who purposely create and read from scripts meant to agitate an audience with less education, patience, and analytical ability. If anyone catches on, they defend themselves, ironically by giving the game away. "I’m just a comedian, not a politician." They are the insiders who work as astro-turfers, given plenty of press and advertising money because they’ve already because their businesses are already bought out a particular media outlet. "Why are our opponents trying to discredit the genuine, grass roots uprising?" They are the political strategists whose purpose is to make the opponent look like a failure at all costs. "I’m concerned that they’re trying to politicize the debate."
They act boldly, sometimes crazily, and the rest of the media follows. Politicians look to them for orders on what spin to use on their constituents. Cable news waits, mouths watering, for the Joker(s) to make a declaration so outrageous that it sends people already on the edge into gun-toting frenzies. The crazier it gets, the better the ratings and sales.
Why are there so many Jokers involved? A deck of cards has two at the most, right? That is the problem: too many games are going on at once. Too many self-serving forces have embedded themselves in government and media, and are currently fighting amongst themselves for a hold on power. Right now, the President is dealing with smart-but-calculating Jokers who want to try and psych him out. If and how he plays with them has yet to be seen. But in the end, the Joker is only recognized as such by those who also recognize the game.
-JP