The Left won't let it go, will they?

When William Jacobson started blogging about "DijonGate," my reaction was one of amusement -- which, in case you haven't noticed, is my reaction to pretty much everything, including the Barack Obama dildo.

But, as I pointed out, DijonGate drove more than 100K visits Thursday and Friday for Professor Jacobson -- nearly an average month's worth of traffic in just two days -- mainly because the Left has gone wacko over this story. And they won't let it go.

Today, Pandagon's Jesse Taylor is back at it, arguing whether a $7 hamburger is a typical American lunch. Look, Jesse: I can get a junior cheeseburger, fries and a soft drink at Sheetz for about $4, total. But it's not about the burger price. It's not about the burger or the condiments or anything else.

It's about the fact that NBC News was afraid to let its viewers hear Barack Obama say "Dijon mustard," like he'd asked for a side order of Beluga caviar or something. As with their "reporting" on the economy, it's about elite journalism's obsession with safeguarding Obama's image.

So now there's a whole new Memeorandum thread, and Vox Day weighs in:

If you think that little of your potential audience's intelligence, you shouldn't be surprised that no one watches you; they clearly aren't capable of finding the on-switch.

Exactly. The producers who edited out "Dijon mustard" think Americans are stupid. Here's Ed Driscoll:

Obama and Biden's trip to Ray’s Hell-Burger in Arlington is remarkably reminiscent of Kerry and Edwards’ campaign photo-op at an New York State Wendy's. Mark Steyn's August 2004 Telegraph article is the definitive take on that classic faux-populist debacle. Much like the dangers of being photographed while wearing silly hats on the campaign trail, perhaps elitist politicians might want to think twice before slumming it at the local fast-food joint.

And here's Jehuda at the Rhetorican:

In this media environment it's easier than ever to point at the man behind the curtain, especially when the curtain isn't even hanging anymore.

What we are seeing on the Left is a fanatical devotion to the Politics of Perception. It doesn't matter that millions of Americans -- including lots of us who didn't vote for Obama -- share his preference for a burger topping that is neither exotic nor particularly expensive.

Dijon mustard can be purchased at any Safeway or Food Lion at a cost only modestly higher than the plain yellow variety. And, as Jesse Taylor accurately points out, lots of Ordinary Americans eat at Applebee's -- or TGI Friday's or similar chain restaurances -- where the appetizers are $7 and the entrees are $15 or more.

However, as regards DijonGate, none of this does matters. We've gone from DijonGate to Dijongeddon because what matters, at least in the minds of TV news producers and left-wing bloggers, is the careful maintenance of Obama's positive image.

The same is true of their reporting on the economy, where the question for elite journalists is not how many Americans are losing their jobs, but rather if Obama will be blamed for the job losses. We await the headline in the entertainment section of the New York Times:

'Star Trek' Breaks Box Office Record;
Film Helps Obama With Sci-Fi Voters

Is everything political now? Is news only relevant insofar as it causes people to vote Republican or Democrat? Will we soon see the TV weatherman telling us how the latest high-pressure system in the Midwest affects Obama's popularity? Will ESPN discuss the political impact of the Cardinals-Mets game?

Allow me the self-serving observation that when Professor Jacobson gets more traffic for a mustard story than I get for "Carrie Prejean nude," the politicization of news has gone too far. If Rush Limbaugh can't be allowed a laugh at the president's expense -- and if Bush-Cheney jokes are the only laughs allowed at the White House Correspondents Dinner -- Professor Jacobson's remarks about an Obama "cult of personality" may foretell a humorless future for American political culture.

UPDATE: At least the folks who make Grey Poupon haven't lost their sense of humor:

The Honorable Barack H. Obama
President of the United States
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20006
Dear Mr. President:
We applaud you, Mr. President, for exercising your freedom of taste when recently ordering a burger with Dijon mustard. We're always happy to see people use Dijon mustard to add flair and flavor to their favorite foods. The right to choose condiments freely is quintessentially American and embodies the spirit of our democracy.
So we urge you to respond to "Dijon-gate" by issuing a "pardon" to any American who has ever been criticized for putting a liberal spread of Dijon mustard on a burger or a conservative dollop on a ham & cheese sandwich. These "Pardon Me for Loving Dijon" proclamations will empower the millions of Dijon mustard-loving Americans to ask for their favorite condiment with pride.
Respectfully yours,
The GREY POUPON Team

See? Greedy capitalists have a sense of humor. Hat-tip to Legal Insurrection via Instapundit, who also links the latest on yellow -- or is that spicy brown? -- journalism.