Long before this week's primaries I knew Barack Obama would likely win the Democratic nomination.

I don't base this supposition on polls or prognosticators. Rather, I've concluded that Obama will get the nod because he's wearing Starfleet sideburns. This isn't the first time I've allowed popular culture to shape my opinion of the Illinois senator. I've already remarked that he looks a lot like Clutch Cargo.

As for the other candidates...

If I were being mean, I'd suggest that Hillary Clinton fills the same ecological niche as Dr. Janice Lester, a former lover of Capt. Kirk's who resents his success in a male-dominated universe and uses a machine to perform a brain switcheroo.

But I'm not mean, so instead I'll note the similarities between Hillary and Nurse Christine Chapel, who is secretly in love with Mr. Spock but knows that nothing will come of it -- at least in the short run. Just about now, I think Hillary is beginning to realize that barring an Obama catastrophe, she's not going to be the Democratic Party's nominee.

John McCain's "Star Trek" counterpart is an easy one: He's Capt. Christopher Pike, the original commander of the USS Enterprise who was captured, imprisoned and tortured by the Talosians in the series' unsold pilot episode.

And although Pike is a warrior, he is increasingly reluctant to choose violence as a way to solve problems and is especially fretful over sending those he commands into deadly situations.

So, does all this mean that Obama is the "logical" choice? What do you think?

PHOTO CREDIT
Barack Obama photo by Jerry Richardson reproduced by permission under Creative Commons. Click on the photo to see the original, or go to Flickr.


ChicagoScope feedback line: 312-683-5272. Send e-mail to ChicagoScope@gmail.com.